title: "Laser printing" content: assembly and transfer assembly. Often printers with soft plastic drums can have a very high cost of ownership that does not become apparent until the drum requires replacement. Duplex printing (printing on both sides of the paper) can halve paper costs and reduce filing volumes. Formerly only available on high-end printers, duplexers are now common on mid-range office printers, though not all printers can accommodate a duplexing unit. Duplexing can also give a slower page-printing speed, because of the longer paper path. In a commercial environment such as an office, it is becoming increasingly common for businesses to use external


title: "Laser printing" content: software that increases the performance and efficiency of laser printers in the workplace. Software can be used to set rules dictating how employees interact with printers, such as setting limits on how many pages can be printed per day, limiting usage of color ink, and flagging jobs that appear to be wasteful. Color laser printers use colored toner (dry ink), typically cyan, magenta, yellow, and black (CMYK). While monochrome printers only use one laser scanner assembly, color printers often have two or more. Color printing adds complexity to the printing process because very slight misalignments known as registration errors can


title: "Laser printing" content: occur between printing each color, causing unintended color fringing, blurring, or light/dark streaking along the edges of colored regions. To permit a high registration accuracy, some color laser printers use a large rotating belt called a "transfer belt". The transfer belt passes in front of all the toner cartridges and each of the toner layers are precisely applied to the belt. The combined layers are then applied to the paper in a uniform single step. Color printers usually have a higher cost per page than monochrome printers (even if printing monochrome-only pages). Manufacturers use a similar business model for both


title: "Laser printing" content: low-cost color laser printers and inkjet printers: the printers are sold cheaply while replacement toners and inks are relatively expensive. Color laser printers are much faster than inkjet printers and their running cost per page is usually slightly less. The print quality of color lasers is limited by their resolution (typically 600–1200 dpi) and their use of just four color toners. They often have trouble printing large areas of the same or subtle gradations of color. Inkjet printers designed for printing photos can produce much higher quality color images. An in depth comparison of inkjet and laser printers suggest that


title: "Laser printing" content: laser printers are the ideal choice for a high quality, volume printer, while inkjet printers tend to focus on large-format printers and household units. Laser printers offer more precise edging and in-depth mono-chromatic color, but tend to cost more than a traditional inkjet printer. Many modern color laser printers mark printouts by a nearly invisible dot raster, for the purpose of traceability. The dots are yellow and about in size, with a raster of about . This is purportedly the result of a deal between the US government and printer manufacturers to help track counterfeiters. The dots encode data such


title: "Laser printing" content: as printing date, time, and printer serial number in binary-coded decimal on every sheet of paper printed, which allows pieces of paper to be traced by the manufacturer to identify the place of purchase, and sometimes the buyer. Digital rights advocacy groups such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation are concerned about this erosion of the privacy and anonymity of those who print. Similar to inkjet printers, toner cartridges may contain smart chips that reduce the number of pages that can be printed with it (reducing the amount of usable ink or toner in the cartridge to sometimes only 50%), in


title: "Laser printing" content: an effort to increase sales of the toner cartridges. Besides being more expensive to the consumer, this technique also increases waste, and thus increases pressure on the environment. For these toner cartridges (as with inkjet cartridges), reset devices can be used to override the limitation set by the smart chip. Also, for some printers, online walk-throughs have been posted to demonstrate how to use up all the ink in the cartridge. These chips offer no benefit to the end consumer—all laser printers originally used an optical mechanism to assess the amount of remaining toner in the cartridge rather than using


title: "Laser printing" content: a chip to electrically count the number of printed pages, and the chip's only function was as an alternate method to decrease the cartridge's usable life. Toner particles are formulated to have electrostatic properties and can develop static electric charges when they rub against other particles, objects, or the interiors of transport systems and vacuum hoses. Static discharge from charged toner particles can ignite combustible particles in a vacuum cleaner bag or create a small dust explosion if sufficient toner is airborne. Toner particles are so fine that they are poorly filtered by conventional household vacuum cleaner filter bags and


title: "Laser printing" content: blow through the motor or back into the room. If toner spills into the laser printer, a special type of vacuum cleaner with an electrically conductive hose and a high-efficiency (HEPA) filter may be needed for effective cleaning. These specialized tools are called "ESD-safe" (Electrostatic Discharge-safe) or "toner vacuums". As a normal part of the printing process, the high voltages inside the printer can produce a corona discharge that generates a small amount of ionized oxygen and nitrogen, which react to form ozone and nitrogen oxides. In larger commercial printers and copiers, an activated carbon filter in the air exhaust


title: "Laser printing" content: stream breaks down these noxious gases to prevent pollution of the office environment. However, some ozone escapes the filtering process in commercial printers, and ozone filters are not used at all in most smaller consumer printers. When a laser printer or copier is operated for a long period of time in a small, poorly ventilated space, these gases can build up to levels at which the odor of ozone or irritation may be noticed. A potential for creating a health hazard is theoretically possible in extreme cases. According to a 2012 study conducted in Queensland, Australia, some printers emit sub-micrometre


title: "Laser printing" content: particles which some suspect may be associated with respiratory diseases. Of 63 printers evaluated in the Queensland University of Technology study, 17 of the strongest emitters were made by HP and one by Toshiba. The machine population studied, however, was only those machines already in place in the building and was thus biased toward specific manufacturers. The authors noted that particle emissions varied substantially even among the same model of machine. According to Professor Morawska of the Queensland University of Technology, one printer emitted as many particles as a burning cigarette: Muhle et al. (1991) reported that the responses to


title: "Laser printing" content: chronically inhaled copying toner, a plastic dust pigmented with carbon black, titanium dioxide and silica were also similar qualitatively to titanium dioxide and diesel exhaust. In December 2011, the Australian government agency Safe Work Australia reviewed existing research and concluded that "no epidemiology studies directly associating laser printer emissions with adverse health outcomes were located" and that several assessments conclude that "risk of direct toxicity and health effects from exposure to laser printer emissions is negligible". The review also observes that, because the emissions have been shown to be volatile or semi-volatile organic compounds, "it would be logical to expect


title: "Laser printing" content: possible health effects to be more related to the chemical nature of the aerosol rather than the physical character of the ‘particulate’ since such emissions are unlikely to be or remain as ‘particulates’ after they come into contact with respiratory tissue". After the 2010 cargo plane bomb plot, in which shipments of laser printers with explosive-filled toner cartridges were discovered on separate cargo airplanes, the US Transportation Security Administration prohibited pass-through passengers from carrying toner or ink cartridges weighing over on inbound flights, in both carry-on and checked luggage. "PC Magazine" noted that the ban would not impact most travelers,


title: "Laser printing" content: as the majority of cartridges do not exceed the proscribed weight. Laser printing Laser printing is an electrostatic digital printing process. It produces high-quality text and graphics (and moderate-quality photographs) by repeatedly passing a laser beam back and forth over a negatively charged cylinder called a "drum" to define a differentially charged image. The drum then selectively collects electrically charged powdered ink (toner), and transfers the image to paper, which is then heated in order to permanently fuse the text, imagery, or both. As with digital photocopiers, laser printers employ a xerographic printing process. However, laser printing differs from analog


title: "Carmen Miranda" content: and was the first South American honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Miranda is considered the precursor of Brazil's 1960s Tropicalismo cultural movement. A museum was built in Rio de Janeiro in her honor, and in 1995 she was the subject of the documentary "". Miranda was born Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha in , a village in the northern Portuguese municipality of Marco de Canaveses. She was the second daughter of José Maria Pinto da Cunha (17 February 1887 – 21 June 1938) and Maria Emília Miranda (10 March 1886, Rio de Janeiro –


title: "Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace" content: was to create computer-generated characters that could act seamlessly with live-action actors. While filming scenes with CGI characters, Lucas would block the characters using their corresponding voice actors on-set. The voice actors were then removed and the live-action actors would perform the same scene alone. A CGI character would later be added into the shot to complete the conversation. Lucas also used CGI to correct the physical presence of actors in certain scenes. Practical models were used when their visuals helped with miniature sceneries for backgrounds, set extensions, and model vehicles that would be scanned to create the digital models


title: "Manta ray" content: Manta ray Manta rays are large rays belonging to the genus "Manta". The larger species, "M. birostris", reaches in width, while the smaller, "M. alfredi", reaches . Both have triangular pectoral fins, horn-shaped cephalic fins and large, forward-facing mouths. They are classified among the Myliobatiformes (stingrays and relatives) and are placed in the family Myliobatidae (eagle rays). Mantas are found in warm temperate, subtropical and tropical waters. Both species are pelagic; "M. birostris" migrates across open oceans, singly or in groups, while "M. alfredi" tends to be resident and coastal. They are filter feeders and eat large quantities of zooplankton,


title: "Manta ray" content: which they gather with their open mouths as they swim. Gestation lasts over a year, and mantas give birth to live pups. Mantas may visit cleaning stations for the removal of parasites. Like whales, they breach for unknown reasons. Both species are listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Anthropogenic threats include pollution, entanglement in fishing nets, and direct harvesting for their gill rakers for use in Chinese medicine. Their slow reproductive rate exacerbates these threats. They are protected in international waters by the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals, but are more vulnerable closer


title: "Manta ray" content: to shore. Areas where mantas congregate are popular with tourists. Only a few public aquariums are large enough to house them. The name "manta" is Portuguese and Spanish for mantle (cloak or blanket), a type of blanket-shaped trap traditionally used to catch rays. Mantas are known as "devilfish" because of their horn-shaped cephalic fins, which are imagined to give them an "evil" appearance. Manta rays are members of the order Myliobatiformes which consists of stingrays and their relatives. The genus "Manta" is part of the eagle ray family Myliobatidae, where it is grouped in the subfamily Mobulinae along with the


title: "Manta ray" content: "Mobula" devil rays. In 2017, an analysis of DNA, and to a lesser degree, morphology, found that "Mobula" was paraphyletic with respect to the manta rays, and they recommended treating "Manta" as a junior synonym of "Mobula". Mantas evolved from bottom-dwelling stingrays, eventually developing more wing-like pectoral fins. "M. birostris" still has a vestigial remnant of a sting barb in the form of a caudal spine. The mouths of most rays lie on the underside of the head, while in mantas, they are right at the front. Manta rays and devil rays are the only ray species that have evolved


title: "Manta ray" content: into filter feeders. The scientific naming of mantas has had a convoluted history, during which several names were used for both the genus ("Ceratoptera", "Brachioptilon" "Daemomanta", and "Diabolicthys") and species (such as "vampyrus", "americana", "johnii", and "hamiltoni"). All were eventually treated as synonyms of the single species "Manta birostris". The genus name "Manta" was first published in 1829 by Dr Edward Nathaniel Bancroft of Jamaica. The specific name " birostris" is ascribed to Johann Julius Walbaum (1792) by some authorities and to Johann August Donndorff (1798) by others. The specific name "alfredi" was first used by Australian zoologist Gerard Krefft,


title: "Manta ray" content: who named the manta after Prince Alfred. Authorities were still not in agreement and some argued that the black color morph was a different species from the mostly white morph. This proposal was discounted by a 2001 study of the mitochondrial DNA of both. A 2009 study analyzed the differences in morphology, including color, meristic variation, spine, dermal denticles (tooth-like scales), and teeth of different populations. Two distinct species emerged: the smaller "M. alfredi" found in the Indo-Pacific and tropical east Atlantic, and the larger "M. birostris" found throughout tropical, subtropical and warm temperate oceans. The former is more coastal,


title: "Manta ray" content: while the latter is more ocean-going and migratory. A 2010 study on mantas around Japan confirmed the morphological and genetic differences between "M. birostris" and "M. alfredi". A third possible species, preliminarily called "Manta "sp. cf. "birostris", reaches at least in width, and inhabits the tropical west Atlantic, including the Caribbean. "M. birostris" an it occur in sympatry. While some small teeth have been found, few fossilized skeletons of manta rays have been discovered. Their cartilaginous skeletons do not preserve well, as they lack the calcification of the bony fish. Only three sedimentary beds bearing manta ray fossils are known,


title: "Manta ray" content: one from the Oligocene in South Carolina and two from the Miocene and Pliocene in North Carolina. Remains of an extinct species have been found in the Chandler Bridge Formation of South Carolina. These were originally described as "Manta fragilis", but were later reclassified as "Paramobula fragilis". Manta rays have broad heads, triangular pectoral fins, and horn-shaped cephalic fins located on either side of their mouths. They have horizontally flattened bodies with eyes on the sides of their heads behind the cephalic fins, and gill slits on their ventral surfaces. Their tails lack skeletal support and are shorter than their


title: "Manta ray" content: disc-like bodies. The dorsal fins are small and at the base of the tail. The largest mantas can reach . In both species, the width is about 2.2 times the length of the body; "M. birostris" reaches at least in width, while "M. alfredi" reaches about . Dorsally, mantas are typically black or dark in color with pale markings on their "shoulders". Ventrally, they are usually white or pale with distinctive dark markings by which individual mantas can be recognized. All-black color morphs are known to exist. The skin is covered in mucus which protects it from infection. The two


title: "Manta ray" content: species of manta differ in color patterns, dermal denticles, and dentition. "M. birostris" has more angular shoulder markings, larger ventral dark spots on the abdominal region, charcoal-colored ventral outlines on the pectoral fins, and a dark colored mouth. The shoulder markings of "M. alfredi" are more rounded, while its ventral spots are located near the posterior end and between the gill slits, and the mouth is white or pale colored. The denticles have multiple cusps and overlap in "M. birostris", while those of "M. alfredi" are evenly spaced and lack cusps. Both species have small, square-shaped teeth on the lower


title: "Manta ray" content: jaw, but "M. birostris" also has enlarged teeth on the upper jaw. Unlike "M. alfredi", "M. birostris" has a caudal spine near its dorsal fin. Mantas move through the water by the wing-like movements of their pectoral fins, which drive water backwards. Their large mouths are rectangular, and face forward as opposed to other ray and skate species with downward-facing mouths. The spiracles typical of rays are vestigial, and mantas must swim continuously to keep oxygenated water passing over their gills. The cephalic fins are usually spiralled, but flatten during foraging. The fish's gill arches have pallets of pinkish-brown spongy


title: "Manta ray" content: tissue that collect food particles. Mantas track down prey using visual and olfactory senses. They have one of the highest brain-to-body mass ratios and the largest brain size of all fish. Their brains have retia mirabilia which may serve to keep them warm. "M. alfredi" has been shown to dive to depths over 400 m, while their relative "Mobula tarapacana", which has a similar structure, dives to nearly 2000 m; the retia mirabilia probably serve to prevent their brains from being chilled during such dives into colder subsurface waters. Mating takes place at different times of the year in different


title: "Manta ray" content: parts of the manta's range. Courtship is difficult to observe in this fast-swimming fish, although mating "trains" with multiple individuals swimming closely behind each other are sometimes seen in shallow water. The mating sequence may be triggered by a full moon and seems to be initiated by a male following closely behind a female while she travels at around per hour. He makes repeated efforts to grasp her pectoral fin with his mouth, which may take 20 to 30 minutes. Once he has a tight grip, he turns upside-down and presses his ventral side against hers. He then inserts one


title: "Manta ray" content: of his claspers into her cloaca, where it remains for 60–90 seconds. The clasper forms a tube which channels sperm from the genital papilla; a siphon propels the seminal fluid into the oviduct. The male continues to grip the female's pectoral fin with his teeth for a further few minutes as both continue to swim, often followed by up to 20 other males. The pair then parts. For some reason, the male almost always grasps the left pectoral fin, and females often have scars that illustrate this. The fertilized eggs develop within the female's oviduct. At first, they are enclosed


title: "Manta ray" content: in an egg case while the developing embryos absorb the yolk. After hatching, the pups remain in the oviduct and receive additional nutrition from milky secretions. With no umbilical cord or placenta, the unborn pup relies on buccal pumping to obtain oxygen. Brood size is usually one or occasionally two. The gestation period is thought to be 12–13 months. When fully developed, the pup resembles a miniature adult and is expelled from the oviduct with no further parental care. In wild populations, an interval of 2 years between births may be normal, but a few individuals become pregnant in consecutive


title: "Manta ray" content: years, demonstrating an annual ovulatory cycle. The Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium has had some success in breeding "M. alfredi", with one female giving birth in three successive years. In one of these pregnancies, the gestation period was 372 days and at birth the pup had a width of and weight of . In southern Africa, "M. birostris" males mature at while females reach maturity slightly over that. In Indonesia, "M. birostris" males appear to mature at , while female mature around . In southern Africa, "M. alfredi" matures at widths of for males and for females. In the Maldives, males of


title: "Manta ray" content: "M. alfredi" mature at a width of , while females mature at . In Hawaii, "M. alfredi" matures at a width of for males and for females. Female mantas appear to mature at 8–10 years. Manta rays may live as long as 50 years. Swimming behavior in mantas differs across habitats: when travelling over deep water, they swim at a constant rate in a straight line, while further inshore, they usually bask or swim idly around. Mantas may travel alone or in groups up to 50. They may associate with other fish species, as well as sea birds and marine


title: "Manta ray" content: mammals. Mantas sometimes breach, leaping partially or entirely out of the water. Individuals in a group may make aerial jumps one after the other. These leaps occur in three forms - forward leaps where the fish lands head first, similar jumps with a tail first re-entry, or somersaults. The reason for breaching is not known; possible explanations include mating rituals, birthing, communication, or the removal of parasites and commensal remoras (suckerfish). As filter feeders, manta rays consume large quantities of zooplankton in the form of shrimp, krill, and planktonic crabs. An individual manta eats about 13% of its body weight


title: "Manta ray" content: each week. When foraging, it slowly swims around its prey, herding it into a tight "ball", and then speeds through the bunched organisms with a wide-open mouth. If a ball is particularly dense, a manta may somersault through it. While feeding, mantas flatten their cephalic fins to channel food into their mouths and the small particles are collected by the tissue between the gill arches. As many as 50 individual fish may gather at a single, plankton-rich feeding site. Mantas are themselves preyed upon by large sharks and by killer whales. They may also be bitten by cookiecutter sharks, and


title: "Manta ray" content: harbor parasitic copepods. Mantas visit cleaning stations on coral reefs for the removal of external parasites. The ray adopts a near-stationary position close to the coral surface for several minutes while the cleaner fish consume the attached organisms. Such visits most frequently occur when the tide is high. In Hawaii, wrasses provide the cleaning; some species feed around the manta's mouth and gill slits, while others address the rest of the body surface. In Mozambique, sergeant major fish clean the mouth, while butterflyfishes concentrate on bite wounds. "M. alfredi" visits cleaning stations more often than "M. birostris". Individual mantas may


title: "Manta ray" content: revisit the same cleaning station or feeding area repeatedly and appear to have cognitive maps of their environment. Mantas are found in tropical and subtropical waters in all the world's major oceans, and also venture into temperate seas. The furthest from the equator they have been recorded is North Carolina in the United States (31°N) and the North Island of New Zealand (36°S). They prefer water temperatures above and "M. alfredi" is predominantly found in tropical areas. Both species are pelagic. "M. birostris" lives mostly in the open ocean, travelling with the currents and migrating to areas where upwellings of


title: "Manta ray" content: nutrient-rich water increase prey concentrations. Fish that have been fitted with radio transmitters have travelled as far as from where they were caught, and descended to depths of at least . "M. alfredi" is a more resident and coastal species. Seasonal migrations do occur, but they are shorter than those of "M. birostris". Mantas are common around coasts from spring to fall, but travel further offshore during the winter. They keep close to the surface and in shallow water in daytime, while at night they swim at greater depths. The greatest threat to manta rays is overfishing. "M. birostris" is


title: "Manta ray" content: not evenly distributed over the oceans, but is concentrated in areas that provide the food resources it requires, while "M. alfredi" is even more localized. Their distributions are thus fragmented, with little evidence of intermingling of subpopulations. Because of their long lifespans and low reproductive rate, overfishing can severely reduce local populations with little likelihood that individuals from elsewhere will replace them. Both commercial and artisanal fisheries have targeted mantas for their meat and products. They are typically caught with nets, trawls, and harpoons. Mantas were once captured by fisheries in California and Australia for their liver oil and skin;


title: "Manta ray" content: the latter were used as abrasives. Their flesh is edible and is consumed in some countries, but is unattractive compared to other fish. Demand for their gill rakers, the cartilaginous structures protecting the gills, has recently entered Chinese medicine. To fill the growing demand in Asia for gill rakers, targeted fisheries have developed in the Philippines, Indonesia, Mozambique, Madagascar, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Brazil, and Tanzania. Each year, thousands of manta rays, primarily "M. birostris", are caught and killed purely for their gill rakers. A fisheries study in Sri Lanka and India estimated that over 1000 were being sold in


title: "Manta ray" content: the country's fish markets each year. By comparison, "M. birostris" populations at most of the key aggregation sites around the world are estimated to have significantly fewer than 1000 individuals. Targeted fisheries for manta rays in the Gulf of California, the west coast of Mexico, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and the Philippines have reduced populations in these areas dramatically. Manta rays are subject to other anthropogenic threats. Because mantas must swim constantly to flush oxygen-rich water over their gills, they are vulnerable to entanglement and subsequent suffocation. Mantas cannot swim backwards, and because of their protruding cephalic fins, are prone


title: "Manta ray" content: to entanglement in fishing lines, nets, ghost nets, and even loose mooring lines. When snared, mantas often attempt to free themselves by somersaulting, tangling themselves further. Loose, trailing line can wrap around and cut its way into its flesh, resulting in irreversible injury. Similarly, mantas become entangled in gill nets designed for smaller fish. Some mantas are injured by collision with boats, especially in areas where they congregate and are easily observed. Other threats or factors that may affect manta numbers are climate change, tourism, pollution from oil spills, and the ingestion of microplastics. In 2011, mantas became strictly protected


title: "Manta ray" content: in international waters because of their inclusion in the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals. The CMS is an international treaty organization concerned with conserving migratory species and habitats on a global scale. Although individual nations were already protecting manta rays, the fish often migrate through unregulated waters, putting them at increased risk from overfishing. The IUCN declared "M. birostris" to be 'vulnerable with an elevated risk of extinction' in November 2011. In the same year, "M. alfredi" was also classified as vulnerable with local populations of fewer than 1000 individuals and little or no interchange between subpopulations. The


title: "Manta ray" content: Manta Trust is a UK-based charity dedicated to research and conservation efforts for manta rays. The organization's website is also an information resource for manta conservation and biology. Besides these international initiatives, some countries are taking their own actions. New Zealand has banned the taking of manta rays since the introduction of the Wildlife Act in 1953. In June 1995, the Maldives banned the export of all ray species and their body parts, effectively putting a stop to manta fishing, as there had not previously been a fishery for local consumption. The government reinforced this in 2009 with the introduction


title: "Manta ray" content: of two marine protected areas. In the Philippines, the taking of mantas was banned in 1998, but this was overturned in 1999 under pressure from local fishermen. Fish stocks were surveyed in 2002, and the ban was reintroduced. The taking or killing of mantas in Mexican waters was prohibited in 2007. This ban may not be strictly enforced, but laws are being more rigidly applied at Isla Holbox, an island off the Yucatán Peninsula, where manta rays are used to attract tourists. In 2009, Hawaii became the first of the United States to introduce a ban on the killing or


title: "Manta ray" content: capturing of manta rays. Previously, no fishery for mantas existed in the state, but migratory fish that pass the islands are now protected. In 2010, Ecuador introduced a law prohibiting all fishing for manta and other rays, their retention as bycatch, and their sale. The ancient Peruvian Moche people worshipped the sea and its animals. Their art often depicts manta rays. Historically, mantas were feared for their size and power. Sailors believed that they ate fish and could sink boats by pulling on the anchors. This attitude changed around 1978, when divers around the Gulf of California found them to


title: "Manta ray" content: be placid and that they could interact with the animals. Several divers photographed themselves with mantas, including "Jaws" author Peter Benchley. The Tampa Bay Rays baseball team derives its name from the animals. Due to their size, mantas are rarely kept in captivity and few aquaria currently display them. One notable individual is "Nandi", a manta ray which was accidentally caught in shark nets off Durban, South Africa, in 2007. Rehabilitated and outgrowing her aquarium at uShaka Marine World, Nandi was moved to the larger Georgia Aquarium in August 2008, where she resides in its 23,848-m (6,300,000-US gal) "Ocean Voyager"


title: "Manta ray" content: exhibit. A second manta ray joined that aquarium's collection in September 2009, and a third was added in 2010. The Atlantis resort on Paradise Island, Bahamas, hosted a manta named "Zeus" that was used as a research subject for 3 years until it was released in 2008. The Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium also houses manta rays in the "Kuroshio Sea" tank, one of the largest aquarium tanks in the world. The first manta ray birth in captivity took place there in 2007. Although this pup did not survive, the aquarium has since had the birth of three more manta rays in


title: "Manta ray" content: 2008, 2009, and 2010. Sites at which manta rays congregate attract tourists, and manta viewing generates substantial annual revenue for local communities. Tourist sites exist in the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, Spain, the Fiji Islands, Thailand, Indonesia, Hawaii, Western Australia and the Maldives. Mantas are popular because of their enormous size and because they are easily habituated to humans. Scuba divers may get a chance to watch mantas visiting cleaning stations and night dives enable viewers to see mantas feeding on plankton attracted by the lights. Ray tourism benefits locals and visitors by raising awareness of natural resource management and


title: "Manta ray" content: educating them about the animals. It can also provide funds for research and conservation. Constant unregulated interactions with tourists can negatively affect the fish by disrupting ecological relationships and increasing disease transmission. At Bora Bora, an excessive number of swimmers, boaters, and jet skiers caused the local manta ray population to abandon the area. In 2014, Indonesia brought in a fishing and export ban, as it has realized that manta ray tourism is more economically beneficial than allowing the fish to be killed. A dead manta is worth $40 to $500, while manta ray tourism can bring in $1 million


title: "Manta ray" content: during the life of a single manta ray. Indonesia has 5.8 million m (2.2 million mi) of ocean, and this is now the world's largest sanctuary for manta rays. Manta ray Manta rays are large rays belonging to the genus "Manta". The larger species, "M. birostris", reaches in width, while the smaller, "M. alfredi", reaches . Both have triangular pectoral fins, horn-shaped cephalic fins and large, forward-facing mouths. They are classified among the Myliobatiformes (stingrays and relatives) and are placed in the family Myliobatidae (eagle rays). Mantas are found in warm temperate, subtropical and tropical waters. Both species are pelagic;


title: Swan content: Swan Swans are birds of the family Anatidae within the genus Cygnus. The swans' close relatives include the geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae. There are six or seven living (and one extinct) species of swan in the genus "Cygnus"; in addition, there is another species known as the coscoroba swan, although this species is no longer considered one of the true swans. Swans usually mate for life, although “divorce” sometimes occurs, particularly following nesting failure, and


title: Swan content: if a mate dies, the remaining swan will take up with another. The number of eggs in each clutch ranges from three to eight. The English word 'swan', akin to the German "Schwan", Dutch "zwaan" and Swedish "svan", is derived from Indo-European root "*swen" (to sound, to sing). Young swans are known as "swanlings" or as "cygnets"; the latter derives via Old French "cigne" or "cisne" (diminutive suffix -"et" "little") from the Latin word "", a variant form of "cycnus" "swan", itself from the Greek "kýknos", a word of the same meaning. An adult male is a "cob", from Middle


title: Swan content: English "cobbe" (leader of a group); an adult female is a "pen". Swans are the largest extant members of the waterfowl family Anatidae, and are among the largest flying birds. The largest species, including the mute swan, trumpeter swan, and whooper swan, can reach a length of over and weigh over . Their wingspans can be over . Compared to the closely related geese, they are much larger and have proportionally larger feet and necks. Adults also have a patch of unfeathered skin between the eyes and bill. The sexes are alike in plumage, but males are generally bigger and


title: Swan content: heavier than females. The Northern Hemisphere species of swan have pure white plumage but the Southern Hemisphere species are mixed black and white. The Australian black swan ("Cygnus atratus") is completely black except for the white flight feathers on its wings; the chicks of black swans are light grey. The South American black-necked swan has a white body with a black neck. Swans' legs are normally a dark blackish grey colour, except for the two South American species, which have pink legs. Bill colour varies: the four subarctic species have black bills with varying amounts of yellow, and all the


title: Swan content: others are patterned red and black. Although birds do not have teeth, swans have beaks with serrated edges that look like small jagged 'teeth' as part of their beaks used for catching and eating aquatic plants and algae, but also molluscs, small fish, frogs and worms. The mute swan and black-necked swan have lumps at the base of their bills on the upper mandible. Swans are generally found in temperate environments, rarely occurring in the tropics. A group of swans is called a bevy or a wedge in flight. Four (or five) species occur in the Northern Hemisphere, one species


title: Swan content: is found in Australia, one extinct species was found in New Zealand and the Chatham Islands, and one species is distributed in southern South America. They are absent from tropical Asia, Central America, northern South America and the entirety of Africa. One species, the mute swan, has been introduced to North America, Australia and New Zealand. Several species are migratory, either wholly or partly so. The mute swan is a partial migrant, being resident over areas of Western Europe but wholly migratory in Eastern Europe and Asia. The whooper swan and tundra swan are wholly migratory, and the trumpeter swans


title: Swan content: are almost entirely migratory. There is some evidence that the black-necked swan is migratory over part of its range, but detailed studies have not established whether these movements are long or short range migration. Swans feed in water and on land. They are almost entirely herbivorous, although they may eat small amounts of aquatic animals. In the water, food is obtained by up-ending or dabbling, and their diet is composed of the roots, tubers, stems and leaves of aquatic and submerged plants. Although swans only reach sexual maturity between 4 and 7 years of age, they can form socially monogamous


title: Swan content: pair bonds from as early as 20 months that last for many years, and in some cases these can last for life. The lifespan of the mute swan is often over 10 years, and sometimes over 20, whereas the black-necked swan survives for less than a decade in captivity. These bonds are maintained year-round, even in gregarious and migratory species like the tundra swan, which congregate in large flocks in the wintering grounds. Their nest is on the ground near water and about a metre across. Unlike many other ducks and geese, the male helps with the nest construction, and


title: Swan content: also take turns incubating the eggs, and alongside the whistling ducks are the only anatids that will do this. Average egg size (for the mute swan) is 113×74 mm, weighing 340 g, in a clutch size of 4 to 7, and an incubation period of 34–45 days. Swans are highly protective of their nests. They will viciously attack anything that they perceive as a threat to their chicks, including humans. One man was suspected to have drowned in such an attack. Evidence suggests that the genus "Cygnus" evolved in Europe or western Eurasia during the Miocene, spreading all over the


title: Swan content: Northern Hemisphere until the Pliocene. When the southern species branched off is not known. The mute swan apparently is closest to the Southern Hemisphere "Cygnus" (del Hoyo et al., eds, "Handbook of the Birds of the World"); its habits of carrying the neck curved (not straight) and the wings fluffed (not flush) as well as its bill color and knob indicate that its closest living relative is the black swan. Given the biogeography and appearance of the subgenus "Olor" it seems likely that these are of a more recent origin, as evidence shows by their modern ranges (which were mostly


title: Swan content: uninhabitable during the last ice age) and great similarity between the taxa. Based on the "Taxonomy in Flux" from John Boyd's website. Genus "Cygnus" The fossil record of the genus "Cygnus" is quite impressive, although allocation to the subgenera is often tentative; as indicated above, at least the early forms probably belong to the "C. olor" – Southern Hemisphere lineage, whereas the Pleistocene taxa from North America would be placed in "Olor". A number of prehistoric species have been described, mostly from the Northern Hemisphere. Among them was the giant Siculo-Maltese "C. falconeri", which was taller (though not heavier) than


title: Swan content: the contemporary local dwarf elephants ("Elephas falconeri"). The supposed fossil swans ""Cygnus" bilinicus" and ""Cygnus" herrenthalsi" were, respectively, a stork and some large bird of unknown affinity (due to the bad state of preservation of the referred material). "Anser atavus" is sometimes placed in "Cygnus". The coscoroba swan ("Coscoroba coscoroba") from South America, the only species of its genus, is apparently not a true swan. Its phylogenetic position is not fully resolved; it is in some aspects more similar to geese and shelducks. Many of the cultural aspects refer to the mute swan of Europe. Perhaps the best known story


title: Swan content: about a swan is "The Ugly Duckling" fable. Swans are often a symbol of love or fidelity because of their long-lasting, apparently monogamous relationships. See the famous swan-related operas "Lohengrin" and "Parsifal". Swan meat was regarded as a luxury food in England in the reign of Elizabeth I. A recipe for baked swan survives from that time: "To bake a Swan Scald it and take out the bones, and parboil it, then season it very well with Pepper, Salt and Ginger, then lard it, and put it in a deep Coffin of Rye Paste with store of Butter, close it


title: Swan content: and bake it very well, and when it is baked, fill up the Vent-hole with melted Butter, and so keep it; serve it in as you do the Beef-Pie." Swans feature strongly in mythology. In Greek mythology, the story of Leda and the Swan recounts that Helen of Troy was conceived in a union of Zeus disguised as a swan and Leda, Queen of Sparta. Other references in classical literature include the belief that upon death the otherwise-silent mute swan would sing beautifully—hence the phrase swan song; as well as Juvenal's sarcastic reference to a good woman being a "rare


title: Swan content: bird, as rare on earth as a black swan", from which we get the Latin phrase "", rare bird. The mute swan is also one of the sacred birds of Apollo, whose associations stem both from the nature of the bird as a symbol of light as well as the notion of a "swan song". The god is often depicted riding a chariot pulled by or composed of swans in his ascension from Delos. The Irish legend of the Children of Lir is about a stepmother transforming her children into swans for 900 years. In the legend "The Wooing of


title: Swan content: Etain", the king of the Sidhe (subterranean-dwelling, supernatural beings) transforms himself and the most beautiful woman in Ireland, Etain, into swans to escape from the king of Ireland and Ireland's armies. The swan has recently been depicted on an Irish commemorative coin. Swans are also present in Irish literature in the poetry of W.B. Yeats. "The Wild Swans at Coole" has a heavy focus on the mesmerising characteristics of the swan. Yeats also recounts the myth of Leda and the Swan in the poem of the same name. In Norse mythology, there are two swans that drink from the sacred


title: Swan content: Well of Urd in the realm of Asgard, home of the gods. According to the Prose Edda, the water of this well is so pure and holy that all things that touch it turn white, including this original pair of swans and all others descended from them. The poem "Volundarkvida", or the "Lay of Volund", part of the Poetic Edda, also features swan maidens. In the Finnish epic "Kalevala", a swan lives in the Tuoni river located in Tuonela, the underworld realm of the dead. According to the story, whoever killed a swan would perish as well. Jean Sibelius composed


title: Swan content: the "Lemminkäinen Suite" based on Kalevala, with the second piece entitled "Swan of Tuonela" "(Tuonelan joutsen)". Today, five flying swans are the symbol of the Nordic Countries, the whooper swan ("Cygnus cygnus") is the national bird of Finland, and the mute swan is the national bird of Denmark. French satirist François Rabelais wrote in Gargantua and Pantagruel that a swan's neck was the best toilet paper he had encountered. A swan is one of the attributes of St Hugh of Lincoln based on the story of a swan who was devoted to him. In Latin American literature, the Nicaraguan poet


title: Swan content: Rubén Darío (1867–1916) consecrated the swan as a symbol of artistic inspiration by drawing attention to the constancy of swan imagery in Western culture, beginning with the rape of Leda and ending with Wagner's "Lohengrin". Darío's most famous poem in this regard is "Blasón – "Coat of Arms"" (1896), and his use of the swan made it a symbol for the Modernismo poetic movement that dominated Spanish language poetry from the 1880s until the First World War. Such was the dominance of Modernismo in Spanish language poetry that the Mexican poet Enrique González Martínez attempted to announce the end of


title: Swan content: Modernismo with a sonnet provocatively entitled, "Tuércele el cuello al cisne – "Wring the Swan's Neck"" (1910). Swans are revered in Hinduism, and are compared to saintly persons whose chief characteristic is to be in the world without getting attached to it, just as a swan's feather does not get wet although it is in water. The Sanskrit word for swan is "hamsa" and the "Raja Hamsam" or the Royal Swan is the vehicle of Goddess Saraswati which symbolises the "Sattva Guna" or purity par excellence. The swan if offered a mixture of milk and water, is said to be


title: Swan content: able to drink the milk alone. Therefore, Goddess Saraswati the goddess of knowledge is seen riding the swan because the swan thus symbolizes "Viveka" i.e. prudence and discrimination between the good and the bad or between the eternal and the transient. This is taken as a great quality, as shown by this Sanskrit verse: It is mentioned several times in the Vedic literature, and persons who have attained great spiritual capabilities are sometimes called Paramahamsa ("Supreme Swan") on account of their spiritual grace and ability to travel between various spiritual worlds. In the Vedas, swans are said to reside in


title: Swan content: the summer on Lake Manasarovar and migrate to Indian lakes for the winter. They're believed to possess some powers such as the ability to eat pearls. Swans are intimately associated with the divine twins in Indo-European religions, and it is thought that in Proto-Indo-European times, swans were a solar symbol associated with the divine twins and the original Indo-European sun goddess. Swan Swans are birds of the family Anatidae within the genus Cygnus. The swans' close relatives include the geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini.


title: "Egyptian hieroglyphs" content: and for that reason has been labelled by some an "abjad" alphabet, i.e., an alphabet without vowels. Thus, hieroglyphic writing representing a pintail duck is read in Egyptian as "sꜣ", derived from the main consonants of the Egyptian word for this duck: 's', 'ꜣ' and 't'. (Note that ꜣ (, two half-rings opening to the left), sometimes replaced by the digit '3', is the Egyptian "alef"). It is also possible to use the hieroglyph of the pintail duck without a link to its meaning in order to represent the two phonemes "s" and "ꜣ", independently of any vowels that could


title: "American black bear" content: American black bear The American black bear ("Ursus americanus") is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most widely distributed bear species. American black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in largely forested areas, but do leave forests in search of food. Sometimes they become attracted to human communities because of the immediate availability of food. The American black bear is the world's most common bear species. It is listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as a least-concern species, due


title: "American black bear" content: to its widespread distribution and a large population estimated to be twice that of all other bear species combined. Along with the brown bear, it is one of only two of the eight modern bear species not considered globally threatened with extinction by the IUCN. American black bears often mark trees using their teeth and claws as a form of communication with other bears, a behavior common to many species of bears. Despite living in North America, American black bears are not closely related to brown bears and polar bears; genetic studies reveal that they split from a common ancestor


title: "American black bear" content: 5.05 million years ago (mya). American and Asian black bears are considered sister taxa and are more closely related to each other than to the other modern species of bears. According to recent studies, the sun bear is also a relatively recent split from this lineage. A small primitive bear called "Ursus abstrusus" is the oldest known North American fossil member of the genus "Ursus", dated to 4.95 mya. This suggests that "U. abstrusus" may be the direct ancestor of the American black bear, which evolved in North America. Although Wolverton and Lyman still consider "U. vitabilis" an "apparent precursor


title: "American black bear" content: to modern black bears", it has also been placed within "U. americanus". The ancestors of American black bears and Asian black bears diverged from sun bears 4.58 mya. The American black bear then split from the Asian black bear 4.08 mya. The earliest American black bear fossils, which were located in Port Kennedy, Pennsylvania, greatly resemble the Asian species, though later specimens grew to sizes comparable to grizzly bears. From the Holocene to the present, American black bears seem to have shrunk in size, but this has been disputed because of problems with dating these fossil specimens. The American black


title: "American black bear" content: bear lived during the same period as the giant and lesser short-faced bears ("Arctodus simus" and "A. pristinus", respectively) and the Florida spectacled bear ("Tremarctos floridanus"). These tremarctine bears evolved from bears that had emigrated from Asia to North America 7–8 ma. The giant and lesser short-faced bears are thought to have been heavily carnivorous and the Florida spectacled bear more herbivorous, while the American black bears remained arboreal omnivores, like their Asian ancestors. The American black bear's generalist behavior allowed it to exploit a wider variety of foods and has been given as a reason why, of these three


title: "American black bear" content: genera, it alone survived climate and vegetative changes through the last Ice Age while the other, more specialized North American predators became extinct. However, both "Arctodus" and "Tremarctos" had survived several other, previous ice ages. After these prehistoric ursids became extinct during the last glacial period 10,000 years ago, American black bears were probably the only bear present in much of North America until the migration of brown bears to the rest of the continent. American black bears are reproductively compatible with several other bear species and have occasionally produced hybrid offspring. According to Jack Hanna's "Monkeys on the Interstate",


title: "American black bear" content: a bear captured in Sanford, Florida, was thought to have been the offspring of an escaped female Asian black bear and a male American black bear. In 1859, an American black bear and a Eurasian brown bear were bred together in the London Zoological Gardens, but the three cubs that were born died before they reached maturity. In "The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication", Charles Darwin noted: An American black bear shot in autumn 1986 in Michigan was thought by some to be an American black bear/grizzly bear hybrid, due to its unusually large size and its proportionately


title: "American black bear" content: larger braincase and skull. DNA testing was unable to determine whether it was a large American black bear or a grizzly bear. Listed alphabetically. Historically, American black bears occupied the majority of North America's forested regions. Today, they are primarily limited to sparsely settled, forested areas. American black bears currently inhabit much of their original Canadian range, though they seldom occur in the southern farmlands of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba; they have been extinct on Prince Edward Island since 1937. The total Canadian black bear population is between 396,000 and 476,000, based on surveys taken in the mid-1990s in seven


title: "American black bear" content: Canadian provinces, though this estimate excludes American black bear populations in New Brunswick, the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan. All provinces indicated stable populations of American black bears over the last decade. The current range of American black bears in the United States is constant throughout most of the northeast and within the Appalachian Mountains almost continuously from Maine to northern Georgia, the northern Midwest, the Rocky Mountain region, the West Coast and Alaska. However, it becomes increasingly fragmented or absent in other regions. Despite this, American black bears in those areas seem to have expanded their range during


title: "American black bear" content: the last decade, such as with recent sightings in Ohio and southern Indiana, though these probably do not yet represent stable breeding populations. Surveys taken from 35 states in the early 1990s indicate that American black bears are either stable or increasing, except in Idaho and New Mexico. The overall population of American black bears in the United States has been estimated to range between 339,000 and 465,000, though this excludes populations from Alaska, Idaho, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming, whose population sizes are unknown. In the state of California, there are an estimated 25,000-35,000 American black bears, making it


title: "American black bear" content: the largest population of the species in the contiguous United States. As of 1993, known Mexican black bear populations existed in four areas, though knowledge on the distribution of populations outside those areas has not been updated since 1959. Mexico is the only country where the American black bear is classified as "endangered". There have been several sightings quite far away from where the American black bear is normally found, such as Union County, North Carolina and western Nebraska. Throughout their range, habitats preferred by American black bears have a few shared characteristics. They are often found in areas with


title: "American black bear" content: relatively inaccessible terrain, thick understory vegetation and large quantities of edible material (especially masts). The adaptation to woodlands and thick vegetation in this species may have originally been due to the American black bear having evolved alongside larger, more aggressive bear species, such as the extinct giant short-faced bear and the still-living grizzly bear, that monopolized more open habitats and the historic presence of larger predators, such as "Smilodon" and the American lion, that could have preyed on American black bears. Although found in the largest numbers in wild, undisturbed areas and rural regions, American black bears can adapt to


title: "American black bear" content: surviving in some numbers in peri-urban regions, as long as they contain easily accessible foods and some vegetative coverage. In most of the contiguous United States, American black bears today are usually found in heavily vegetated mountainous areas, from in elevation. For American black bears living in the American Southwest and Mexico, habitat usually consists of stands of chaparral and pinyon juniper woods. In this region, bears occasionally move to more open areas to feed on prickly pear cactus. At least two distinct, prime habitat types are inhabited in the Southeastern United States. American black bears in the southern Appalachian


title: "American black bear" content: Mountains survive in predominantly oak-hickory and mixed mesophytic forests. In the coastal areas of the Southeast (such as Florida, the Carolinas and Louisiana), bears inhabit a mixture of flatwoods, bays and swampy hardwood sites. In the northeast part of the range (United States and Canada), prime habitat consists of a forest canopy of hardwoods such as beech, maple, birch and coniferous species. Corn crops and oak-hickory mast are also common sources of food in some sections of the Northeast; small, thick swampy areas provide excellent refuge cover largely in stands of white cedar. Along the Pacific coast, redwood, Sitka spruce


title: "American black bear" content: and hemlocks predominate as overstory cover. Within these northern forest types are early successional areas important for American black bears, such as fields of brush, wet and dry meadows, high tidelands, riparian areas and a variety of mast-producing hardwood species. The spruce-fir forest dominates much of the range of the American black bear in the Rockies. Important nonforested areas here are wet meadows, riparian areas, avalanche chutes, roadsides, burns, sidehill parks and subalpine ridgetops. In areas where human development is relatively low, such as stretches of Canada and Alaska, American black bears tend to be found more regularly in lowland


title: "American black bear" content: regions. In parts of northeastern Canada, especially Labrador, American black bears have adapted exclusively to semi-open areas that are more typical habitat in North America for brown bears (likely due to the absence here of brown and polar bears, as well as other large carnivore species). The skulls of American black bears are broad, with narrow muzzles and large jaw hinges. In Virginia, the total length of adult bear skulls was found to average . Across its range, the greatest skull length for the species has been reportedly measured from . Females tend to have slenderer and more pointed faces


title: "American black bear" content: than males. Their claws are typically black or grayish-brown. The claws are short and rounded, being thick at the base and tapering to a point. Claws from both hind and front legs are almost identical in length, though the foreclaws tend to be more sharply curved. The paws of the species are relatively large, with a rear foot length of , which is proportionately larger than other medium-sized bear species, but much smaller than the paws of large adult brown, and especially polar, bears. The soles of the feet are black or brownish and are naked, leathery and deeply wrinkled.


title: "American black bear" content: The hind legs are relatively longer than those of Asian black bears. The vestigial tail is usually long. The ears are small and rounded and are set well back on the head. American black bears are highly dexterous, being capable of opening screw-top jars and manipulating door latches. They also have great physical strength. They have been known to turn over flat-shaped rocks weighing by flipping them over with a single foreleg. They move in a rhythmic, sure-footed way and can run at speeds of . American black bears have good eyesight and have been proven experimentally to be able


title: "American black bear" content: to learn visual color discrimination tasks faster than chimpanzees and just as fast as domestic dogs. They are also capable of rapidly learning to distinguish different shapes such as small triangles, circles and squares. American black bear weight tends to vary according to age, sex, health and season. Seasonal variation in weight is very pronounced: in autumn, their pre-den weight tends to be 30% higher than in spring, when black bears emerge from their dens. American black bears on the East Coast tend to be heavier on average than those on the West Coast, although American black bears follow Bergmann's


title: "American black bear" content: rule and bears from the Northwest are often slightly heavier than the bears from the Southeast. Adult males typically weigh between , while females weigh 33% less at . In the state of California, studies have indicated that the average mass is in adult males and in adult females. Adult American black bears in Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge in east-central Alaska were found to average in males and in females, whereas on Kuiu Island in southeast Alaska (where nutritious salmon are readily available) adult American black bears averaged an estimated . In Great Smoky Mountains National Park, adult males


title: "American black bear" content: averaged and adult females averaged per one study. In Yellowstone National Park, a population study found that adult males averaged and adult females averaged . In New York, the two sexes reportedly average and , respectively. Adults typically range from in head-and-body length, and in shoulder height. The typically small tail is long. Although they are the smallest bear species in North America, large males exceed the size of other bear species, except the brown bear and the polar bear. The biggest wild American black bear ever recorded was a male from New Brunswick, shot in November 1972, that weighed


title: "American black bear" content: after it had been dressed, meaning it weighed an estimated in life and measured long. Another notably outsized wild American black bear, weighing in at in total, was the cattle-killer shot in December 1921 on the Moqui Reservation in Arizona. The record-sized American black bear from New Jersey was shot in Morris County December 2011 and scaled . Even larger, the most massive American black bear recorded in Pennsylvania (one of six weighing over shot in the last 15 years in the state) weighed in at and was shot in November 2010 in Pike County. The North American Bear Center,


title: "American black bear" content: located in Ely, Minnesota, is home to the world's largest captive male and female American black bears. Ted, the male, weighed in the fall of 2006. Honey, the female, weighed in the fall of 2007. The fur is soft, with dense underfur and long, coarse, thick guard hairs. The fur is not as shaggy or coarse as that of brown bears. American black bear skins can be distinguished from those of Asian black bears by the lack of a white blaze on the chest and hairier footpads. Despite their name, American black bears show a great deal of color variation.


title: "American black bear" content: Individual coat colors can range from white, blonde, cinnamon, light brown or dark chocolate brown to jet black, with many intermediate variations existing. Silvery-gray American black bears with a blue luster (this is found mostly on the flanks) occur along a portion of coastal Alaska and British Columbia. White to cream-colored American black bears occur in the coastal islands and the adjacent mainland of southwestern British Columbia. Albino specimens have also been recorded. Black coats tend to predominate in moist areas such as Maine, New York, Tennessee, Michigan and western Washington. Approximately 70% of all American black bears are black,


title: "American black bear" content: though only 50% of American black bears in the Rocky Mountains are black. Many American black bears in northwestern North America are cinnamon, blonde or light brown in color and thus may sometimes be mistaken for grizzly bears. Grizzly (and other types of brown) bears can be distinguished by their shoulder hump, larger size and broader, more concave skull. In his book "The Great Bear Almanac", Gary Brown summarized the predominance of black or brown/blonde specimens by location: An American black bear has better eyesight and a better sense of hearing compared to humans. Their keenest sense is their sense


title: "American black bear" content: of smell, which is about seven times greater than a domestic dog's. American black bears are excellent and strong swimmers, doing so for pleasure and to feed (largely on fish). They regularly climb trees to feed, escape enemies and hibernate. Four of the eight modern bear species are habitually arboreal (the most arboreal species, the American and Asian black bears and the sun bear, being fairly closely related). Their arboreal abilities tend to decline with age. American black bears may be active at any time of the day or night, although they mainly forage by night. American black bears living


title: "American black bear" content: near human habitations tend to be more extensively nocturnal and American black bears living near brown bears tend to be more extensively diurnal. Their social behavior is somewhat similar to that of canids. American black bears tend to be territorial and non-gregarious in nature. However, at abundant food sources (i.e. spawning salmon or garbage dumps), American black bears may congregate and dominance hierarchies form, with the largest, most powerful males dominating the most fruitful feeding spots. They mark their territories by rubbing their bodies against trees and clawing at the bark. Annual ranges held by mature male American black bears


title: "American black bear" content: tend to be very large, but there is some variation. On Long Island off the coast of Washington, ranges average , whereas on the Ungava Peninsula in Canada ranges can average up to , with some male bears traveling as far as in times of food shortages. American black bears may communicate with various vocal and non-vocal sounds. Tongue-clicking and grunting are the most common sounds and are made in cordial situations to conspecifics, offspring and occasionally humans. During times of fear or nervousness, bears may moan, huff or blow air. Warning sounds include jaw-clicking and lip-popping. In aggressive interactions,


title: "American black bear" content: American black bears produce deep-throated pulsing sounds. Cubs may squeal, bawl or scream when in distress and make motor-like humming when comfortable or nursing. Sows usually produce their first litter at the age of three to five years, with those living in more developed areas tending to get pregnant at younger ages. The breeding period usually occurs in the June–July period, though it can extend to August in the species' northern range. The breeding period lasts for two to three months. Both sexes are promiscuous. Males try to mate with several females, but large, dominant ones may violently claim a


title: "American black bear" content: female if another mature male comes near. Sows tend to be short-tempered with their mates after copulating. The fertilized eggs undergo delayed development and do not implant in the female's womb until November. The gestation period lasts 235 days and litters are usually born in late January to early February. Litter size is between one and six cubs, typically two or three. At birth, cubs weigh and measure in length. They are born with fine, gray, down-like hair and their hind quarters are underdeveloped. They typically open their eyes after 28–40 days and begin walking after five weeks. Cubs are


title: "American black bear" content: dependent on their mother's milk for 30 weeks and will reach independence at 16–18 months. At the age of six weeks, they attain , by the age of eight weeks they reach and by the age of six months they weigh . They reach sexual maturity at the age of three years and attain their full growth at the age of five years. The average lifespan in the wild is 18 years, though it is quite possible for wild specimens to survive for more than 23 years. The record age of a wild specimen was 39 years, while that in


title: "American black bear" content: captivity was 44 years. The average annual survival rate for adult American black bears is variable, ranging from 86% in Florida to 73% in Virginia and North Carolina. In Minnesota, 99% of wintering adult bears were able to survive the hibernation cycle in one study. Remarkably, a study of American black bears in Nevada found that the amount of annual mortality of a population of bears in wilderness areas was 0%, whereas in developed areas in the state this figure rose to 83%. Survival in subadults is generally less assured. In Alaska, only 14–17% of subadult males and 30–48% of


title: "American black bear" content: subadult females were found in a study to survive to adulthood. Across the range, the estimated number of cubs who survive past their first year is 60%. With the exception of the rare confrontation with an adult brown bear or a gray wolf pack, adult American black bears are not usually subject to natural predation. However, as evidenced by scats with fur inside of them and the recently discovered carcass of an adult sow with puncture marks in the skull, American black bears may occasionally have fallen, and still do fall, prey to jaguars in the southern parts of their


title: "American black bear" content: range. In such scenarios, the big cat would have the advantage if it ambushed the bear, killing it with a crushing bite to the back of the skull. American black bear cubs tend to be more vulnerable to predation than adults. Known predators of bear cubs have included bobcats, coyotes, cougars, gray wolves, brown bears and other bears of their own species. Many of these will stealthily snatch small cubs right from under the sleeping mother. There is a single record of a golden eagle snatching a yearling cub. Once out of hibernation, mother bears may be able to fight


title: "American black bear" content: off most potential predators. Even cougars will be displaced by an angry mother bear if they are discovered stalking the cubs. Flooding of dens after birth may also occasionally kill newborn cubs. However, in current times, American black bear fatalities are overwhelmingly attributable to human activities. Seasonally, tens of thousands of American black bears are hunted legally across North America, with many more being illegally poached or trapped. Auto collisions also may claim many American black bear lives annually. American black bears were once not considered true or "deep" hibernators, but because of discoveries about the metabolic changes that allow


title: "American black bear" content: American black bears to remain dormant for months without eating, drinking, urinating or defecating, most biologists have redefined mammalian hibernation as "specialized, seasonal reduction in metabolism concurrent with scarce food and cold weather". American black bears are now considered highly efficient hibernators. The physiology of American black bears in the wild is closely related to that of bears in captivity. Understanding the physiology of bears in the wild is vital to the bear's success in captivity. The bears enter their dens in October and November, although in the southernmost areas of their range (i.e. Florida, Mexico, the Southeastern United States),


title: "American black bear" content: only pregnant females and mothers with yearling cubs will enter hibernation. Prior to that time, they can put on up to of body fat to get them through the several months during which they fast. Hibernation in American black bears typically lasts 3–8 months, depending on regional climate. Hibernating American black bears spend their time in hollowed-out dens in tree cavities, under logs or rocks, in banks, caves, or culverts and in shallow depressions. Although naturally-made dens are occasionally used, most dens are dug out by the bear itself. Females have been shown to be pickier in their choice of


title: "American black bear" content: dens in comparison to males. During their time in hibernation, an American black bear's heart rate drops from 40–50 beats per minute to 8 beats per minute and the metabolic rate can drop to a quarter of the bear's (non-hibernating) basal metabolic rate (BMR). These reductions in metabolic rate and heart rate do not appear to decrease the bear's ability to heal injuries during hibernation. The hibernating American black bear does not display the same rate of muscle and bone atrophy relative to other nonhibernatory animals that are subject to long periods of inactivity due to ailment or old age.


title: "American black bear" content: A hibernating American black bear loses approximately half the muscular strength compared to that of a well-nourished, inactive human. The bear's bone mass does not change in geometry or mineral composition during hibernation, which implies that the bear's conservation of bone mass during hibernation is due to a biological mechanism. During hibernation American black bears retain all excretory waste, leading to the development of a hardened mass of fecal material in the colon known as a fecal plug. A special hormone, leptin, is released into the bear's systems to suppress appetite. The retention of waste during hibernation (specifically in minerals


title: "American black bear" content: such as calcium) may play a role in the bear's resistance to atrophy. The body temperature of the American black bear does not drop significantly, like other mammalian hibernators (staying around ) and they remain somewhat alert and active. If the winter is mild enough, they may wake up and forage for food. Females also give birth in February and nurture their cubs until the snow melts. During winter, American black bears consume 25–40% of their body weight. The footpads peel off while they sleep, making room for new tissue. Many of the physiological changes an American black bear exhibits


title: "American black bear" content: during hibernation are retained slightly post-hibernation. Upon exiting hibernation, bears retain a reduced heart rate and basal metabolic rate. The metabolic rate of a hibernating bear will remain at a reduced level for up to 21 days after hibernation. After emerging from their winter dens in spring, they wander their home ranges for two weeks so that their metabolism accustoms itself to the activity. In mountainous areas, they seek southerly slopes at lower elevations for forage and move to northerly and easterly slopes at higher elevations as summer progresses. Generally, American black bears are largely crepuscular in foraging activity, though


title: "American black bear" content: they may actively feed at any time. Up to 85% of the American black bear's diet consists of vegetation, though they tend to dig less than brown bears, eating far fewer roots, bulbs, corms and tubers than the latter species. When initially emerging from hibernation, they will seek to feed on carrion from winter-killed animals and newborn ungulates. As the spring temperature warms, American black bears seek new shoots of many plant species, especially new grasses, wetland plants and forbs. Young shoots and buds from trees and shrubs during the spring period are also especially important to American black bears


title: "American black bear" content: emerging from hibernation, as they assist in rebuilding muscle and strengthening the skeleton and are often the only digestible foods available at that time. During summer, the diet largely comprises fruits, especially berries and soft masts such as buds and drupes. During the autumn hyperphagia, feeding becomes virtually the full-time task of American black bears. Hard masts become the most important part of the American black bear's diet in autumn and may even partially dictate the species' distribution. Favored masts such as hazelnuts, oak acorns and whitebark pine nuts may be consumed by the hundreds each day by a single


title: "American black bear" content: American black bear during the fall. During the fall period, American black bears may also habitually raid the nut caches of tree squirrels. Also extremely important in fall are berries such as huckleberries and buffalo berries. American black bears living in areas near human settlements or around a considerable influx of recreational human activity often come to rely on foods inadvertently provided by humans, especially during summertime. These include refuse, birdseed, agricultural products and honey from apiaries. The majority of the American black bear's animal diet consists of insects, such as bees, yellow jackets, ants and their larvae. American black


title: "American black bear" content: bears are also fond of honey and will gnaw through trees if hives are too deeply set into the trunks for them to reach them with their paws. Once the hive is breached, the bears will scrape the honeycombs together with their paws and eat them, regardless of stings from the bees. American black bears that live in northern coastal regions (especially the Pacific Coast) will fish for salmon during the night, as their black fur is easily spotted by salmon in the daytime. However, the white-furred American black bears of the islands of western Canada have a 30% greater


title: "American black bear" content: success rate in catching salmon than their black-furred counterparts. Other fish, including suckers, trout and catfish, are readily caught whenever possible. Although American black bears do not often engage in active predation of other large animals for much of the year, the species will regularly prey on mule and white-tailed deer fawns in spring, given the opportunity. Bears may catch the scent of hiding fawns when foraging for something else and then sniff them out and pounce on them. As the fawns reach 10 days of age, they can outmaneuver the bears and their scent is soon ignored until the


title: "American black bear" content: next year. American black bears have also been recorded similarly preying on elk calves in Idaho and moose calves in Alaska. American black bear predation on adult deer is rare, but has been recorded. They may even hunt prey up to the size of adult female moose, which are considerably larger than themselves, by ambushing them. There is at least one record of a male American black bear killing two bull elk over the course of six days by chasing them into deep snow banks, which impeded their movements. In Labrador, American black bears are exceptionally carnivorous, living largely off


title: "American black bear" content: caribou, usually young, injured, sickly or dead specimens, and rodents such as voles. This is believed to be due to a paucity of edible plant life in this sub-Arctic region and a local lack of competing large carnivores (including other bear species). Like brown bears, American black bears try to use surprise to ambush their prey and target the weak, injured, sickly or dying animals in the herds. Once a deer fawn is captured, it is frequently torn apart alive while feeding. If it is able to capture a mother deer in spring, the bear frequently begins feeding on the


title: "American black bear" content: udder of lactating females, but generally prefers meat from the viscera. American black bears often drag their prey to cover, preferring to feed in seclusion. The skin of large prey is stripped back and turned inside out, with the skeleton usually left largely intact. Unlike gray wolves and coyotes, American black bears rarely scatter the remains of their kills. Vegetation around the carcass is usually matted down by American black bears and their droppings are frequently found nearby. American black bears may attempt to cover remains of larger carcasses, though they do not do so with the same frequency as


title: "American black bear" content: cougars and grizzly bears. They will readily consume eggs and nestlings of various birds and can easily access many tree nests, even the huge nests of bald eagles. American black bears have been reported stealing deer and other animals from human hunters. Over much of their range, American black bears are assured scavengers that can intimidate, using their large size and considerable strength, and if necessary dominate other predators in confrontations over carcasses. However, on occasions where they encounter Kodiak or grizzly bears, the larger two brown subspecies dominate them. American black bears tend to escape competition from brown bears


title: "American black bear" content: by being more active in the daytime and living in more densely forested areas. Violent interactions, resulting in the deaths of American black bears, have been recorded in Yellowstone National Park. American black bears do compete with cougars over carcasses. Like brown bears, they will sometimes steal kills from cougars. One study found that both bear species visited 24% of cougar kills in Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks, usurping 10% of the carcasses. Another study found that American black bears visited 48% of cougar kills in summer in Colorado and 77% of kills in California. As a result, the cats


title: "American black bear" content: spend more time killing and less time feeding on each kill. American black bear interactions with gray wolves are much rarer than with brown bears, due to differences in habitat preferences. The majority of American black bear encounters with wolves occur in the species' northern range, with no interactions being recorded in Mexico. Despite the American black bear being more powerful on a one-to-one basis, packs of wolves have been recorded to kill black bears on numerous occasions without eating them. Unlike brown bears, American black bears frequently lose against wolves in disputes over kills. Wolf packs typically kill American


title: "American black bear" content: black bears when the larger animals are in their hibernation cycle. There is at least one record of an American black bear killing a wolverine in a dispute over food in Yellowstone National Park. Anecdotal cases of alligator predation on American black bears have been reported, though such cases may involve assaults on cubs. American black bears feature prominently in the stories of some of America's indigenous peoples. One tale tells of how the black bear was a creation of the Great Spirit, while the grizzly bear was created by the Evil Spirit. In the mythology of the Haida, Tlingit


title: "American black bear" content: and Tsimshian people of the Northwest Coast, mankind first learned to respect bears when a girl married the son of a black bear chieftain. In Kwakiutl mythology, American black and brown bears became enemies when Grizzly Bear Woman killed Black Bear Woman for being lazy. Black Bear Woman's children, in turn, killed Grizzly Bear Woman's children. The Navajo believed that the Big Black Bear was chief among the bears of the four directions surrounding Sun's house and would pray to it in order to be granted its protection during raids. Morris Michtom, the creator of the teddy bear, was inspired


title: "American black bear" content: to make the toy when he came across a cartoon of Theodore Roosevelt refusing to shoot an American black bear cub tied to a tree. The fictional character Winnie-the-Pooh was named after Winnipeg, a female American black bear cub that lived at the London Zoo from 1915 until her death in 1934. An American black bear cub, who in the spring of 1950 was caught in the Capitan Gap Fire, was made into the living representative of Smokey Bear, the mascot of the United States Forest Service. Terrible Ted was a de-toothed and de-clawed American black bear who was trained


title: "American black bear" content: to perform as a pro wrestler and whose "career" lasted from the 1950s to the 1970s. The American black bear is the mascot of the University of Maine and Baylor University, where the university houses two live American black bears on campus. Sleeping Bear Dunes in Michigan is named after a Native American legend, where a female bear and her cub swam across Lake Michigan. Exhausted from their journey, the bears rested on the shoreline and fell sound asleep. Over the years, the sand covered them up, creating a huge sand dune. Although an adult bear is quite capable of


title: "American black bear" content: killing a human, American black bears typically avoid confronting humans whenever possible. Unlike grizzly bears, which became a subject of fearsome legend among the European settlers of North America, American black bears were rarely considered overly dangerous, even though they lived in areas where the pioneers had settled. American black bears rarely attack when confronted by humans and usually limit themselves to making mock charges, emitting blowing noises and swatting the ground with their forepaws. The number of American black bear attacks on humans is higher than those of the brown bear in North America, though this is largely because


title: "American black bear" content: the American black bear considerably outnumbers the brown bear, rather than greater aggressiveness. Compared to brown bear attacks, aggressive encounters with American black bears rarely lead to serious injury. However, the majority of American black bear attacks tend to be motivated by hunger rather than territoriality and thus victims have a higher probability of surviving by fighting back rather than submitting. Unlike female brown bears, female American black bears do not display the same level of protectiveness toward their cubs and seldom attack humans when they are in the cubs' vicinity. However, occasionally, attacks by protective mothers do occur. The


title: "American black bear" content: worst recorded fatality incident occurred in May 1978, in which an American black bear killed three teenagers who were fishing in Algonquin Park in Canada. Another exceptional, spree-like attack occurred in August 1997 in Liard River Hot Springs Provincial Park in Canada, when an emaciated American black bear attacked a child and mother, killing the mother as well as an adult man who tried to intervene. This bear was shot while mauling a fourth victim. The majority of attacks happened in national parks, usually near campgrounds, where the bears had become habituated to close human proximity and food-conditioned. Out of


title: "American black bear" content: 1,028 incidents of American black bears acting aggressively toward people, recorded from 1964 to 1976 in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, 107 resulted in injury and occurred mainly in tourist hot spots where people regularly fed the bears handouts. In almost every case where open garbage dumps that had previously attracted American black bears were closed and/or handouts had ceased, the number of aggressive encounters with American black bears has decreased precipitously over time. However, in the aforementioned case of the spree attack in Liard River Hot Springs, the attacking bear was believed to have been previously almost fully


title: "American black bear" content: dependent on a local garbage dump that had closed and was starving to death as a result of the loss of that food source. Attempts to relocate American black bears are typically unsuccessful, as they seem to be able to return to their home range, even without familiar landscape cues. A limitation of food sources in early spring and wild berry and nut crop failures during the summer months may be contributing factors to American black bears regularly feeding from commercial human-based food sources. Crops are frequently eaten by these bears, especially during autumn hyperphagia when natural foods are scarce.


title: "American black bear" content: Favored crops may include apples, oats and corns. American black bears can do extensive damage in some areas of the northwestern United States by stripping the bark from trees and feeding on the cambium. Livestock depredations by American black bears occur mostly in spring. Although American black bears have the capacity to (and occasionally do) hunt adult cattle and horses, they seem to prefer smaller, more easily overwhelmed prey such as sheep, goats, pigs and young calves. They normally kill by biting the neck and shoulders, though they may break the neck or back of the prey with blows from


title: "American black bear" content: the paws. Evidence of a bear attack includes claw marks and is frequently found on the neck, back and shoulders of larger animals. Surplus killing of sheep and goats are common. American black bears have been known to frighten livestock herds over cliffs, causing injuries and death to many animals; whether or not this is intentional is not known. Occasionally pets, especially domestic dogs, which are most prone to harass a bear, are killed by American black bears. It is not recommended to use unleashed dogs as a deterrent from bear attacks. Although large, aggressive dogs can sometimes cause a


title: "American black bear" content: bear to run, if pressed, angry bears can frequently turn the tables and end up chasing the dogs in return. A bear in pursuit of a pet dog has the potential to threaten both canid and human lives. In British Columbia, a group of American black bears were used as guard animals to protect a marijuana plantation. Historically, American black bears were hunted by both Native Americans and European settlers. Some Native American tribes, in admiration for the American black bear's intelligence, would decorate the heads of bears they killed with trinkets and place them on blankets. Tobacco smoke would


title: "American black bear" content: be wafted into the disembodied head's nostrils by the hunter that dealt the killing blow, who would compliment the animal for its courage. The Kutchin typically hunted American black bears during their hibernation cycle. Unlike the hunting of hibernating grizzly bears, which was fraught with danger, hibernating American black bears took longer to awaken and hunting them was thus safer and easier. During the European colonisation of eastern North America, thousands of American black bears were hunted for their meat, fat and fur. Theodore Roosevelt wrote extensively on American black bear hunting in his "Hunting the Grisly and other sketches",


title: "American black bear" content: in which he stated, He wrote that American black bears were difficult to hunt by stalking, due to their habitat preferences, though they were easy to trap. Roosevelt described how, in the southern states, planters regularly hunted American black bears on horseback with hounds. General Wade Hampton was known to have been present at 500 successful American black bear hunts, two-thirds of which he killed personally. He killed 30 or 40 American black bears with only a knife, which he would use to stab the bears between the shoulder blades while they were distracted by his hounds. Unless well trained,


title: "American black bear" content: horses were often useless in American black bear hunts, as they often bolted when the bears stood their ground. In 1799, 192,000 American black bear skins were exported from Quebec. In 1822, 3,000 skins were exported from the Hudson's Bay Company. In 1992, untanned, fleshed and salted American black bear hides were sold for an average of $165. In Canada, American black bears are considered as both a big game and furbearer species in all provinces, save for New Brunswick and the Northwest Territories, where they are only classed as a big game species. There are around 80,900 licensed American


title: "American black bear" content: black bear hunters in all of Canada. Canadian black bear hunts take place in the fall and spring and both male and female bears can be legally taken, though some provinces prohibit the hunting of females with cubs, or yearling specimens. Currently, 28 of the U.S. states have American black bear hunting seasons. 19 states require a bear hunting license, with some also requiring a big game license. In eight states, only a big game license is required to hunt American black bears. Overall, over 481,500 American black bear hunting licences are sold per year. The hunting methods and seasons


title: "American black bear" content: vary greatly according to state, with some bear hunting seasons including fall only, spring and fall, or year-round. New Jersey, in November 2010, approved a six-day bear-hunting season in early December 2010 to slow the growth of the American black bear population. Bear hunting had been banned in New Jersey for five years before that time. A Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind poll found that 53% of New Jersey voters approved of the new season if scientists concluded that American black bears were leaving their usual habitats and destroying private property. Men, older voters and those living in rural areas were


title: "American black bear" content: more likely to approve of a bear-hunting season in New Jersey than women, younger voters and those living in more developed parts of the state. In the western states, where there are large American black bear populations, there are spring and year-round seasons. Approximately 18,000 American black bears were killed annually in the U.S. between 1988 and 1992. Within this period, annual kills ranged from six bears in South Carolina to 2,232 in Maine. According to Dwight Schuh in his "Bowhunter's Encyclopedia", American black bears are the third most popular quarry of bowhunters, behind deer and elk. American black bear


title: "American black bear" content: meat had historically been held in high esteem among North America's indigenous people and colonists. American black bears were the only bear species the Kutchin hunted for their meat, though this constituted only a small part of their diet. According to the second volume of "Frank Forester's Field Sports of the United States, and British Provinces, of North America": Theodore Roosevelt himself likened the flesh of young American black bears to that of pork and not as coarse or flavourless as the meat of grizzly bears. The most favoured cuts of the American black bear's meat are concentrated in the


title: "American black bear" content: legs and loins. Meat from the neck, front legs and shoulders is usually ground into minced meat, or used for stews and casseroles. Keeping the fat on tends to give the meat a strong flavour. As American black bears can have trichinellosis, cooking temperatures need to be high in order to kill the parasites. American black bear fat was once valued as a cosmetic article that promoted hair growth and gloss. The fat most favoured for this purpose was the hard white fat found in the body's interior. As only a small portion of this fat could be harvested for


title: "American black bear" content: this purpose, the oil was often mixed with large quantities of hog lard. However, animal rights activism over the last decade has slowed the harvest of these animals; therefore the lard from American black bears has not been used in recent years for the purpose of cosmetics. American black bear The American black bear ("Ursus americanus") is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most widely distributed bear species. American black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in largely forested areas, but do leave


title: "Frederick, Maryland" content: 2009 was 34 years. For adults aged 18 or older, the population was 48.6% male and 51.4% female. According to U.S. census data for 2009, the median annual income for a household in Frederick city was $64,833, and the median annual income for a family was $77,642. Males had a median annual income of $49,129 versus $41,986 for females. The per capita income for the city was $31,123. Approximately 7.7% of the total population, 5.3% of families, and 5.2% of adults aged 65 and older were living below the poverty line. The unemployment rate in the city for adults over


title: "Quercus kelloggii" content: Quercus kelloggii Quercus kelloggii, the California black oak, also known as simply black oak, or Kellogg oak, is an oak in the red oak section ("Quercus" sect. "Lobatae"), native to western North America. It is a close relative of the black oak ("Quercus velutina") found in eastern and central North America. California black oak is a deciduous tree growing in mixed evergreen forests, oak woodlands, and coniferous forests. California black oak is distributed along foothills and lower mountains of California and western Oregon. It is found from Lane County, Oregon, south through the Cascade Range, the Sierra Nevada, and the


title: "Quercus kelloggii" content: Coast, Transverse, and Peninsular Ranges to San Diego County, California and into Baja California. The tree occurs in pure or mixed stands. Pure stands usually indicate sites unfavorable to conifer growth or recurring disturbance such as fire or logging activities. The tree can grow in many types of soils, but it is important that the soil be well-drained. "Quercus kelloggii" typically grows from in height and from in diameter. Large trees may exceed in height and diameter. The species also grows in shrubby scrub-oak form on poor sites. In open areas the crown is broad and rounded, with lower branches


title: "Quercus kelloggii" content: nearly touching the ground or forming a browse line. In closed stands, the crown is narrow and slender in young trees and irregularly broad in old trees. Trunks are usually free of branches on the lower in closed stands. Trunks are often forked, and usually decayed and hollow in older trees. The bark is thin and smooth in young trees, becoming thick, ridged, and plate-like with age. This oak grows from one to several vertical roots which penetrate to bedrock, with large, laterally spreading roots extending off from vertical ones. It also has a number of surface roots. Acorns are


title: "Quercus kelloggii" content: relatively large in this species, from long and wide. The deeply lobed leaves are typically long. While individual trees generally have a lifespan between 100 and 200 years, California black oak can live up to 500 years of age. The tree reproduces when its acorns sprout to form seedlings. It also reproduces vegetatively with new growth sprouting from the root crown after the tree is top-killed by wildfire, logging, frost, or other events. The California black oak is a critical species for wildlife. Oaks ("Quercus" spp.) may be the single most important genus used by wildlife for food and cover


title: "Quercus kelloggii" content: in California forests and rangelands, and California black oak occupies more total area in California than any other hardwood species. Livestock also make heavy use of this species for food and cover. Cavities in the trees provide den or nest sites for owls, various woodpeckers, tree squirrels, and American black bears. Trees provide valuable shade for livestock and wildlife during the hot summer months. California black oak forest types are heavily used for spring, summer, and fall cover by black bear. It is browsed by mule deer and livestock. Acorns are heavily utilized by livestock, mule deer, feral pigs, rodents,