A Few Staff Animal Photos

Here at The Jungle Store we have a great love for all animals, ok maybe not spiders, and that means we love taking photos of animals. Here are a few photos our staff have taken from their trips all over the country.

This photo was taken at Black Hills Wild Horse Sanctuary located in Hot Springs, South Dakota. The sanctuary is home to over 600 wild mustangs which have been named America's Luckiest Wild Horses. They offer a variety of tours that can last from two hours to three days, you can even reserve a cabin.

These photos were taken at the Albuquerque BioPark Aquarium in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The aquarium is part of the Biopark which includes a zoo and botanical garden right next to the Rio Grande.

These photos were taken at the Kansas City Zoo located in Kansas City, Missouri. The zoo opened in 1909 and is now spread across 202 acres. In the fall of 2013 the Kansas City Zoo opened its penguin plaza with interactive learning stations and panoramic viewing windows. The zoo is also planning to add a tiger trail, orangutan canopy and giraffe feeding station in the years to come.

With Or Without Water

Most lions can go four to five days without drinking water.

 Picture From You Don't Say

Majority of lions will drink water daily if available, but they are able to go four or five days without it. Lions in arid areas seem to obtain needed moisture from the stomach contents of their prey.

Lion Cub Rescue

Some photos taken at a wildlife preserve in Kenya have appeared online recently and I wanted to share them with you. Photographer Jean-Francois Largot managed to capture a daring rescue of a lion cub by his mother.

The cub had slipped and slid down an almost vertical cliff. Upon hearing the cub’s cries several of the pride’s lionesses considered a rescue attempt, but decided that the slope was too steep.

Ultimately, it was only the cub’s mother that decided to risk the treacherous drop to save her son.

 

After a perilous climb back to the top with the cub in her mouth, all is right with this lioness’s pride once again. 

Story via The Daily Mail.

One Hungry Lion, Two Nervous Parents!

A video that’s been making the rounds lately shows a family visiting the lion area at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado. Their 1 year-old son is quite interested in being up close and personal with a lioness, who seems just as interested in him! With only an inch of safety glass between lion and baby, it’s no wonder his parents were a little nervous!

Lioness - Photo: Schuyler Shepherd

Get Webkinz at The Jungle Store

The Jungle Store just added Webkinz to their line of products! Each toy comes with a secret code that allows you to logon to the Webkinz world where these virtual stuffed animals come to life online, allowing you to keep them healthy and even build them a home. This toy has become quite popular, even for children as young as preschoolers, so make sure to pick one up for the little tike in your life! 

The Jungle Store is selling them for as cheap as $7.99, including the lion pictured above. 

Liger vs. Tigon

Ligers (left) and tigons (right) are similar because they both are the result of a crossbreed between a lion and a tiger; however, they have some distinct differences. Ligers are more common because the breeding process for them is easier. A liger is born to a male lion and a female tiger, inheriting most characteristics from its lion father. However, like their tigon ancestor, the liger loves to swim when most lions do not. The liger is usually a golden color with muted stripes (from the tiger parent) and spots (from the lion parent). They inherit the best qualities from both parents, including their size, which makes the liger one of the biggest cats in the world (unlike its tigon counterpart). There is greater interest in the liger specifically because of its massive size.

The tigon is born to a male tiger and female lion, and it is significantly smaller then the liger and usually both parents. It has the same features — muted stripes and spots and a golden coat — of the liger; however, it is often born prematurely and has a shorter lifespan. Both the liger and tigon are members of the genus Panthera; they don’t have a scientific name because of their human assisted ancestry.

Hear Lions Roar

Lions are the laziest of the big cats. They sleep for 16 to 20 hours each day, using the rest of their time to protect their pride (or their family) and hunt for food. They communicate through roaring, which can be heard up to five miles away. Whenever they hunt, they hunt together to increase their success rate, usually being successful 50 percent of the time.

Don't Get Too Tired: The Weekend is Almost Here!

Happy Friday! If you’re a little tired from a long week’s work, you’re not alone! In fact, all animals yawn when they’re tired. So, check out these different examples of yawning — but beware! — it’s contagious.

"J" is for Jackal

Historically, Jackals have been given a bad rap. Europeans once believed that jackals hunted prey for lions, obsequiously giving the "lion's share" to the big cats before slinking in to feed on the scraps. Patently ridiculous. Jackals are small canids that live in pairs or small family packs. They may have the cunning, but have no where near the power needed to bring down the zebras and buffalos that lions traditionally feed on. Regardless, the term "Jackal" is defined in the dictionary as "a dishonest person who performs menial or degrading tasks for another." Hardly praise.


Egyptians had more reverence for the Jackal. Their ancient god of the dead, Anubis, is pictured as a man with a jackal's head. Anubis held sway over mummification and guiding the dead to the afterlife and is prolifically depicted on the walls of tombs and pyramids.

Jackals mate for life and will form small family packs, decreasing the mortality rate of new litters by letting the last litter help to rear the pups. All members of the family take part in defending territory, protecting each other and hunting. Yes, jackals do hunt, and are listed as carnivores. More appropriately they should be considered opportunistic omnivores as they will feed on carrion, garbage and have a penchant for corn and fruit. A jackal makes no attempt to hide the finding of food but lets the rest of the family know with loud yips and screams. Jackals are extremely vocal. The origin of their name—the Sanskrit word srgala—literally means "the howler."

Calvin Coolidge's Many Presidential Pets

President Calvin Coolidge once said “Any man who does not like dogs and want them about, does not deserve to be in the White House.” This probably went for other animals as well, for Coolidge and his family acquired even more pets than the Roosevelts.

During Coolidge's two terms in office, the White House almost literally became a zoo. Exotic animals such as lion cubs, bears, an antelope, wallaby, bobcat and a pygmy hippo were all part of the menagerie. And, of course, there were more typical pets, over 12 dogs, 4 cats and at least 3 canaries.The Coolidges owned a beloved donkey named Ebeneezer, and commandeered one of the White House trees to build a special house for their 2 raccoons—Rebecca and Horace.

Rebecca was quite lively and enjoyed playing in the First Lady's bathtub with "a little water in it and a cake of soap." Another one of Rebecca's favorite games was climbing up the President and draping herself about his neck. The picture below shows First Lady, Grace Coolidge, out at the Easter Egg Roll with Rebecca.

Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

One big bird!

And not from Sesame Street either. Meet the Ostrich!

It takes 42-46 days for an Ostrich egg to hatch—moms usually take day duty for setting on the egg, and dads the nighttime. An Ostrich chick grows one foot taller each month until it is 7-8 months old. Males can reach a height between 6.9 and 9 feet—they’d make good basketball candidates, except that they aren’t the brightest bird . . . Females are only in the 5.7 to 6.2 foot range.

Last Friday I showed you a video of a kangaroo that packs a punch. An ostrich can deliver a kick of up to 500 pounds per square inch, which could kill a lion!

Some places people ride or race ostrich. Check out the video below. My favorite is the bird that runs in circles even when they are trying to “round him up.”


Jungle Jane

New kid swinging through the trees

Yesterday, was my first blog--I've taken this blog over from the company president--so I figured I should introduce myself. My name is Jungle Jane and I've been fascinated by wild animals since I was a child. My favorites are big cats: tigers, lions, leopards, etc. But I also like elephants, zebras, and giraffes as you'd be able to tell if you came to my house.

I've never been to Africa--a dream I hope to fulfill someday--but I've been to Asia, where I got to feed bananas to a baby elephant. Did you know they eat the whole thing including peel and stem?!

I've also petted two cheetahs in a wildlife park in Oregon. They're the only big cat who purrs, and just like my kitty cats at home, one cheetah rubbed his head against my arm to say "more petting please."

If you, like me, love jungle animals, you'll love what you find at our store.

JJ

That is a big Cat!!

Average listed weights for the male lion are between 330–500 lb, and 260–330 lb for females.

You can find great animal inflatables, including a lion, at The Jungle Store.

Lion Living & Eating Habits

Lions might come off as fierce and ferocious to the predators, but when it comes to those inside their own packs (called prides), lions are actually very social and family-oriented animals. Prides can have as many as 40 lions, and they all work together to hunt prey, raise their cubs and defend their territory.

Typically, the role of hunting falls to the lionesses. The lionesses hunts in teams of two or three to stalk and kill their prey. It typically takes lionesses several tries before they make a kill. Once they have their food, the male lions are the first to eat, followed by the lioness and the cubs get what's left.