Thai Panda

How to find a good look out post? Simples! Meerkats clamber on watching humans to make sure they get the best view

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

He's clearly a-head of his pack: One of the intrepid meerkats climbs up Natalie Burrard-Lucas to get a better view as look out for the mob

These cheeky meerkats have gone to extra lengths to make sure they have the best view... by using humans as a sentry post.

The clever critters decided to make best use of visitors to their him in a bid to protect its family from being eaten by deadly predators.

Members of every meerkat family perform the role of standing guard while their kin forage for food near their dens.

They stand on their hind legs to survey the dangerous African bush for threats including snakes and hawks.

The ever alert creatures line up so that at the merest hint of danger they can alert their family, who will scuttle quickly to the safety of a nearby bush or rock.

The incredible behaviour was documented on a visit to a family of the animals in the Kalahari Desert, Botswana, by London-based wildlife photographers Will Burrard-Lucas, 27, and brother Matt, 21.

Will's wife Natalie, 27, also accompanied the brothers and was lucky enough to perform the role of sentry post for the vigilant meerkats.

Do you think we've been spotted? The cheeky critter also perches on one of the photographer's hats as he keeps a sharp eye out for predators

360 vision: Four meerkats peer in different directions in the Kalahari Desert, Botswana

He said: 'As soon as they become active they will climb the highest terrain to get a good view of the area.

'In a flash one had climbed on my wife, Natalie. As the tallest thing to hand Natalie's head was the logical place to climb, from the meerkat's point of view.

'She took it in her stride and sat calmly as the meerkat checked the bush for danger.

'It stayed there for about three minutes. We were able to take our pictures by allowing them to come to us rather than us going into their space.'

It wasn't me! The creatures line up in an identity parade shot as other members of the mob forage for food nearby

Groups of meerkats are known as a mob, gang or clan.

They can live up to 14 years and are totally immune to the poison of scorpions, one of their main food sources.

Meerkats are prolific diggers and can shift several times their own body weight of dirt in just a few seconds.

They live in the southern region of Africa and have thrived in Namibia, Botswana and South Africa.

source: dailymail

Read more!

A pair of African Lions

A pair of African Lions, Kaidi, rear, and Mhina, lie on a heated rock as snow falls at the Pittsburgh Zoo Thursday, Jan. 6, 2011.

A pair of African Lions, Kaidi, rear, and Mhina, lie on a heated rock as snow falls at the Pittsburgh Zoo Thursday, Jan. 6, 2011.

source: AP photo

Read more!

Penguins march on to ZooTube: Webcam feed of animals playing at Edinburgh Zoo becomes internet sensation

By CLAIRE COHEN

Ice cool: Captured on a webcam the penguins of Edinburgh Zoo have become this winter's internet sensation

They are the latest unlikely stars of the internet.

But you won’t see these celebrities stumbling out of a nightclub or appearing on a reality show any time soon.

Why? They’re penguins - and far too busy sliding around in the snow.

Captured on a webcam - which some wags have christened ZooTube - the penguins of Edinburgh Zoo have become this winter’s internet sensation.

The live feed shows the zoo’s Gentoo penguin population (they have a distinctive white stripe on their heads), although King penguins have been known to wander into shot, too.

While Edinburgh Zoo itself was closed over Christmas and the New Year, people from all over the world were logging on to watch the penguins at play and swimming and splashing about in their pool.

Playtime: Watching the zoo's Gentoo penguin population has been described as 'the best thing on the internet'

Twitter users described the webcam as ‘the best thing on the internet’, even admitting to being ‘jealous’ of the fun the creatures seemed to be having.

So popular was the webcam, that the huge number of people trying to access it even led to the internet site crashing.

To see the penguins log on to edinburghzoo.org.uk/EZPenguinCam.html.

Just make sure to do it before the sun goes down: the camera doesn’t have night vision - and trying to p-p-p-pick penguins out in the dark isn’t much fun.

Back in June, Roslin Talbot, head keeper of the penguins at Edinburgh Zoo, provided an update on the gentoo penguin chicks born last spring:

source: dailymail

Read more!

Say 'Cheese'! Zebra flashes a toothy grin INSIDE a carload of tourists

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

The Koehler family had been driving around the Georgia wildlife park when they spotted the zebra and rolled down a window to say hello take a snapshot

This zebra wasn't too shy to have his photo taken as he thrust his head into a carload of tourists driving through a wildlife park in Georgia.

Just like Marty the Zebra from hit film Madagascar, the cheeky beast flashed a toothy grin for the camera.

The pictures was captured by Irina Koehler while she was driving through Pine Mountain Wild Animal park in with her family.

As the family greeted the animal he leaned into the car with his whole head

The family had been taking pictures of animals at the park all day when they spotted an approaching Zebra.

They wound down their windows to take a snapshot but got more than they bargained for when the cheeky Zebra stuck his head through the window and opened wide with a smile of teeth and gums.

Irina said: 'We nearly jumped out of our skin, I thought I'd be lucky if the zebra stood still long enough for me to get a picture, I didn't expect him to pose for the camera.

'My children are big fans of the film Madagascar, and this zebra reminded me of Marty from the film.'

She added, 'They say zebras are unpredictable and easily startled, this one was definitely unpredictable but I think we were the one's startled.'

'It's not every day a zebra pops his head through your car window, so i'm glad we captured the moment on camera, it certainly made for a memorable day.'

Fancy a kiss? Irina's husband didn't, and leaned as far away from the toothy zebra as possible when the animal gave a toothy grin for the photo

The Georgia zebra bore a striking resemblance to Madagascar's Marty the Zebra, which was voiced by Chris Rock

source: dailymail

Read more!

White lion cubs

Three white lion cubs are presented to the public at the city zoo in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday Jan. 5, 2011. The cubs were born on Nov. 16, 2010. According to zoo officials these are the first white lions to be born in South America.

Men dressed as the Three Wise Men look at one of the three one-month-old white lion cubs at the Buenos Aires zoo January 5, 2011.

Sofia carries one of her three lion cubs during their presentation to the public at the city zoo in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday Jan. 5, 2011. According to zoo officials these are the first white lions to be born in South America. The cubs were born on Nov. 16, 2010.

A white lioness named Sofia holds one of its three one-month-old cubs in its enclosure at the Buenos Aires zoo January 5, 2011

A white lion cub looks out towards visitors during a presentation to the public at the city zoo in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday Jan. 5, 2011. Three white lions, one male and two females, were born on Nov. 16, 2010. According to zoo officials these are the first white lions to be born in South America.

Three one-month-old white lion cubs are seen in their enclosure at the Buenos Aires zoo January 5, 2011.

A white lioness named Sofia holds one of its three one-month-old cubs in its enclosure at the Buenos Aires zoo January 5, 2011.

Children look at one of the three white lion cubs presented to the public at the city zoo in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday Jan. 5, 2011. The cubs were born on Nov. 16, 2010. According to zoo officials these are the first white lions to be born in South America.

Sofia and her three white lion cubs are presented to the public at the city zoo in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday Jan. 5, 2011. According to zoo officials these are the first white lions to be born in South America. The cubs, a male and two females, were born on Nov. 16, 2010.

source: Daylife
photo: AP photo, Reuters

Read more!

C'meer and give me a kiss: Mummy meerkat makes youngster pucker up

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Mum, you're embarrassing me! These cute meerkats were caught 'kissing' by a delighted onlooker at a zoo in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. But in actual fact, it's good old mum trying get sand out of the mischievous youngster's nose

It looks like this cute meerkat is puckering up for a kiss - but it's not that simples!

The mischievous youngster got sand up its snout after playing in the sand and needed his mother's help to get it out.

Library assistant Elke Terstegen, 38, photographed the playful scene at her local zoo.

She said: 'The photo isn't as romantic as it looks - it is actually a mother and her child.

'It was a kind of 'Oh, you have something in your face - let me take my handkerchief, spit on it and rub it away'.

'We all know that behaviour from our own mum.

'This picture was the only one where the pup was standing still.

'On the others it was always trying to escape its mother.

'Before that the pup was digging in the sand so its snout was full of it.'

Elke, from Gelsenkirchen, Germany, said: 'The meerkats are my favourite animals because they seem to have some human habits like in this picture.'

The picture was taken at Zoom Erlebniswelt in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.

source: dailymail

Read more!

How turtles can conquer Atlantic by swimming thousands of miles in a perfectly straight line

By DAVID DERBYSHIRE

Are we there yet? Leatherback sea turtles travel thousands of miles for anything up to 150 days to reach feeding and breading grounds

They are famed for their epic voyages across the world's roughest oceans.
But until now, nobody quite appreciated just how good leatherback turtles were at navigation.

In a new study, British scientists have discovered that the gigantic females can swim for thousands of miles in a perfectly straight line.

Following a course that would be the envy of a state-of-the-art cruise liner, the turtles make the transatlantic journey from Central Africa to South America using the shortest possible route.

Inbuilt sat-nav: Scientists from Exeter University have now discovered that these amazing creatures are able to make their long journeys traveling the shortest possible route - often swimming in a perfectly straight line

Exactly how turtles can swim in a straight line remains a mystery to biologists.
However, they are thought to use a combination of vision - relying on the position of the stars and sun - and a sense of the Earth's magnetic field, to steer their way.

Fancy a dip? Leatherbacks spend almost their entire lives in the water. The only time they leave their watery sanctuary is when they are nesting or when hatchlings, like this little fella, emerge from their nests

The findings come from a study led by the Centre for Ecology and Conservation at Exeter University.

Over five years, the researchers tagged 25 females with satellite tracking devices strapped or drilled to their shells as they left their hatching grounds in Africa to seek food across the Atlantic.

They discovered three migratory routes - including one 4,699 mile journey straight across the Atlantic from Gabon to the coastal waters off southern Brazil and Uruguay that took 150 days.

Dr Matthew Witt, who published the findings in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, said: 'Despite extensive research carried out on leatherbacks, no-one has really been sure about the journeys they take in the South Atlantic until now.

'What we’ve shown is that there are three clear migration routes as they head back to feeding grounds after breeding in Gabon, although the numbers adopting each strategy varied each year.

'We don’t know what influences that choice yet, but we do know these are truly remarkable journeys – with one female tracked for thousands of miles travelling in a straight line right across the Atlantic.'

A map of the three routes taken by migrating turtles. Group 2, made up of leatherback turtles, travelled in a straight line

source: dailymail

Read more!

Can Lucy, 39, really be the oldest cat in the world? (Or is it just a shaggy dog story?)

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Deaf but happy: Lucy, a 39-year-old cat from Llanelli, South Wales is believed to be the oldest cat in the world after a visiting aunt remembered her as a kitten in 1972

A family has discovered their cat is the oldest in the world after reaching its 39th birthday.

Pet Lucy was born way back in 1972 when Ted Heath was Prime Minister and petrol was 33p a gallon.

Cat experts say she has clocked up the equivalent of 172 human years - and cats live to be about 15 on average which means Lucy has more than doubled her life expectancy.

Lucy is still fit as a fiddle - and catches mice in the garden. Owner Bill Thomas, 63, inherited Lucy when his wife's Godmother Maria Lewis died in 1999.

But it was only when an elderly aunt came to visit that he realised Lucy was a record breaker.

He said: 'My aunt saw the cat and could not believe her eyes.

'She could remember Lucy scampering around maria's fish and chip shop when she was a kitten back in 1972. We knew she was old - but not that old.'

Town councillor Bill, of Llanelli, South Wales, took Lucy to the vet who was amazed by the cat's long life. Bill said: 'The vet said she was very old but it was not possible to give us an exact age.

'Great with the grandchildren': Lucy with Ethan Thomas, aged 6. Cat experts say Lucy has clocked up the equivalent of 172 human years

'Lucy has gone deaf but apart from that she is in good shape and extremely independent.

'She is great with the grandchildren and still likes to patrol the garden every day looking for mice.' Until now the world's oldest recorded cat was a pet called Creme Puff from Texas, USA, which lived for 38 years and three days.

Bill said: 'We have researched Lucy's past and found she was born in Thomas Street, Llanelli in 1972.

He said: 'We have spoken to other people who can verify seeing her in the fish and chip shop in the early seventies.

'She appears to be the genuine article.' A spokesman for Guinness World Records said there was no entry for the world's oldest cat.

source: dailymail

Read more!