Kids Encyclopedia

Bongo — The Western or Lowland Bongo, Tragelaphus eurycerus eurycerus, is a herbivorous, mostly nocturnal forest ungulate and among the largest of the African forest antelope species. Bongos are characterised by a striking reddish-brown coat, black and white markings, white-yellow stripes and long slightly spiralled horns. Indeed, bongos are the only Tragelaphid in which both sexes have horns. Bongos have …

Cacomistle — The Cacomistle (Bassariscus sumichrasti) is a nocturnal arboreal omnivore. Its preferred habitat are wet, tropical evergreen woodlands and mountain forests, though seasonally it will inhabit drier deciduous forests. Nowhere in its range (from southern Mexico to western Panama) is B. sumichrasti common. This is especially true in Costa Rica, where it inhabits only a very small area. It …

Bobcat — The bobcat (Lynx rufus), occasionally known as the bay lynx, is a North American mammal of the cat family, Felidae. With twelve recognized subspecies, it ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including most of the continental United States. The bobcat is an adaptable predator that inhabits wooded areas, as well as semi-desert, urban edge, and swampland environments. …

Blesbok — The Blesbok, or Blesbuck, (Damaliscus dorcas phillpsi) is related to the Bontebok (Damaliscus dorcas dorcas)and it is purplish antelope with a distinctive white face and forehead. Although they are close relatives of the Bontebok and they can interbreed creating an animal known as the Bontebles they do not share habitat, the Bontebok being found in large numbers on …

Bison — Bison is a taxonomic group containing six species of large even-toed ungulates within the subfamily Bovinae. Only two of these species still exist: the American Bison (B. bison) and the European Bison, or wisent (B. bonasus). The American and European bison are the largest terrestrial mammals in North America and Europe. Like their cattle relatives, bison are nomadic …

Bighorn — Bighorn Sheep (Ovis canadensis) is one of three species of mountain sheep in North America and Siberia; the other two species being Ovis dalli, that includes Dall Sheep and Stone’s Sheep, and the Siberian Snow sheep Ovis nivicola. Bighorn Sheep are named for the large, curved horns borne by the males, or rams. Females, or ewes, also have …

Beluga — His small whale can be up to 5 metres (16 ft) long, larger than all but the largest dolphins but smaller than most other toothed whales. Males are generally larger than the female – males can weigh 1,360 kg (3,000 [Pound (unit of weight)|lb]) and females about 900 kg (one short ton). Newly-born belugas are about 1.5 m …

Beaver — Beavers are semi-aquatic rodents native to North America and Europe. They are the only living members of the family Castoridae, which contains a single genus, Castor. Genetic research has shown the European and North American beaver populations to be distinct species and that hybridization is unlikely. Beavers are best known for their natural trait of building dams in …

Bear Polar — The polar bear (Ursus maritimus) is a bear native to the Arctic. Polar bears and Kodiak bears are the world’s largest land carnivores, with most adult males weighing 300–600 kg (66–1320 lb); adult females are about half the size of males. Its fur is hollow and translucent, but usually appears as white or cream colored, thus providing …

Bear Brown — The brown bear (Ursus arctos) is a mammal of the order carnivora distributed throughout the Northern hemisphere. Weighing up to 130–700 kg (290-1,500 pounds), the larger races of brown bear tie with the Polar bear as the largest extant land carnivores. It is sometimes referred to poetically as the bruin, from Middle English, based on the name …