HERMIT CRAB

A hermit crab changes its shell when it has grown large enough to need a bigger home. This type of crab has a soft abdomen or "tail", which is folded up under the body, but it is not protected by as hell of its own as are most other crabs. instead the hermit uses empty snail shells as portable shelters, often having to fight with another crab for posses ion of an attractive home. some times the home seeker pulls out the original occupier, eats it and then takes over the shell.

one of the claws of the hermit is larger than the other. The crab uses this to stop up the entrances after withdrawing into the shell. The last two legs pads which grip the inside of the shell and hold the body in position. The crab has a spiral shaped abdomen and moves in and out of Otes shell with a spiral movement.

One kind of hermit occupies a sponge which which conveniently grows at the same pace as the crab. some times sea-anemones enter into partnership with hermit cranes and tale up residence on top of the shells . The crab provides the sea-anemone with transport and in return, receives an extra shield against attack.

PTERODACTYL

pterodactyls (or pterosaurs) lived between 150 million and 70 million years ago. These extraordinary reptiles were able to fly.some had a wing-span of over 25 feet, making them by far the largest flying animals known to man. Their skulls were often longer than four feet.


since most remains of pterodactyls have been scored among marines sediments, it seems likely that these flying dinosaurs found their food in the sea, like seagulls, by diving. for fish.

FOSSIL

Fossils are the remains, moulds, traces or impressions of prehistoric animals and plants found in the ground. The word comes from the Latin fodder, meaning "to dig' and originally meant any old, curious object dug out of the earth. But since about the middle of the 16Th century , fossils have been regarded specifically as hard objects showing evidence of earlier forms of life, often many millions of years old.
There are many kinds of fossils, some are footprints which strange, prehistoric left behind I'm nude long since turned to rock. others are stones which were once soft substances, but still preserve the outlines of extinct plants , or of seashells , or of the bodies of animals. Sometimes even the bones of creatures have survived.
The study of fossils, which is called palaeontology, has enabled scientists to fill many vital gaps in the history of the world and its inhabitants . for examples. fossils have shown that rocks in great mountain ranges like the Alps or the Rocky Mountains were once below the surface of the sea. they have indicated that the united states and Europe were once cove rd by tropical forests.also, they provide ancestry of animals which today differ widely in appearance.
The subject can be a rewarding hobby for amateurs. may import ants contributions to the world's great collections have been made by people who looked for fossils in their spare time or even spare time or even came across fossils by sheer accident.

SALAMANDER

A salamander is amphibian - an animal that lives both on land and in the water. It is a lizard like member of a group of back -boned creatures between fish and reptiles. This class includes frogs and toads. Like fish and reptiles, the salamander is cold -blooded.

The salamander, which grows up to about 11 inches long, is attacked by few enemies, as its skin glands are poisonous. But the European water snake and frequently makes the salamander its prey.

GLOW WORM

The female glow -worm is equipped with one of the most marvellous lighting systems in the world,
This "lantern" has a transparent layer of skin , like the lens of a lamp. Behind this is an oily layer of tissues which produces the light by a chemical process, and a second layer which acts as a reflector.
In fact, the light is a sex-call, and the male has pedicure large eyes to enable him to see the signal . An abundant supply of water and oxygen is needed by the glow -worm to maintain the chemical activity producing the light. For a time, even the insect's eggs are luminous.
Glow-worms, which are about half an inch long. are natives of Europe . Other beetles with built_in lighting systems are called fireflies. Both male and female fireflies have wings and use lanterns to signal to each other and to warn off night birds who seem to find them unpalatable. The most famous are the large and brilliant cuckoos of tropical America. On special occasions young women fasten them to their dresses where they shine like glowing gems.

AFRICAN ELEPHANT

African elephants have larger ears than Indian, or Asiatic, elephants because they live in hotter conditions and are bigger and more aggressive and active. The huge ears of the African elephant ,some -times three and a half feet wide, enable it to hear more acutely , when the animal charges it fans out its ears , augmenting its terrible appearance and striking fear into the heart of any enemy.
The ears also present a large surface for losing body heat.African elephants , who are at a disadvantages in the heat because of their large size, wave their ears to keep cool and to chase away flies The African elopement is the biggest and noblest of land animals, reaching a height of 11 feet and a weight of nearly six tons.
The Asiatic elephant is smaller.It inhabits the forests of south east Asia from India to Ceylon and Borneo. It does not like heat and seeks the deep shade of the forest. For hundreds of years this elephant has been domesticated and used as a beast of burden, and its relationship with man can be close. Elephants are said to have excellent memories.

MUTANTS

Animals are said to be mutants when they show characteristics different from the rest of their species.Mutants are processes by which the hereditary properties of some of the reproductive cells in animals are altered.

In nature these changes can take place spontaneously and unpredictably. But they are and little is known about this cause , beyond the fact that the longer an animal takes to breed the less likely it is to give birth to a mutant.
Nowadays the most common causes of animals producing mutants of animals producing mutants are chemical substances and radiation. Indeed radiation is a rapidly increasing hazard.

Animals born from parents who suffers the effects of more than normal radiation are invariable mutants .Cows have been known to grow a fifth leg in the pacific islands, where nuclear tests have been found on land .Birds have lost the power to fly, and some may have only one wings .Turtle mutants are unable to find the sea and consequently die.

Animals mutants have long to triked and frightened people .