Praying Mantids

I love to catch bugs. Right now I have three praying mantids in my room. I keep them in separate jars. I feed them grasshoppers. They really like grasshoppers. Their abdomen gets huge after they have eaten. They are kind of vicious when they eat. I decided to learn more about them. This is what I found out.

Some can grow up to 6 inches long.
There are 2,000 different kinds.
Some are brown and some are green.
They eat live prey that they stalk them.
They eat insects, frogs and lizards.
Some kinds don't have wings.
They fold their legs in a way that makes it look like they are praying.

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle: Today I learned about the bald eagle. They are 2 or 3 feet tall, but their wing is 8 feet long! They are the only eagle native to North America. They have been the National Bird since1782. They are often found by lakes and rivers looking for fish and other animals. They eat small animals, small birds, fish and carrion. Carrion is a dead animal. They especially eat these in the winter. They built their nest in the trees or on the ground. It takes 5 years for the birds to get their white head feathers.

Dragon Land

Here's a story that I wrote today and yesterday.

Long ago there was a land that had a library full of books. One of those books was magic. The cover of the book had a dragon on it. It was an old dusty leather book that had not been opened in a long time. Two brothers were playing in the library and looking at all the old dusty books. They stumbled upon the dragon book. They carefully opened it, when suddenly they disappeared with a whoosh. Where had they gone?

The two brothers suddenly found themselves in a dragon world. They were still holding the book. Now what should they do? They looked in the book and they saw a picture of themselves. They read in it and it said, “Find the 5 dragon pearls to escape Dragon Land. Now where do they start? In the book they saw a pearl by a picture. The first picture was of a little red dragon with a pearl in his cave. His cave was next to a big lake. Now they had to find that lake!

Suddenly a friendly purple dragon appeared. He gave them a map. He said if they follow the map they would find the first pearl. He said he would fly them there. So they hopped on and off they flew following the directions on the map. It was fun flying on the dragon’s back. In no time they were landing in front of the little red dragon’s cave. The little red dragon was gone. They went inside the cave and found the pearl in a big black hole. The purple dragon said it was okay to take the pearl.

After they took the pearl and went back outside they opened up the book they saw the next pearl behind a waterfall. The purple dragon didn’t have a map but he said he knew the way.

Off they flew again! After a short flight they found the waterfall. The friendly, purple dragon flew them in behind the waterfall into another cave. They found the pearl on the rocky ledge on a wall in the cave.

The next picture of a pearl in the book was in an old tree. The dragon didn’t know where the tree was. He said they go see the old wizard. Off they went to see the wizard. The wizard was excited to see them. He loved visitors. He taught the magic words to say when they found all the pearls. He told the dragon how to get to the old tree. He also said that in a hole in the tree was a map for the last two pearls. He said after they found all the pearls and said the magic words they would be able to come to dragon world anytime they wanted. When you do come back you better come and see me again because I have a lot to teach you. They waved good bye and off the flew on the friendly dragon.

When they arrived at the tree the purple dragon saw two of his friends. They helped the boys find the rest of the pearls. Once they had all the pearls they said the magic words and “poof” they were in the old library again! What an adventure!

When they looked at the dragon book they saw that their friendly dragon friends were being beat by an evil black dragon. They knew they needed to save him. They would have many adventures to come. The End.

Komodo dragon

The Komodo dragon. These lizards can weigh up to 155 pounds (double that in captivity). They are the heaviest and biggest lizard in the world. They can grow to almost 10 feet long! That is ridiculous. That's as deep as the swimming pool we swim at. They live on some islands of Indonesia. They can stand up using their tail to support them. They can smell blood 3 miles away. They eat freshly killed and dead animals. Adults can bring down deer, wild pigs and water buffalo. They can live up to 40 years. I've seen some in zoos. They are pretty big and scary looking.

Thorny Devil

Thorny devil

This lizard is found in Australia. It is hard to see because it is so well camouflaged. They move slow and they rock back and forth as they move. They have an armor of sharp spines all over their body. The big ones are on their head and back, with smaller ones on their legs and feet. This protects them while they eat insects on the ground. They can eat 2,500 insects at one meal with their long tongue.

Boas and Pythons

Boas and pythons are constricting snakes. They kill their prey by squeezing them to death! Most boas live in the Americas and have live young. Most pythons live in Africa, Asia and Australia and they lay eggs.

Anaconda. This the worlds heaviest snake weight 550 pounds. It spends most of its life in shallow water. They hunt in the dark and can kill deer and even caymans (which are like alligators). They can live for 25 years.

Emerald tree boa. This snake doesn't live on the ground it lives in the trees. It blends with the rainforest. They live in South America and can grow to be 6 feet long. I've seen one of these at a natural history museum that our family always goes to.

Pacific ground boa. They eat lizards, frogs and small mammals. They live in New Guinea and grow to be 39 inches long.

Amazon tree boa. This boa hangs down from trees and catches a tasty lizard or bird from a lower branch. This boa can be almost any color. They grow to be 6 1/2 feet long and live in northern South America.

Carpet python. This snake is Australia's most common stake. It has several different local names. It as bold markings. They can lay 50 eggs at a time. They grow to be 6 1/2 feet.

Turtles and Tortoises

Turtles are the oldest living reptile. They have no teeth, but they have sharp jaws to cut food. They can live on the land or in the water. Although all turtles come to lay their eggs on the land. If they live on land then they are called a tortoise.


Skeleton. The ribs of a turtle are attached to his shell. This prevents the pumping action of the ribs that usually circulates the oxygen. So in a turtle they use their legs to pump the oxygen in and out.

Matamata. These turtles seek out their prey. They have good camouflage. They have a triangular head, large eardrums, and snorkel-like nose. Their nose lets them breath without coming out of the water.

Alligator Snapping Turtle. They are the largest fresh water turtle. They grow to be 220 pounds. They live in the Louisiana area of the United States. They also hunt by waiting for their prey. They have a pink structure, like a tongue, that dangles in their open mouths. This attracts fish like a lure toward them. And then SNAP they have themselves a nice lunch!

Indian Star Tortoise. They have star-shaped markings and bumps on their shells. They need lots of water. They are most active during the rainy season. During the dry season they only come out in the morning or late afternoon.

Galapagos Tortoise. This is the largest living tortoise. It has a huge shell, big limbs and a long neck. They graze in small herds. They can grow up to four feet long. They can live for a hundred years.

Goblin Shark

Today I "Googled" Goblin Sharks with my mom. They are very wierd looking! They are sometimes called a living fossil. They are a very old shark. They swim in very deep waters. They are usually found 500 feet down, but they have been discovered as deep as 4,000 feet! They eat deep sea fish, crabs and squid. They are 11 feet long and weigh 350 pounds. Their liver is ofter 25% of their body weight. That's a heavy liver. They oftet have a pink coloring because they are transparent. They also bruise easily. They are found in all parts of the world, but especially in the bays of Japan where they are prominent.

Foxes and wild dogs

The Red Fox. Did you know that a red fox will eat anything? They will eat eggs, mice, frogs, fruit, beetles and rabbits. You name it and they will eat it. The Red Fox lives in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. They live in an earth den. They might live in an old rabbit hole that they made bigger. They can be any color. They can be gray, rusty read, orange or black. There are even silver and white ones.

The Arctic Fox. These foxes live in all the arctic regions of the world. They are white to blend in with the snow and be camouflaged from predators. In the summer they are gray-brown. They are almost half the size of the red fox. They only grow to be 8 pounds.

The Crab-Eating Fox. These foxes live on the east coast of South America. They eat fresh water and coastal crabs. They will also eat a variety of other animals. They are considered a medium sized fox.

The Raccoon Dog. This creature looks like a dog and a raccoon. It eats a variety of things. It is prominent in Japan and eastern China. It is spreading into Europe now as well. This dog climbs trees easily and also hibernates in the winter!

The African wild dog. This dog can grow to be 80 pounds. They are very social and can have a pack as large as 30 or more adults plus their young. They hunt in packs. They hunt wildebeest, zebra and impala. They have long legs, lean build, and a small head. Their scientific name means "painted wolf." They are endangered right now.

Toucans and woodpeckers

Today I learned about a type of Toucan and a couple of interesting woodpeckers.


The Toco Toucan. This toucan has the longest beak, called a bill. They can be as long as 7 1/2 inches. This helps them reach food at the end of twigs that could not support their weight. This bird isn't very social and likes to stay by itself. They make their nest in trees that already have holes. They live in Brazil.

Another Toco Toucan.

Acorn Woodpecker. They eat acorns. They will drill holes in a a tree and stuff an acorn inside of it. With a lot of woodpeckers working together one tree can have 50,000 acorns it! They live on the west coast of North and Central America.

The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Wood pecker. These birds like to eat the sap out of trees, especially maple and fruit trees.They drill a lot of holes and then return to the first to eat the sap once it starts coming out.

Black Woodpecker. This is Eurasia's largest woodpecker. It can be 18 inches in length. It is the size of a crow. It mainly eat insects.

Sharks

Today I learned about SHARKS!
They have bodies that are like torpedoes! They move quickly. They have lots of sharp teeth. They have a really good sense of smell. They can smell blood very far away. There are over 300 different kinds of sharks. They usually live in warm waters. There are zebra,whales, sandtiger, goblin, crocodile, leopards, lemon, cat, bull, and tigers sharks. I think that's funny that there are so many different names.

The Whale Shark. This is the biggest fish in the world. It can be 39 feet long. It is safe for humans though. This shark only eats plankton.

The Great White Shark. This is the meanest of the bad boys. He is know has a the great "man eater." This shark can grow to be 20 feet long and weigh 2 tons! They eat seals, sea lions, dolphins, large fish, other sharks and anything else that looks good to eat! They have large, flesh tearing teeth. Look out for this guy!

The Hammerhead. They grow to be 13 feet long. Their eyes are in a weird place. They are very grouchy! They are known to attack humans. They are unlike most other sharks because they often live in schools and migrate in huge numbers.

The Zebra Shark. They can grow to be 9 feet long, but they don't weigh very much. They have a flexible body. They eat shrimps, crabs, and small bony fish. Their mouth is a different shape that lets them eat mollusks. They usually stay on the sea floor. There is only one kind of zebra shark.

Pygmy Shark. These are one of the smallest sharks. They have organs that produce lights. They cast shadows making them harder to hunt. They only grow to be 10 inches long.

Mollusks

Today and yesterday I learned about mollusks. They can have the most unusual shapes. Mollusks are squids, octopuses, clams, slugs, snails, murexes, and oysters.

Most mollusks have a flat foot that they use to crawl around with. They leave a trail of slime to help them move. There are about 100,000 types of mollusks.

The squid. They can be as big as 65 feet. No squid has ever been caught alive.

The Great Giant Pacific Octopus. It lives from Alaska to Japan in the North Pacific Ocean. They can weight 100 pounds and be 15 feet long. They live alone in dens. After the babies are born the mother octopus will die! They look mean!

The Blue-Ringed Octopus. This octopus lives in the coral reefs of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. They are only 4 inches long BUT they are so poisonous that a human can die from their bite in 15 minutes. Look out for them!

Giant Clam. They are over 3 feet long and can weigh over 400 pounds. They are safe creatures that only eat algae.

Murexes. They chase after other mollusks and bore holes in their shells. They secrete purple dye that has been used for centuries. They are found in the Indo-Pacific. They are only 6 inches long.