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The Ungulates of Christmas
13 years ago
Dear Princess Celestia
Last year, I posted a couple things hoofer related about certain Ungulates well known about and sometimes sung about during the Christmas holiday. Well, I thought I'd post some more neato information about my favorite Order of mammals in the animal kingdom.
With Christmas just around the corner and Santa’s reindeer on the minds of many children, did you ever wonder what the difference between an antler and a horn is? Although the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, there is a significant difference between these two pieces of ‘head gear’.
Antlers, as seen on the white-tailed deer, as well as on elk, reindeer, caribou and moose, are primarily made of bone and are shed annually. The antlers are covered with a thin skin called ‘velvet’ which is shed from the antlers before rutting season. Antlers are also forked, or pronged.
Horns, seen on the kudu, antelope and mouflorn, are made of a living bone core, surrounded by a layer of keratin that give the horns their shape. Horns are usually spiral or curve, with ridges or fluting. They are permanent and do not shed every year (except in the case of the pronghorn antelope). Horns begin growing soon after birth and grow throughout the life of the animal. Antelope, cattle, bison, sheep and goats have horns.
To see more horned antelope at White Oak, visit their website at http://www.whiteoakwildlife.org/animal-programs/ or plan to visit us in person! And maybe, just maybe, you’ll also catch a glimpse of their resident ‘antlered’ species, the white-tailed deer, on your drive in.
On a completely side note, unrelated to the above post. I am pleased to announce the birth of a new Okapi calf born on the 16th of December at the Antwerp Zoo in the Netherlands. This was their 47th Okapi born at their facilities and they have become a staple in the Okapi SSP on how to successfully run a husbandry program. Congratulations to baby Ngwani, her parents Yenthe and Henry and the entire staff at Antwerp to bringing a little Christmas joy to us Okapi watchers.
You can try to read the article about her birth at the following website, but its in Dutch.
http://www.zooantwerpen.be/?page=ne.....campaign=okapi
With Christmas just around the corner and Santa’s reindeer on the minds of many children, did you ever wonder what the difference between an antler and a horn is? Although the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, there is a significant difference between these two pieces of ‘head gear’.
Antlers, as seen on the white-tailed deer, as well as on elk, reindeer, caribou and moose, are primarily made of bone and are shed annually. The antlers are covered with a thin skin called ‘velvet’ which is shed from the antlers before rutting season. Antlers are also forked, or pronged.
Horns, seen on the kudu, antelope and mouflorn, are made of a living bone core, surrounded by a layer of keratin that give the horns their shape. Horns are usually spiral or curve, with ridges or fluting. They are permanent and do not shed every year (except in the case of the pronghorn antelope). Horns begin growing soon after birth and grow throughout the life of the animal. Antelope, cattle, bison, sheep and goats have horns.
To see more horned antelope at White Oak, visit their website at http://www.whiteoakwildlife.org/animal-programs/ or plan to visit us in person! And maybe, just maybe, you’ll also catch a glimpse of their resident ‘antlered’ species, the white-tailed deer, on your drive in.
On a completely side note, unrelated to the above post. I am pleased to announce the birth of a new Okapi calf born on the 16th of December at the Antwerp Zoo in the Netherlands. This was their 47th Okapi born at their facilities and they have become a staple in the Okapi SSP on how to successfully run a husbandry program. Congratulations to baby Ngwani, her parents Yenthe and Henry and the entire staff at Antwerp to bringing a little Christmas joy to us Okapi watchers.
You can try to read the article about her birth at the following website, but its in Dutch.
http://www.zooantwerpen.be/?page=ne.....campaign=okapi
