Aug
26
Lenny Karpman’s Costa Rica
August 26, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Lenny Karpman, who used to live in the SF Bay Area but moved to Costa Rica several years ago, says the country is developing a sophisticated restaurant scene. Check out Lenny’s blog for for updates on Costa Rican foods and restaurants.
“Lenny Karpman is a prolific writer of food and travel pieces from his nest, a farm in Costa Rica that he and his wife, Joan Hall, share with their menagerie of rescued critters.
Aug
29
Echidna
August 29, 2002 | Leave a Comment
Another of Australia’s weird and wonderful indigenous animals is the echidna, or spiny anteater. It’s a monotreme — like the platypus — and, biologically, shares a lot of features with reptiles.
Echidnas lay eggs and suckle their young in a pouch until the youngster begin to develop spines, when — not surprisingly — it is moved out of the pouch and into the den. Ouch.
Aug
29
Dingo
August 29, 2002 | Leave a Comment
The dingo is related to dogs, but wild dingoes have larger feet and bigger teeth than most dogs. Also, dingoes howl, but don’t bark. Or so we’re told.
Do they eat babies? Well, their main food is rabbits, and they are known to eat larger mammals, including sheep. You decide.
Aug
29
Saltwater Crocodiles
August 29, 2002 | Leave a Comment
Saltwater Crocodiles — or “salties” as they’re called locally — can grow to more than 20 feet long, and they definitely consider human beings potential meals. Prey is often killed by being dragged underwater, drowned, and dismembered, then stuck under a log and left to tenderize …
Like that scene in Crocodile Dundee where the woman is getting some water, and a croc jumps out and grabs her necklace, crocs really do lie in wait for an animal to come back to a spot to drink, and then grab it.
Aug
29
Koala
August 29, 2002 | Leave a Comment
A koala spends its entire life in eucalyptus trees, leaving only to move from one tree to another. They sleep about 22 hours every day, and reportedly have a 6-foot-long appendix, to help digest leaves. Koalas rarely drink water, but do eat significant quantities of dirt, probably for the minerals.
Aug
29
Kangaroo at Healesville
August 29, 2002 | Leave a Comment
The wild animal sanctuary at Healesville is a good day trip from Melbourne. It’s houses native Australian animals displayed in a sensitive environment. (Is there a politically correct way to display other species in order that humans may be educated and entertained?)
Anyway, we went many times, and really enjoyed it. Here’s our friend Lynn petting a small kangaroo (photo taken in 1993).
Aug
29
Laughing Kookaburra
August 29, 2002 | Leave a Comment
The Laughing Kookaburra is a large kingfisher with a loud, racous call. These birds are believed to live in small groups, with one pair mating and the other adults in the group all helping to maintain the territory, incubate the eggs, and raise the young. It takes a village!
(I took this photo at the Healesville Sanctuary in 1993)
Aug
29
Duck-billed Platypus
August 29, 2002 | Leave a Comment
Talk about weird animals: the duck-billed platypus has a beak-like muzzle, webbed feet, a fur-covered body, a flat, beaver-like tail, and eyes on the top of its head. Males have a venom gland and a spine on their hind foot.When swimming under water, these guys keep their eyes closed and nuzzle around in the mud for food.
They are wonderful fun to watch, and the Healesville Sanctuary in Victoria has a really good exhibit!
Aug
29
Goanna Sunbathing
August 29, 2002 | Leave a Comment
The name goanna is believed to be a derivative of iguana, which early European settlers likened this lizard to. (The goanna is actually a type of monitor lizard.) Australia has about 20 different species of goanna, which feed on other — smaller — reptiles, eggs, insects, and small mammals.
Goannas are big to begin with, and can, when threatened, rear up on their hind legs — scary!
(Photo from my year in Australia, 1992-1992)
Aug
29
Tasmanian Tiger
August 29, 2002 | Leave a Comment
The Thylacine, also called the Tasmanian tiger or Tasmanian wolf, was hunted to extinction early in the 20th century. Here’s a virtual Thylacine museum with more information about this gorgeous, unfortunate, carniverous marsupial.
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