This is about description and the behaviour of the Tasmanian Devil.
The Tasmanian devil is found in the wild at the Australian island state of Tasmania. Since the late 1990s, a catagious disease, the devil facial tumour disease has reduced the devil population. Short of a cure, scientists are removing the sick animals and quarantining healthy devils in case the wild population dies out. It has a squat and thick build, with a large head and a tail that is about half its body length. Its forelegs are slightly longer than its hind legs. The males are usually larger than females as they have an average head and body length of 652 mm, with a 258 mm tail, and an average weight of 8 kg, while females have an average head and body length of 570 mm, with a 244 mm tail, and an average weight of 6 kg. The average life expectancy of a Tasmanian Devil in the wild is estimated at six years, although they may live longer in captivity. As devil stores their body fats in their tails, unhealthy devils often have thin tails. The devil will produce a strong odour when they are agitated. Long whiskers on the face of the Devil can help to locate the prey when they are foraging in the dark and detect whether other devils are close during feeding. Hearing is its most important sense, but it also has an excellent sense of smell. The devils’ vision are the strongest in black and white, however, they have difficulty seeing stationary objects. Each Tasmanian Devil only has a set of teeth that grows slowly throughout its life.
The Tasmanian Devils spend their days in dense bush or in a hole. Young devils can climb the trees, but as they grow larger, it will become more difficult. They can swim and do not form packs. They occupy territories of 8–20 km², which can overlap considerably amongst different animals. It can take prey up to the size of a small kangaroo but they eat dead animal flesh more often than they hunt live prey. Even though they prefers wombats, it will eat other mammals such as birds or fish and reptiles. They can help the Tasmanian famers to prevent the spread of insects that might otherwise harm livestock as they can devour the bones, fur, meat and internal organs of the carcass.
Reflection:
From this website, I had learnt that the devil had a good sense of smell and their vision is the strongest in black and white. The devil produce a strong odour when agitated. The long whiskers on its face help the devil to locate prey. It can run up to 13 km per hour for short distances.The devils can take prey up to the size of a kangaroo but it eat carrion more often than they hunt live prey. The devil population dropped significantly as there is a spread of devil facial tumour disease. Short of a cure, scientists can only try to stop the population dies out by separating the sick animals and the healthy devils.
The Tasmanian devil is found in the wild at the Australian island state of Tasmania. Since the late 1990s, a catagious disease, the devil facial tumour disease has reduced the devil population. Short of a cure, scientists are removing the sick animals and quarantining healthy devils in case the wild population dies out. It has a squat and thick build, with a large head and a tail that is about half its body length. Its forelegs are slightly longer than its hind legs. The males are usually larger than females as they have an average head and body length of 652 mm, with a 258 mm tail, and an average weight of 8 kg, while females have an average head and body length of 570 mm, with a 244 mm tail, and an average weight of 6 kg. The average life expectancy of a Tasmanian Devil in the wild is estimated at six years, although they may live longer in captivity. As devil stores their body fats in their tails, unhealthy devils often have thin tails. The devil will produce a strong odour when they are agitated. Long whiskers on the face of the Devil can help to locate the prey when they are foraging in the dark and detect whether other devils are close during feeding. Hearing is its most important sense, but it also has an excellent sense of smell. The devils’ vision are the strongest in black and white, however, they have difficulty seeing stationary objects. Each Tasmanian Devil only has a set of teeth that grows slowly throughout its life.
The Tasmanian Devils spend their days in dense bush or in a hole. Young devils can climb the trees, but as they grow larger, it will become more difficult. They can swim and do not form packs. They occupy territories of 8–20 km², which can overlap considerably amongst different animals. It can take prey up to the size of a small kangaroo but they eat dead animal flesh more often than they hunt live prey. Even though they prefers wombats, it will eat other mammals such as birds or fish and reptiles. They can help the Tasmanian famers to prevent the spread of insects that might otherwise harm livestock as they can devour the bones, fur, meat and internal organs of the carcass.
Reflection:
From this website, I had learnt that the devil had a good sense of smell and their vision is the strongest in black and white. The devil produce a strong odour when agitated. The long whiskers on its face help the devil to locate prey. It can run up to 13 km per hour for short distances.The devils can take prey up to the size of a kangaroo but it eat carrion more often than they hunt live prey. The devil population dropped significantly as there is a spread of devil facial tumour disease. Short of a cure, scientists can only try to stop the population dies out by separating the sick animals and the healthy devils.
No comments:
Post a Comment