Threatened animals
Gray Squirrel
The gray squirrel (Sciurus to aureogaser) also knows itself like arboreal or flying squirrel. This must be because they pass most of his life in the trees and to their capacity “to fly” of branch in branch. The gray squirrel belongs to an animal group whose classification just began to elaborate; until now there are five types of them: 1. Grays, 2. Reddish, 3. Abert, 4. Of Deppe, 5. From Douglas, to be able to define the squirrels geographic situation is taken into account, the presence or absence of pin to premolar in the superior jaw and the size or color. The gray squirrels are the unique ones that live in the Yucatan Peninsula. They are of medium size, with the mainly gray back and the belly is of reddish color. The south to Chiapas and the Yucatan Peninsula are in the coasts from Sonora and Tamaulipas towards. Also it is possible to be found them in the high parts of the south of Mexico. In the tropical forests, from the humid semi-arid thorny to and the rainy one, they are the places that have more population of these squirrels. The arboreal squirrels only lower of the trees to look for food or water or to only change of tree. They are born in the glasses of the trees, unlike the other squirrels that happen most of the time in burrows (small underground caves). The gray squirrel can reproduce at any time of the year, although sometimes its reproductive period changes due to strong droughts. Its period of gestation is of 44 days and 2 to 6 babies are born and are developed in the nest. They open their eyes after a month of being born.
Giant Armadillo
Giant Armadillo common name: great, giant cachicamo, tatu cuspon, giant cuspa, cuspa, tatu cart, giant armadillo. Scientific name: Priodontes maximus (Priodontes giganteus). Its size from head to tail is from 150 to 160 cms. of which 50 cm correspond to the tail. Its weight is of approximately 60 kg. It has a bony armor that covers the back and the flanks to him, but in spite of seeming very rigid is quite flexible. Its color is yellow in the sides and brown in the back. Their legs have long nails that allow to construct giant caves like burrows and to investigate and to break anthills or termite homes to look for food. Its language secretes a viscous substance that allows him to capture the insects. Its sense of smell is very good to detect in where is their prey. The other senses are not well developed, in fact it does not distinguish colors, but this does not have nocturnal customary importance since it is an animal. During the day they take refuge in its burrows. They have an average life of 12 to 15 years; the Giant Armadillo normally lives in Savannahs and humid forests on South America. They feed themselves on ants and termites. Its period of gestation is of approximately 4 months and has 1-2 babies. The ONLY PREDATOR IS the MAN who hunts it immoderately to use his armor as adornment and its meat like exotic food. Also they deal with live animals, knows that it is gotten to pay up to 500.000,00 dollars.
Atlantic Ridley or dark-brown turtle
Atlantic Ridley or dark-brown turtle is, among the turtles that exist, the most peculiar along with turtle of the Pacific, the dark-brown turtle is the smallest of the marine species, and it weighs less than 10 kilos. The shell gives Atlantic Ridley or dark-brown turtle is almost circular and their semi-triangular head, their young when they are dunked is black and dry they are gray, in agreement they grow the colors are changing until in the adult age - some say that it happens of between the 7 and 15 years and other that do not happen until the 35 - they change to green in its belly and the gray shell. The feeding of the Dark-brown turtle is basically carnivorous, eat blue jaiba, of sand, crab lady, shrimp, clams, sprocket wheels, medusas, fish and very little vegetal. When they reproduce, they generally do it in front of the nesting beach, although there are other beaches where they nest like Washington in Tamaulipas and Tecolutla Veracruz, peculiarly it is in the case of the dark-brown turtle, the beach of “New Farm” in Tamaulipas the main nesting beach. The female Atlantic Ridley or dark-brown turtle, nests four times by season with spaces of between 10 and 28 days between nested and depending on the beach, it does in the day or at night and puts of between 80 to 140 eggs by nested, and the period of incubation it depends on the climate, but they can be of between 45 and 70 days. The predators of Atlantic Ridley or dark-brown turtle are mainly the sharks. Of eggs the skunk, pigs, dogs, crabs, ants and larvae of fly. And the young by; skunks, dogs, crabs, birds and fish.
Marine Turtle
We have a lot of fame in our group of reptiles; they are in the Coasts of Mexico. One of the most famous reptiles than we have in our coasts is the marine turtle, since at our coasts every 10 years arrive from the 11 different types from marine turtles. The marine turtles are in all tropical and tempered water oceans. Although in the Earth they are slow, in the water they are very fast, agile and apart from that they are excellent swimmers. The marine turtles can arrive at a speed of up to 35 kilometers per hour in the water. During the time of reproduction it is very common to see them in beaches and sandy coasts in great groups because they are burying its eggs that get incubated with the environmental temperature. After the 45 to 65 days the baby turtles break the shell and they leave towards the surface of the sand. They go very quickly to the sea. Very few baby turtles manage to survive (it depends in the situation they face). Their destiny can be any of these situations: that other fish eat them, that they get captured or they manage to survive. The turtles can be carnivorous, herbivorous or omnivores. The marine turtles are in danger of extinction because of their excessive hunting or its capture. The Marine Turtles that are in Danger of Extinction in America are: The Green Turtle which normally lays its eggs in North America and Florida. The Turtle of Shell Skin-This Turtle lives in the northeast of the coasts of South America. This turtle instead of having a visible shell has a shell with small layer of skin. Loggerhead Turtle Turtle-This Turtle lives in the East of the coasts of Canada. Snapper turtle -This Turtle also lives in Canada and is the greatest one that lives in fresh water and rivers.
The toucan
The toucan is a bird that can be distinguished by many things like its plumage like a peacock which is very elegant and normally black and some colors in the tail; another thing that distinguishes them is their majestic beak full of color and great volume. The toucan lives in the great forests but sometimes they prefer and move to humid forests and/or colder zones of 2000 or 3000 above sea level. The toucan feeds itself mainly on fruits, other species eggs and of little birds that just left the shell. The reproduction of the toucan is for a long period and it consists of only two eggs. First they construct a nest following many steps, for that reason they are known as semi carpenters. Later the female puts eggs and it takes care of them until they hatch. The toucan lives like any other arboreal bird (lives most of the time in trees) eats fruits, makes nests, reproduce, etc.
American Caiman
The American Caiman lives in internal waters of the Southeast of the United States. In the United States the American Caiman already is in the list of the animals in danger of extinction. In the United States it’s being protected by the law but interchanges and illegal hunting continue and that makes that every time less American Caimans are found. The American Caimans are carnivorous (they feed themselves on meat). The American Caimans are hunted by their skin that is interchanged with other countries. But thanks to God, now it seems that the species is recovering in the wild nature and also there are a great number of these caimans in the zoos and there, they are out of danger.
North American White pelican
The North American or American White Pelican nest in the north of the United States and Canada, but in autumn it flies to the south and it is seen in the Gulf of Mexico, it is possible that they fly to Panama. Recently it has increased its population, so much that in some places it is considered abundant or common. Normally the North American white pelican lives in fresh water lakes mainly in the states of Texas and Florida when it is not time for mating. Unlike the Gray Pelican, “it does not dive” to eat, they prefer the collaborative fishing and in addition they fly in groups of up to 3500 units or in formation in “V” or “Indian row” and travel up to 500 km. in 24 hours to a height of 3050 meters. With regards to the size of the North American white pelican, the male is always bigger although not at first sight, its length varies from the 1,3 to the 1,75 of length, and their wings when they are extended they measure from 2,4 to 2,9 mts. The weight of the males is of 7 kilos, although at rare times they can weigh 14 kilos, the females weigh 5 to 9 kilos. A unique characteristic of the species is the crest that they have during the season of nesting. The time of nesting of the North American White pelican is during the spring and the boreal summer. They live in pairs that change every year but in captivity these pairs stay together for some years. They are good neighbors and they maintain distances between its nests, in which they deposit two eggs and both parents participate in the incubation that lasts 29 to 36 days. The pigeons depend on their parents until the 75th day. The North American white pelican can live up to 26 years, but the pigeons have a rate of mortality of 40% without mentioning their indiscriminated hunting and the deterioration of their habitat.
Bald eagle
The Bald Eagle is protected by the United States since it is one of the patriotic symbols for being in the flag. For other people the Bald Eagle is a symbol that means freedom. But even so it is in danger of extinction. The Bald Eagle is very capable of hunting. The Bald Eagles live from Alaska to the deserts of Chihuahua, Mexico. It eats many animals, including the aquatic birds that submerge when they see that something is going to attack them but that does not stop that hungry eagle. The Bald Eagle is very abrupt and sometimes it takes food from the other animals. The babies of Bald Eagle do not have white feathers in the head after their fourth year of life. The body of an adult Bald Eagle measures approximately from 75 to 85 cm.
Californian Condor
The Condor is the name of two great American vultures. The Californian Condor obviously lives in California. This one Condor weighs approximately 10 kilograms. The Californian Condor, just as its relative the Condor of the Andes is fed on carrion. Carrion is bones with little meat and some rest of other animals. The Californian Condor never was very numerous, but by the destruction of its habitat it is causing that every time there is less space. Another reason why the Condor is being extinct is because of the lack of food, since many animals now die by poisonings if the Condor also eats it dies. The Condor has its plumage of grayish color and has a spread (of the end of a wing to the end of the other wing) of up to 3 m. The Californian Condors lay a single egg, on rocks or the ground of the caves. The development of these Condors is very slow and begins to fly at six months.
Travelling hawk
The Travelling Hawk once was numerous in North America but now it can be extinct. The Travelling Hawk is getting extinct by poisonings by a toxic substance well-known in English like DDT. The DDT is a restricted toxic substance (that no longer can be used) and was used in insecticides. The Travelling Hawk has undergone much and is no longer seen in its habitat. It lives from Canada to the United States. When its disappearance has been more noticeable is in the last decades. The Travelling Hawk now is in the endangered species list in Canada and the United States. The Travelling Hawks can fly up to a speed of 110 kilometers per hour. The diet of the travelling hawks consists mainly of other birds.