So Squee! Friday: The Fossa

http://hecklinghyena.deviantart.com

The fossa is a catlike, carnivorous mammal from the forests of Madagascar. Photos can be deceptive regarding their size; while they look similar in size to a small cougar, they actually only grow to be about thirty inches in length (not including their tail, which can be just as long as their body!), and weight between twelve and nineteen pounds. Like cats, they also have retractable claws, and love to climb trees.

http://thefabweb.com

While they are found in most forested areas throughout Madagascar, they prefer more humid areas. Their diet consists of lemurs  tofu shaped like lemurs  ok it really is lemurs  oh god how could you eat something so cute, rodents, lizards, birds, and small primates. Unlike many mammals we've covered on So Squee!, these adorable kitty-like carnivores are active both day and night.

Each litter can have up to six kittens pups that are born blind and toothless. These babies will reach adulthood after three or four years.

http://www.zooborns.com/

The fossa is currently an vulnerable species due to the ongoing destruction of Madagascar's native forests, as well as dwindling lemur populations, which make up a main part of their diet (sniff). While there are protected areas, it has currently been reported via a conservation risk assessment that most of these areas do not have enough fossas to maintain a viable population, meaning the species could disappear in the next hundred years.

My favorite recreated childhood photos.

There have been a rush of recreated childhood photos out there on the internet. It always makes me smile to see families still enjoying spending time together and having the good humor to recreate their sillier, younger days. Here are a collection of my favorites so far!

http://then-and-now-photos.tumblr.com

http://then-and-now-photos.tumblr.com

http://then-and-now-photos.tumblr.com

Mischievous parrot thinks biting his owner is hilarious!

Oliver the parrot is a talkative little fellow. Watch as he tricks his owner into putting her fingers close enough for a bite by telling her he wants to "step up"...it's hard not to laugh right along with him when you hear his laughter! What a jerk ;)

Baby liliger Kiara plays with her new foster mother - a domestic cat.

Kiara is a liliger - a hybrid cross between a lion and a ligress (a cross between a lion and a tiger). She was born recently at Novosibirsk Zoo in Russia.

Unfortunately, her mother stopped producing milk, so the zoo staff had to begin hand-feeding her from a bottle every three hours. In order to maintain the necessary around-the-clock feedings, keeper Roza Solovieva decided to take Kiara home to foster. There, Kiara met Roza's domestic cat, Darka.

As a mother to a kitten already, Darka immediately slipped into the role of parent, cleaning, cuddling, and playing with Kiara 24/7. Despite their affection for one another, Roza kept a close eye on the two.

Once Kiara was old enough to begin eating meat, it was just a matter of time before she would begin displaying predatory behavior; as such, it was time for her to return to her natural mother. The reintroduction went smoothly, and Kiara now happily resides at the zoo with her mother.

So Squee! Friday: The Dumbo Octopus

http://www.stanleysubmarines.com

The Dumbo Octopus (aka Grimpoteuthis) was named after the flying elephant, due to the ear-like fins that stick out from the tops of their bodies. They live at extreme depths, from 9,800 to 13,000 feet below sea level - deeper than any known octopus species! Some even live up to 23,000 feet below sea level. They thrive in very cold water.

http://www.aquariumofpacific.org

The Dumbo octopus ranges widely in physical characteristics. Some, like the one above, are squat and yellowish. Others are pink, white or bluish in hue, but all have eight webbed tentacles and big "ears".

Source unknown.

They float above the sea floor using their umbrella-like mantle, looking for food such as snails and bristle worms, which they swallow whole - also different from any other octopus. They flap their fins to get moving, sometimes shooting water through their funnel for unexpected bursts of speed.

These octopi have no breeding season. Females can lay eggs whenever they wish. Scientists believe females can also take sperm from a male and hold onto it in their mantle for a long time, using it as needed.

Source unknown.

Beautiful farm life photos from Russia.

Elena Shumilova, a mother and photographer from Moscow, Russia, has captured the attention of viewers worldwide after posting a series of beautiful photos of her two sons, Vanya and Yaroslav, spending time with animals on their farm.

"Children and animals, it's my life," Shumilova said recently regarding her subject matter.

Happy Squirrel Appreciation Day!

These days it seems impossible to leave your home without seeing a squirrel or two or fifty cross your path. But did you know squirrels aren't native to urban areas? Back in 1856, an escaped pet squirrel in New York City drew a crowd of over a hundred people gawking at the tiny animal, having never set eyes on a real one before!

Believe it or not, squirrels were actually introduced to parks away from their native forests by humans as a part of city beautification. It all began in Philadelphia in 1847. The city released three wild squirrels into Franklin Square, providing them with food and shelter. The public loved it - soon after, the city began planting nut-bearing trees just for the squirrels. Park-goers loudly expressed their wish to see squirrels in parks in every major city across the nation.

The squirrel craze officially took off in the 1870's during a movement in Central Park to bring nature to the common city-dwelling worker. It was argued that the average working man would never find the time or the money to travel outside of the cities they lived in, and squirrels would provide a way for people to experience nature and wildlife. Conservationists and naturalists argued that seeing the fuzzy little creatures would promote interest in an compassion for animals. Ernest Thompson, one of the founders of the Boy Scouts, even claimed that feeding squirrels would help cure cruel streaks often found in young boys at the time. A handful of squirrels were relocated to the park, and in only six years, had surged to over a thousand. At the same time, all around America, squirrel populations were rapidly expanding due to urbanization.

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So Squee! Friday presents the Axolotl

If you've never heard of the Mexican salamander the Axolotl before (pronounced ack-suh-lah-tuhl), you're in for a treat! Clearly the inspiration for the water type Pokemon Wooper, the Axolotl is an unique amphibian in that it never undergoes any stages of metamorphosis during it's transition into adulthood (a trait called neoteny).

An amazing feature among these little guys is their ability to regrow lost limbs! (Cute and resourceful!) They are also, unfortunately, endangered in their natural wild habitat (lake Xochimilco in Mexico).

Pet Axolotls are popular pets among humans, and can survive for a very long time provided they are given proper care. They require cooler temperatures to maintain their slow metabolism and specific substrate with fine sand because they sometimes eat tiny bits of stone or gravel. Okay, so they're not the brightest of amphibians, but look at how cute they are!

If you ever plan on keeping Axolotls, be careful not to pair them with fish that like to nip - they can nibble on the Axolotl's exposed frilly gills! And there's always a good chance your Axolotl will eat anything smaller than itself. They can also grow up to a foot long, so they require a large aquarium!

Axolotls are usually black or mottled brown, but the white/albino varieties (pictured here) are very popular. Axolotls also live quite a long time - up to 15 years - so if you ever decide to get one, be sure you're ready for a long-term pet!

Darcy the Flying Hedgehog

"Darcy the Flying Hedgehog" is a series of photos by Shota Tsukamoto (self-proclaimed "hedgehographer") starring her hedgehog, Darcy.

Imagine Finding Me: Photographer inserts her adult self into her childhood photos

In her photo series Imagine Finding Me, London-based photographer Chino Otsuka digitally time travels by adding current photographs of herself into old childhood photos. She opens her gallery with a short poem,

If,
again
I have a change to meet,
there is so much I want to ask
and so much I want to tell

Paris, France 1983 and 2005

Kamakura, Japan 1976 and 2005

Japan, 1979 and 2006

Spain, 1975 and 2005

France, 1975 and 2009

Japan, 1981 and 2006

United Kingdom, 1985 and 2006

Japan, 1982 and 2006

France, 1977 and 2009

Nagayama, Japan in 1980 and 2009