The European Bison

The European bison should not be confused with the American bison. While European bison live in forests and have to survive in snow, American bison are usually found on the plains. European bison can be found in northern and eastern Europe, extending to Kyrgyzstan and Ukraine. 

European bison are the biggest, heaviest mammals in Europe. Although European bison are huge - measuring as tall as a fully-grown man and weighing as much as 2,000 pounds - they can still run fast and jump over streams. Bulls, or males, tend to be heavier than females. European bison and American bison look different. A European bison's coat is shorter and less shaggy, their tails are longer, their horns are curvier and sharper, and they are smaller overall. Like bulls, European bison are known to blow their breath out of their noses as a way to show aggressive behavior. They also use their horns to fight. Males will challenge each other for territory and to be the leader of the herd. 

European bison are herbivores and eat leaves, trees, twigs and berries. They have to eat a lot! In the winter, they can dig under snow to find plants and grasses, but often eat tree bark this time of year. 

Because of over hunting and habitat destruction, the European bison was extinct in the wild in 1927. There were only a dozen of these animals left in zoos. In 1951, European bison were reintroduced to the wild and today there are more than 3,000 of them!

Cool Fact: A European bison's long tail acts as a switch to keep files off of its body!

The Alligator Gar

Don't get this confused with the longnose gar, because the alligator gar is way bigger. While the alligator gar can measure up to 10 feet long, the longnose gar is only about the size of an adult's arm. The alligator gar can weigh up to 350 pounds and is the second largest fish in North America (the largest is the white sturgeon). 

The alligator gar gets its name from its alligator-shaped snout. It has a torpedo-shaped body and two rows of large, sharp teeth. Alligator gars have ganoid scales, which are different from the scales of most fish. Ganoid scales are bone-like and very hard to bite through, which gives them excellent protection against predators. Alligator gars can live up to 50 years and have few natural predators. They are found in the lower Mississippi River basin and in the waters of the Gulf Coast states. Alligator gars are considered euryhaline, which means they are able to adapt to both fresh water and salt water! They tend to swim near the surface or among the reeds where they can ambush prey. Alligator gars mainly eat other fish, but also eat water birds, turtles, frogs and small mammals that float on the surface of the water. They primarily hunt at night.  

One of the only natural predators of the alligator gar is the American alligator. Ospreys are also known to scavenge the remains of alligator gars caught by American alligators. Habitat destruction and overfishing are also threats to the alligator gar. 

Cool Fact: Alligator gars are often referred to as "primitive fish" or "living fossils" and their ancestors have been found in fossils from 200 million years ago! 

Click here for more information on the longnose gar!

The Sand Cat

The sand cat is a small cat, but not the smallest of cats (that title goes to the black footed cat). The sand cat weighs 4.5 to 6.5 pounds and measures between 26 and 36 inches long. It lives in rocky and sandy deserts in North Africa and Southeast and Central Asia. 

The sand cat is hard to observe because it spends most of its day in a burrow. It only comes out at night to hunt for food. The sand cat can travel up to 3.4 miles per night in search of food! Its diet includes desert rodents, birds, lizards and invertebrates. If they hunt more than they can eat, sand cats will bury the rest to eat later. Its appearance helps makes it a good hunter. Its fur, which is a sandy brown color with red and dark brown markings, blends in to the sandy savanna. Its ears are large and low set, and are able to detect underground prey and the ultra-sonic calls of rodents that can't be heard by humans! Sand cats are also very quiet and fast, with softly padded paws and retractable claws. Their long hair covers their paws which helps protect their feet from the extremely hot and cold desert temperatures. 

Predators of the sand cat include wolves, venomous snakes, and larger cats such as caracals. One of its biggest predators, the eagle, is very dangerous to young sand cats. Habitat loss and sand dune destruction are also threats to sand cats. 

Cool Fact: Sand cats get all the water they need from their prey, but will drink water if they can find it!