The Asian palm civet

The Asian palm civet is a smaller species of civet found throughout the jungles of Asia, and easily recognisable by its dark, coarse hair and large eyes. The Asian palm civet is also known as the common palm civet and the Toddy Cat is areas where the Asian palm civet is natively found.

The Asian palm civet is found inhabiting the tropical jungles and rainforests throughout much of Asia. The main populations of the Asian palm civet however are found in southern India, Sri Lanka, South-east Asia and southern China. Unfortunately, Asian palm civets have been drastically affected by increasing deforestation (and therefore habitat loss) in their native regions.

The Asian palm civet is widely spread and fairly commonly found throughout much of Asia and despite their cat-like appearance and behaviours, Asian palm civets are not felines at all but are in fact more closely related to other small carnivores including weasels and mongooses. Unlike other civet species the tail of the Asian palm civet does not have rings, but the face of this species is banded like that of a raccoon.

The Asian palm civet is solitary animal that only comes out under the cover of night to hunt and catch food. These nocturnal animals are primarily ground-dwelling and highly terrestrial as they mark their ranges by dragging their anal glands along the ground. Despite being predominately ground-dwelling though the Asian palm civet is known to climb up into the trees either in search of food or to hide from approaching predators.

The Asian palm civet is a carnivorous animal, and like other species of civet, it survives on a meat-based diet, supplemented by the odd plant or fruit. Small animals such as rodents, lizards, snakes and frogs make up the majority of the Asian palm civet's diet, along with insects and other small creatures scuttling through the under-growth. Asian palm civets are also known to eat the fruits and flowers of palms, mangos and coffee in their natural habitats.

Despite being a secretive yet relatively ferocious predatory animal, the Asian palm civet is actually preyed upon by a number of predators within their natural environment. Large predatory cats are the most common predators of the Asian palm civet including tigers and leopards along with reptiles such as large snakes and crocodiles.

The female Asian palm civet usually gives birth to up to 4 young after a gestation period that lasts for a couple of months. The babies are weaned by their mother until they are strong enough to fend for themselves. Asian palm civets can live for up to 20 years, although most rarely get to be this old.

Today, the Asian palm civet is under threat from deforestation and therefore drastic loss of much of its natural habitat. The main reason for such extensive deforestation in the area is either for logging or to clear the land to make way for palm oil plantations.

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The Dall sheep

The Dall sheep (also known as Dall's sheep and the thinhorn) is a hoofed mammal that lives in mountainous regions (alpine tundra and taiga). These mammals inhabit Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Alaska and western Canada.
The female is called a ewe, the male is called a ram, and the young are called lambs. Most of the year, these sheep gather in segregated herds, some consisting of all rams, and others containing ewes plus their lambs. Dall sheep are closely related to goats. Dall sheep have an average life span of about 15 years in the wild. Scientific name: Ovis dalli dalli.
Anatomy: Dall sheep are sure-footed animals who have a rough pad on the bottom of their two-toed, spread-out hooves; they move well on rough, uneven ground. They have a furry coat with hollow hairs that protect them from the cold. The coat color varies from white to grayish. Dall sheep are about 3 feet (90 cm) tall at the shoulder. The curving horns are slender and light brown; they continue to grow throughout the sheep's lifetime and do not drop off. The horns are made of keratin, the same material our fingernails are made of; growth rings on the horns, called annuli, tell us how old a sheep is.
Diet: Dall sheep are herbivores (plant-eaters) who spend most of the day grazing. They eat grass, leaves, herbs, twigs, and shoots. In the winter, they eat lichens. Dall sheep swallow their food without chewing it much. Later, they regurgitate the food (then called a cud) and chew it thoroughly before swallowing it again.
Predators: Bears, golden eagles, wolves, and humans are predators of Dall sheep.

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Bucegi Mountains

 
TheBucegi Mountains cover 115 square miles (300 square Kilometers) of the renowned Transylvania region of Rumania.The mountains' history dates back about 100 million years to the time when sandstone, shale, conglomerate, and limestone began forming in this region, which marks the boundary of two major crustal plates. Within the Bucegis lie sinkholes and caverns, while strange rock formations rest upon the slopes. This variety in landform results from the rocks differing degrees of resistance to water and wind erosion. Where limestone predominates, water may dissolve it, forming sinkholes and caverns. Where conglomerate and sandstone prevail, the harsh wind and weather may cut peculiar shapes - for example, Sphinx and Babele.
Glaciers and rivers also modeled the Bucegi terrain. At the head of some of the highest valleys, glacial ice chiseled semicircular hollows known worldwide as cirques. Rivers have carved the mountains, creating deep ravaines and gorges. Within the Bucegis is a national park, a preserve for the extraordinarily diverse plant and animal life found there.

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Deepest Place in the Ocean

Deepest Place in the Ocean: Challenger Deep

Challenger Deep got its name from the British survey ship Challenger II, which pinpointed the deep water off the Marianas Islands in 1951. Then in 1960, the US Navy sent the Trieste (a submersible - a mini-submarine designed to go really deep) down into the depths of the Marianas trench to see just how far they would go . They touched bottom at 35,838 ft/10,923m. That means, while they were parked on the bottom in the bathyscaphe, there were almost seven miles/11km of water over their heads!

If you cut Mount Everest off at sea level and put it on the ocean bottom in the Challenger Deep, there would still be over a mile of water over the top of it!

Hydrostatic Pressure

When you get into the ocean (or any body of water) and you start diving down from the surface, the deeper you dive the more water is over the top of you. The more gallons of water you put between you and the surface of the ocean, the greater the pressure is on your body because of the weight of the water over the top of you. This pressure is calledhydrostatic pressure.

Plate Tectonics and the Subduction ZoneYou can really get a sense of hydrostatic pressure when you go into a swimming pool and dive all the way to the bottom of the deep end. You'll feel the hydrostatic pressure against your ear drums, like they're being squeezed or pushed in. Well, you can imagine how incredible the pressure must be in the Challenger Deep with almost seven miles of water overhead - it's 16,000 pounds per square inch!

Why the Challenger Deep is so deep? Well, the earth's crust isn't one solid piece of rock, it's really pretty thin, like the shell of an egg is compared to the size of the egg. In fact, it's made up of huge plates of thin crust that "float" on the molten rock of the earth's mantle. While floating around on the mantle the edges of these plates slide past each other, bump into each other, and sometimes even crash. The oceanic crust is much heavier than the continental crust so when the plates crash into each other, the oceanic plate plunges downward toward the molten mantle, while the lighter, continental plate rides up over the top. The forces driving the two plates together are really intense so the underlying oceanic plate (the subducted plate) creates a trench where it drags the edge of the continental crust down as it descends underneath (check out the picture at left).

How Do They Know?This is what's happening on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean off the Marianas islands. The really deep part of the ocean is in the bottom of the trench created by the subducting ocean crust.

In 1984 the Japanese sent a highly specialized survey vessel out to the Marianas Trench and collected some data using a piece of equipment called a narrow, multi-beam echo sounder.

What an echo sounder does is send high frequency sound waves (outside the range of human hearing) through the water down to the ocean bottom. Sound waves will travel through water, even faster than they travel through the air, and bounce off solid objects, such as the ocean bottom. The echo sounder measures precisely how long it takes for the sound waves to be returned to the surface and determines the depth based on the rate of return. These soundings are plotted on a graph by a computer to make an "echo map" of the ocean bottom.

The deepest measurement of the Challenger Deep currently available was taken by the Japanese and was found to be 35,838 feet.

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Strokkur

Ever since medieval times,Iceland has been famous for its many hot springs and geysers. Although the Geysir's performance has become less impressive in recent times, dozens of other hot springs continue to bubble and spurt in the same thermal area in southwestern Iceland. Amoung the most active and predictable in the group, located in a valley at the foot of a rangeof volcanic mountains, is Strokkur, the "churn". Every 4 to 10 minutes it shoots a jet of boiling water as high as 100 feet into the sky.

Fluctuations in the water level in its basin herald each eruption. As the turbulence increases, the surface of the water heaves up into a dome, then explodes into a cloumn of steam and water droplets. The clouds of vapour blow away on the breeze, but the water falls back to the basin to contribute to the next eruption. The abundance of geysers is due to Iceland's geological history. In this volcanically active zone, molten magama lies close to the earth's surface, where it heats underground water and powers its periodic eruptive escapes through fissures in the crust.

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Uluru

 
Uluru, also referred to as Ayers Rock, Northern Territory, Australia, is believed to be the world's largest free-standing rock. It is made of sandstone and measures 335m high, 3.6m long and 2 kilometer wide. The rock was formed more than 450 million years ago from horizontal layers of soft sands deposited on an ocean floor. Subsequent movements of the earth's crust upended the formation, turning the layers to a vertical position. The projecting remnant of a mountain that was once much larger was whittled to its present size and contours by long periods of wind and water erosion. The differences in the hardness of the upturned layers of sandstone have caused them to erode in different rates, resulting in the pattern of ridges and furrows across the surface of the rock.

The rock is composed of arkose, a course-grained sandstone rich in the mineral feldspar. Depending upon the atmospheric conditions and the time of the day, the rock can dramatically change color, anything from blue to violet to glowing red. During sunset the rock glows red and during rainy seasons the rock acquires a silvery-grey color, with streaks of black algae forming on the areas that serve as channels for water flow. Large caves are most numerous near the base of the rock. They have been used since time immemorial by the Aborigines, who decorated their walls with paintings and pictographs.

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Lake Assal

Lake Assal is a crater lake, located at the southern border of Tadjoura Region. It lies 155 meters below sea level and is the lowest point in Africa. Lake Assal has no outlet, streams flow into the lake and not away from it. 

Lake Assal sits at the top of the Great Rift Valley in the Danakil Desert where summer temperatures sometimes reach 52 degree celsius and are accompanied by strong drying winds. It has a high evaporation rate. The air temperature is very high. Strong winds cause further evaporation. All this evaporation leads to an increasing concentration of salt in the water, making the lake a mineralized brine that is the saltiest body of water in the world. The surrounding plain, once the lake floor, is a glistening expanse of salt. During each wet season the lake level rises, and as the water slowly evaporates, another band of salt is laid down on the plain. In the southeastern part of the lake, small fish inhabit the springs, but if they are accidentally carried out into the main part of the lake, they die at once. Transported by the waves, their bodies are thrown onto the plain, rapidly covered with salt and thus preserved.

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Mariana Trench

It is the deepest part of the earth's ocean and the deepest location of the earth itself. Mariana Trench is located in the Pacific ocean, just east of the 14 Mariana Islands near Japan. The trench is about 1580 miles long with the mean width of only 43 miles. It reaches a maximum depth of about 10,924 meters at the Challenger Deep, a small slot-shaped valley in its floor, at its southern end.Mariana Trench was created by ocean-to-ocean subduction, a phenomena in which a plate topped by oceanic crust is subducted beneath another plate topped by oceanic crust. The deepest part of the Mariana Trench is the Challenger Deep, so named after the British exploration vessel HMS Challenger II. So how come the Challenger Deep is so deep? - Well, the earth's crust is not one solid piece of rock, its really pretty thin. In fact its made up of huge plates of thin crust that float on the molten rock of the earth's mantle. While floating around the mantle the edges of these plates slide past each other, bump into each other and sometimes even crash. The oceanic crust is much heavier than the continental crust so when the plates crash into each other, the oceanic plate plunges downward toward the molten mantle, while the lighter continental plate rides up over the top. The forces driving the two plates are really intense so the underlying oceanic plate creates a trench where it drags the edge of the continental crust down as it descends underneath. This is what is happening on the bottom of the Pacific ocean off the Marianas Islands.

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7 The World's Largest Lake

1. Caspian Sea

Location: Azerbaijan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, IranArea (kmТВ): 394 299Length (miles): 1199Maximum depth (m): 946
Caspian Sea or Mazandaran Sea is a landlocked sea between Asia, Azerbaijan, Iran (province of Guilan, Mazandaran and Golestan), Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, and Europe (Russia), Dagestan, Kalmykia and the Astrakhan Oblast. He is the largest inland body of water, with a surface area of ​​371 000 kmТВ, and therefore has the characteristics possessed by the sea and lakes. He is often ranked as the world's largest lake, though it does not contain fresh water but salt water. 

2. SuperiorLocation: United States, CanadaArea (kmТВ): 82,414Length (km): 616Maximum depth (m): 406
Lake Superior is the largest North American Great Lakes that restrict Ontario in Canada, and Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan in the United States. He is the largest freshwater lake in the world in surface area. 

3. VictoriaLocation: Tanzania, UgandaArea (kmТВ): 69,485Length (km): 322Maximum depth (m): 82
Lake Victoria or Victoria Nyanza (also known as Ukerewe) is the largest lake in Africa, the world's largest tropical lake, and the second largest freshwater lake in surface area of ​​the world after Lake Superior.The lake is located in a plateau in the western Great Rift Valley of Africa and regulated by Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya. 

4. HuronLocation: United States, CanadaArea (kmТВ): 59,596Length (km): 397Maximum depth (m): 229
Salsh Lake Huron is one of the five Great Lakes United. Is that all three of the estuary. Such as Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, and Lake Superior, the lake is also shared between the United States and Canada

















5. MichiganLocation: United StatesArea (kmТВ): 58,016Length (km): 517Maximum depth (m): 281
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes in North America that restrict U.S. states: Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Chicago is the largest city on Lake Michigan. 

6. AralLocation: Kazakhstan, UzbekistanArea (kmТВ): 59,596Length (km): 397Maximum depth (m): 229
The lake is located in Central Asia are in northern Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan in the south. 

7. TanganyikaLocation: Tanzania, Republic of CongoArea (kmТВ): 32,893Length (km): 676Maximum depth (m): 1435
This lake is the largest and deepest canyon lake in deepest Africa or number two in the world and save the largest freshwater reserves in the Western Rift in the Great Rift Valley and is in the area of ​​four countries, namely Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania and Zambia,

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Great and Beautiful Waterfalls

Victoria Falls

In the world of great waterfalls the grand Victoria Falls of South Africa has truly stolen away the lime light from the last many years. It has been one of the major tourist attractions of South Africa. People just love to view the exotic and spectacular natural beauty of these great falls. Most of the tourists from all across the world enjoy their vacations with their family members in the lapse of these huge water curtains. The great Victoria Falls of South Africa are one of the Seven Wonders of the World today. These great waterfalls are located on the Zambezi River which lies in the Southern Africa. The grand Zambezi River lies between the two countries of South Africa and they are Zambia and Zimbabwe. These great waterfalls are also known as “Mosi-Oa-Tunya” by the local residents of South Africa which literally means the Smoke of the Thunders. The chilled water of the great Victoria Falls from a height of 1200 meters which make this water fall one of the highest waterfalls of the world.

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Iguazu Falls

In the world of ostentatious and majestic waterfalls of the world, the great Iguazu Falls have stolen away the glare of publicity. The great Iguazu Falls have been the major tourist attractions from the last many years. These giant water curtains are cited in the lapse of the grand Iguazu River which is located on the frame of the Brazilian State and the Argentine prefecture. These grand and glorious waterfalls divide up the Iguazu River into two parts: one part is the upper Iguazu and the other part is the lower Iguazu. These gigantic waterfalls are one of the major tourist’s attractions for the visitors as well as the local residents of Brazil and Argentina. These mammoth waterfalls are comprised up with entire natural beauty and splendor. These waterfalls mainly separate two major countries and they are Brazil and Argentina. These giant water curtains are taller than the famous Niagara Falls and they are as wide as 275 cascades. For the duration of the rainy season in between November and April, the water level of these falls tremendously increases and adds enough charm to its gorgeousness and attractiveness.

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Huangguoshu, China

Also known as Yellow Fruit Tree Waterfall, Haungguoshu waterfall is one of the largest plunge in Asia. Witnessing this cascading water, its mightiness can be only first thing one can think of. Positioned on Baihe River, Huangguoshu is around 77.8 meters high and about 101 meters wide. Hundred of thousands of people visit this place every year. Besides the Great Wall, this is undoubtedly the best attraction in China.

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Blue Nile Falls, Ethiopia

This waterfall is also christened as Tis Issat, which means smoking water. Along with being a major tourist attraction, Blue Nile Falls is extensively used generate power in the area. More and more people are visiting this place, providing Ethiopia a great tourist income. It is located on Blue Nile River and is probably the best spot to visit, when in Ethiopia.

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Angel Falls, Venezuela

Feel the peak of mightiness at Angel Falls, where huge mass of water plummets beautifully from the height of 978 meters, making it the highest waterfalls of the world. The source of this fall is the pinnacle of Auyan Tepuy, a mountain from where the water plunges without any interruption. However, more interesting than the fall is the entrance. This fall can be accessed from Canaima National Park, the only gateway to Angel Falls, and is reached by air. Witnessing all these falls in a lifetime is an ecstasy rarely gained. However, visit to any one also promises remarkable gratification.

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Niagara Falls, Canada/USA

With more than 14 million visitors every year, Niagara Falls is probably the most admired waterfall around the world. This magnificent plunge shares its beauty with two countries and is a combination of three falls. The Bridal Veil Falls and American Falls can be witnessed from New York City. And the glorious panorama of Horseshoe Falls can be viewed from Canada. Due to the natural vista around the falls, this destination has attracted various tourist businesses like hotels, adventures, and tour packages.

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Jog Falls, India

Gushing over River Sharavathi, Jog Falls is considered to be the largest waterfall in India. The plunge is around 829 feet high, which is roughly 253 meters. To witness the most splendid views of Jog Falls, it’s advisable to visit this destination in monsoon season, as very little water can be seen in arid days. However, during monsoon, this plunge exceeds the volume and height of Kaiteus Falls.

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Gullfoss, Iceland

Also known as ‘the Golden Falls’, Gullfoss waterfall is a remarkable double cascade with an altitude of 32 meter, perfectly positioned on White River. This destination is considered to be one of the most popular tourist places in Europe mainly because of the panorama it creates in summer days. During arid season, the glacial runoff and rainwater makes its way through this waterfall and runs into the White River. It is probably the best attraction in Iceland.

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Dettifoss Water Falls

Dettifoss is 44m tall and 100m wide. The stream is so powerful and you can hear the roar from distance if you visit Jökulsárgljúfur National Park, Iceland. The waterfalls transfers 500 cubic meters of waters per second from Vatnajökull glacier down to the sea. You can snap beautiful objects from the two different side of the waterfalls.

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Sutherland Falls

The waterfalls is located in Fiorland National Park, New Zeland. It is famous for the rough stream, beautiful scenery, and the Milford Track. Loads of people know that this tack is one of the finest track in the world.

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Kaieteur Falls

If you have enough money, you can go to Kaieteur falls in Postaro river, Guyana. Because the transportation is poor, not so many people know about this beautiful object. The Kaieteur Falls drops 221m and spreads 100m from one side to the others. The current is so strong so that the power is often matched with Iguazu falls, Niagara falls and Victoria falls.

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Yosemite Falls

The waterfalls is known as one of the tallest in the world and it stands 2425ft from the lower course. Yosemite Falls is the eye of Yosemite national park and if you come in a right time, you can get this waterfall flowing its hard and rough stream from the cliff.

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Angel Falls

Angel falls plunging 979m down and it is known as the tallest waterfalls on earth. Local people named this place as Auyantepuy (Devil’s Mountain). This waterfalls hides many histories and stories. You can see this place at the rain forest of Canaima National Park, Venezuela.

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Plitvice Waterfalls

Plitvice Waterfalls is renowned since the late of 19th century. Plitvice Waterfalls offers the beauty of 2 lakes and green areas around it on this area, you can find a 70m tall waterfalls and beautiful Boardwalks. If you like to visit Plitvice Waterfalls, you should go to Northern Dalmatia. It is located at 2-hour drive south Zagreb, the capital city of Croatia actually.

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Great Falls

Great Falls, also known as Grindstone Falls, has a height of 10m or 33 feet, and a crest width of 5m or 16 feet. It is located on the Grindstone Creek in Waterdown section of Hamilton just off Mill Street, and has year round flow. A viewing platform has been built beside the waterfall as well as a parking lot. This area, known as Smokey Hollow, was once heavily industrial, as the Grindstone Creek was a power source for a sawmill at the base of Great Falls, as well as other mills that appeared over the years. By 1912, however, the mills had all closed, as the water level in Grindstone Creek had gone down and the steam engines that propelled the waterpower were acknowledged to be too dangerous. Today, thanks to a rehabilitation program implemented by Waterdown residents, the locality is a beautiful and well-kept park.

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Damajagua Falls

This inspiring activity for nature lovers takes you beyond the gold-sand beaches of Puerto Plata and into the silver-capped mountains for the 27 waterfalls of Damajagua, a fairytale-like labyrinth of tunnels and caves set against a backdrop of rural mountain scenery. Trek through jungle and scale rock mounds as high as 40 feet before cascading into crystal-clear natural swimming pools. The most intrepid explorers hike the hour required to reach the highest waterfall before descending a three-hour-long track. A shorter but no less challenging trail scrambles up and down the first seven falls with plenty of swimming breaks in between.

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Kegon Falls. Japan

It IS one of Japan’s three great waterfalls, taking water from the nearby Lake Chuzenji down 318 feet off the edge of a cliff to a river below. You can took an elevator down to an observation deck for a spectacular view.It is usually shrouded in fog and mist. To the side of the falls is an impressive display of cobalt rock formations.

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