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Post by Gumbercules' Jugband Christmas on Oct 5, 2015 8:52:58 GMT -5
They also have black tongues, to prevent sunburn. Since they're heads are so high, they have a hard time drinking water, so they get most of their water from eating leaves. For my birthday in 2010, a friend got me in to learn about and feed giraffes, something this zoo no longer does Also: they LOVE butternut squash
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Post by Lord Lucan on Oct 5, 2015 8:55:45 GMT -5
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Oct 5, 2015 8:56:18 GMT -5
More facts, finally!! Glad someone took me up on the whole "if you have facts, post them" thing!
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Oct 5, 2015 9:35:18 GMT -5
giraffes aren't generally gay "After a duel, it is common for two male giraffes to caress and court each other. Such interactions between males have been found to be more frequent than heterosexual coupling. In one study, up to 94 percent of observed mounting incidents took place between males. The proportion of same-sex activities varied from 30–75 percent. Only one percent of same-sex mounting incidents occurred between females." --Coe, M. J. (1967). "'Necking' behavior in the giraffe". Journal of Zoology 151 (2): 313–21. --Bagemihl, B. (1999). Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity. St. Martin's Press. pp. 391–93. That counts as "aren't generally".
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Post by Stuffed Salvador on Oct 5, 2015 11:13:49 GMT -5
Why am I tagged in a giraffe photo? Oh wait, it wasn't even meant for me. Thanks for making me feel unwanted Lord Lucan
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Post by Murray the Demonic Skull on Oct 5, 2015 11:19:22 GMT -5
Giraffes are very cool thanks Hippo. I'll just add that it was recently discovered that giraffes weren't mute as previously thought but that they hum at night.
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Oct 5, 2015 11:27:17 GMT -5
Seems like everyone knows something about the giraffe, it's pretty cool except for being mentioned in a thread you never visit.
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Post by ganews on Oct 5, 2015 11:33:27 GMT -5
Giraffes are very cool thanks Hippo. I'll just add that it recently discovered that giraffes weren't mute as previously thought but that they humm at night. I guess they don't know the words...
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Oct 5, 2015 13:14:09 GMT -5
Is 95% gay the threshold, then? I would say giraffes are pretty damn gay. You could say they aren't generally lesbian, but for male giraffes at least, homosexuality appears to be the default setting. I did use the same sources for what I said and your quote, while it does say 94% for one of the studies, also says that it varied between 30-75% in general across their other studies so probably not default for all male giraffes, just that one herd.
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Post by rainbowsherbert on Oct 5, 2015 22:42:04 GMT -5
I think all zoos arrived at the same conclusion one day: "People love giraffes. Giraffes love to eat leafy greens. Let's charge 5 bucks for people to feed giraffes leafy greens!" I swear, every zoo has this now, but no matter: Where else can you get an up close look at a purple tongue? Ok, maybe a Chow Chow.
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Oct 5, 2015 23:28:25 GMT -5
Okapi have similar long creepy tongues too.
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Yuletelly
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Post by Yuletelly on Oct 6, 2015 2:22:18 GMT -5
More facts, finally!! Glad someone took me up on the whole "if you have facts, post them" thing! Yeah, fact about "giraffes". There are many 'sightings' and 'reports' about them and these days even a lot of 'photographs' of them are available, you collected some of the best ones. But come on, this really belongs into Nudie's Mythical Beast thread.
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Oct 6, 2015 3:10:35 GMT -5
More facts, finally!! Glad someone took me up on the whole "if you have facts, post them" thing! Yeah, fact about "giraffes". There are many 'sightings' and 'reports' about them and these days even a lot of 'photographs' of them are available, you collected some of the best ones. But come on, this really belongs into Nudie's Mythical Beast thread. It probably does, would give Nudie something for his thread, he hasn't given us anything in a month.
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Yuletelly
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Post by Yuletelly on Oct 6, 2015 3:17:19 GMT -5
Yeah, fact about "giraffes". There are many 'sightings' and 'reports' about them and these days even a lot of 'photographs' of them are available, you collected some of the best ones. But come on, this really belongs into Nudie's Mythical Beast thread. It probably does, would give Nudie something for his thread, he hasn't given us anything in a month. We shouldn't hold our breath, Nudie is going to be quite occupied for the foreseeable future.
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Oct 6, 2015 3:55:28 GMT -5
It probably does, would give Nudie something for his thread, he hasn't given us anything in a month. We shouldn't hold our breath, Nudie is going to be quite occupied for the foreseeable future. Aw, really shouldn't start a thread if it just stops, let someone else take up the reins.
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Post by Hippo on Oct 12, 2015 2:21:46 GMT -5
The panda bear is this week's factoid carrier, a switchout from ferrets which I was going to do this week but decided panda bears are more fun.
Panda bears, on the relatively cute end of the bear scale and patron animal of endangered species but what else is there to them besides being the Friesian cow of the ursine world? Within the Ursidae family, the panda bear or giant panda (or even "big bear cat") is mostly to be found in small enclaves deep in the mountains of Sichuan in China. As the animal most representative of endangered species through the World Wildlife Fund's use of one as their logo, they are well renowned for raising awareness of conservation for animals and their habitats. Like other bears, the panda bear is carnivorous but due to a gene switcheroo some 2 million years or so ago they simply lost the taste for meat. They eat bamboo almost exclusively but as a consequence of having a carnivore's digestive system it means they have to eat a lot of it for little energy gain making them docile and sedentary. Though the panda is a big ol' roly-poly bear we want to squeeze, they are not too different to bears at all often being aggressive towards humans. Size wise, they come in at 4~6' long and weigh 230~240 lbs, far smaller than a grizzly both in height and weight. They usually will live 20 years in the wild and upwards of 30 if in captivity. One notable thing about the panda (and also a reason as to why they're endangered) is their very low reproductive rate with one new member of the species every two years. Although classed as endangered and even with their low desire to reproduce in captivity, the number of pandas alive is increasing with most in the wild in numbers upto 2,000 with 400 in captivity around the world with most in China.
To finish, here's some pics because come on, a panda is super-photogenic so why not?
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Post by Sanziana on Oct 12, 2015 5:30:41 GMT -5
I'd just like to add this
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Post by Lone Locust of the Apocalypse on Oct 12, 2015 8:59:55 GMT -5
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Oct 12, 2015 9:06:31 GMT -5
Okay, final fact, pandas are clumsy and generally will have fights with branches. Branches usually win.
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Post by Murray the Demonic Skull on Oct 12, 2015 9:18:14 GMT -5
Fun fact the Giant Panda has the largest molar teeth of any carnivore and although their diet consists of 99% bamboo they've been known in the wild to top that with the occasional small rodent or musk deer fawn. A deer fawn about to be mauled to death by a Giant PandaOh and they make cool hats :
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Yuletelly
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Post by Yuletelly on Oct 12, 2015 9:29:06 GMT -5
One should also note that they get very angry when you don't take cheese.
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Hippo
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Post by Hippo on Oct 12, 2015 11:48:22 GMT -5
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Post by Lord Lucan on Oct 13, 2015 11:28:02 GMT -5
"[T]he Friesian cow of the ursine world". That's wonderful, Hippo. Your theory is that they want to become extinct because they are conscious of being too cute, correct?
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Post by Hippo on Oct 13, 2015 11:36:54 GMT -5
"[T]he Friesian cow of the ursine world". That's wonderful, Hippo. Your theory is that they want to become extinct because they are conscious of being too cute, correct? It's more that they wish to become extinct but can't because humans keep wanting them alive so partial credit. Not many takers for "Big Bear Cat" in the wonderful stakes though that's not mine and is a literal translation.
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Post by Lord Lucan on Oct 13, 2015 11:40:26 GMT -5
"[T]he Friesian cow of the ursine world". That's wonderful, Hippo. Your theory is that they want to become extinct because they are conscious of being too cute, correct? It's more that they wish to become extinct but can't because humans keep wanting them alive so partial credit. Not many takers for "Big Bear Cat" in the wonderful stakes though that's not mine and is a literal translation. The one I mentioned, 'factoid carrier', and 'Big Bear Cat' were all highlights
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Post by Hippo on Oct 19, 2015 1:03:39 GMT -5
This week, we take on the allegedly cute hippopotamus. Yes, this is Hippo talking about hippos.
The humble hippopotamus, often considered the dumb yet sweet animal of the African continent as well as a mildly deceptive name for a sloth but what's the facts on this creature? Another ungulate, the genus of hippopotamus (meaning "river horse") are made up of five sub-species scattered mostly through mid- and southern Africa. Although widespread in range, the humble hippo is classed as a vulnerable species. A group of hippos can be known as a pod, herd or most fun, a bloat. The hippo is one of the largest land mammals in the world weighing upwards of 3,000 pounds, it is also known as a highly aggressive species capable of killing crocodiles and having no real predator. The depictions of the hippo going from horrible river monster to affectionate big characters isn't that old and as with many things in our culture got defined that way back in the 1930s and rolled on from there due to their appearance being rounded and friendly without really considering anything about their ferocious, angry nature.... so, so angry. Hippos are a long-lived species, living upto 50 years even in the wild and have a long history of their associations with humans; being respected by the Egyptians through the god Taweret and the Zulu warriors as even though a lion is fierce, a hippo is incredibly strong and doesn't take much guff from attacking lions. As well as being a fierce creature much like the rhino who we already consider a horrible threat, they probably could outrun you with a galloping speed of 20mph so try not to be chased by one, slowpoke. Another interesting thing is that in 1910, a Louisiana congressman wanted to pass a bill to release hippos into the Louisianan bayous in order to eradicate a invasive plant species and to be used for meat given a severe meat shortage in the country at the time. The bill only failed with the slimmest of margins and it's entirely true.
Of course, where would we be without some pictures? Nowhere, pictures are everything.
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dLᵒ
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Post by dLᵒ on Oct 19, 2015 3:59:26 GMT -5
The river horse has a punji trap for a mouth.
Also they 'helicopter shit' by twirling their tail while defecating.
So watch out on both ends.
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Post by Hippo on Oct 19, 2015 5:21:00 GMT -5
"punji trap"? No, don't tell me, it's okay. I could have mentioned their interesting methods of territory marking but I'm trying to not share their lesser attributes.
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Post by Lone Locust of the Apocalypse on Oct 19, 2015 5:30:24 GMT -5
Fuck the hippo.
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Post by Lord Lucan on Oct 19, 2015 13:34:37 GMT -5
I've haven't read the whole thing yet, but that's an interesting article about the Louisiana scheme. I could see President Trump picking that up. I didn't know about the Egyptian hippo-crocodile-woman god, so this was informative as ever. Hippos will also try to steal your nose.
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