Bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis)[3] is a species of sheep in North America[4] with large horns. The horns can weigh up to 30 pounds (14 kg), while the sheep themselves weigh up to 300 pounds (140 kg).[5] Recent genetic testing indicates that there are three distinct subspecies of Ovis canadensis, one of which is endangered: Ovis canadensis sierrae. The bighorn […]
The Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is a milkweed butterfly (subfamily Danainae), in the family Nymphalidae. It is perhaps the best known of all North American butterflies. Since the 19th century, it has been found in New Zealand, and in Australia since 1871 where it is called the Wanderer.[3][4][5] In Europe it is resident in the […]
The Serengeti ecosystem is a geographical region located in north-western Tanzania and extends to south-western Kenya between latitudes 1 and 3 S and longitudes 34 and 36 E. It spans some 30,000 km2 (12,000 sq mi). The Serengeti hosts the largest and longest overland migration in the world, a perpetual annual occurrence. This migration is […]
The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a lentivirus (a subgroup of retrovirus) that causes HIV infectionand acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).[1][2] AIDS is a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive. Without treatment, average survival time after infection with HIV is estimated to be […]
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of plants. Deserts are defined as areas with an average annual precipitation of less than 250 millimetres (10 in) per year,[1][2] or as areas where more water is lost by evapotranspiration than falls as […]
The Kakapo (Māori: kākāpō, meaning night parrot), Strigops habroptila (Gray, 1845)[2], also called owl parrot, is a species of flightless nocturnal parrot endemic to New Zealand.[3] It has finely blotched yellow-green plumage, a distinct facial disc of sensory, vibrissa-like feathers, a large grey beak, short legs, large feet, and wings and a tail of relatively […]