Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island of the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain, and the seventh largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.
Jersey Zoo is a zoological park established in 1959 on the island of Jersey in the English Channel by naturalist and writer Gerald Durrell (1925–1995). It is operated by the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust. It has approximately 169,000 visitors per year.
Midwife toads are a genus (Alytes) of frogs in the family Alytidae, and are found in most of Europe and northwestern Africa. Characteristic of these toad-like frogs is their parental care; the males carry a string of fertilised eggs on their backs, hence the name "midwife". The female expels a strand of eggs, which the male fertilizes externally. He then wraps them around his legs to protect them from predators in the water. When they are ready to hatch, the male wades into shallow water, where he allows the tadpoles to leap out of their eggs. Five separate species of midwife toads are found across western Europe, northern Africa, and Majorca.
Reproductive biology includes both sexual and asexual reproduction.
The Campbell teal or Campbell Island teal is a small, flightless, nocturnal species of dabbling duck of the genus Anas endemic to the Campbell Island group of New Zealand. It is sometimes considered conspecific with the brown teal. The plumage is similar to that of the Auckland teal, dark sepia with the head and back tinged with green iridescence, and a chestnut breast on the male, with the female dark brown all over. Its natural habitat is tussock grassland dominated by Poa tussock grass, ferns and megaherbs. The species also uses the burrows and pathways of petrel species that nest on the islands. They are apparently territorial in the wild, and probably feed on amphipods and insects. The IUCN classifies it as vulnerable.
The Mexican burrowing toad is the single living representative of the family Rhinophrynidae. It is a unique species in its taxonomy and morphology, with special adaptations to assist them in digging burrows where they spend most of their time. These adaptations include a small pointed snout and face, keratinized structures and a lack of webbing on front limbs, and specialized tongue morphology to assist in feeding on ants and termites underground. The body is nearly equal in width and length. It is a dark brown to black color with a red-orange stripe on its back along with splotches of color on its body. The generic name Rhinophrynus means 'nose-toad', from rhino- (ῥῑνο-), the combining form of the Ancient Greek rhis and phrunē.
The pink pigeon is a species of pigeon in the family Columbidae endemic to Mauritius. The pink pigeon nearly became extinct in the 1970s and the 1990s and is still very rare. It is the only Mascarene pigeon that has not become extinct. It was on the brink of extinction in 1991 when only 10 individuals remained, but its numbers have increased due to the efforts of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust since 1977. While the population remains at below 500 birds as of 2011, the IUCN downlisted the species from Critically endangered to Endangered on the IUCN Red List in 2000, and then downlisted it again to Vulnerable in 2018.
The viperine water snake or viperine snake is a semiaquatic, fish-eating natricine water snake. Despite its common names, it is not a member of the subfamily Viperinae. It was given its common names due to exhibiting a dorsal colour pattern that superficially resembles that of sympatric adder species. In comparison to other Natrix species its head is also somewhat wider and more distinct from the neck. Like most members of the Natricinae it possesses a venom gland on each side of the upper jaw that produces a mild venom that may play a role in swallowing or digestion. The gland is not associated with an enlarged specialized tooth and the venom has to be applied by chewing. The species usually does not bite as a means of defense, and the effect of a bite would be harmless to humans.
The Serra de Tramuntana is a mountain range running southwest–northeast which forms the northern backbone of the Spanish island of Mallorca. It is also the name given to the comarca of the same area. On 27 June 2011, the Tramuntana Range was awarded World Heritage Status by UNESCO as an area of great physical and cultural significance.
Nectophrynoides tornieri, Tornier's forest toad or kijula, is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. It is endemic to Tanzania. This species was first described by Jean Roux in 1906 and was named in honour of the German zoologist Gustav Tornier.
The Iberian midwife toad or brown midwife toad, in Portuguese sapo-parteiro-ibérico, is a species of frog in the family Alytidae found in Portugal and western Spain. It is typically found in open habitats such as meadows and open oak forests. Habitat loss is one of the threats to its survival.
The Betic midwife toad or Sapo Partero Bético is a species of frog in the family Alytidae. It is endemic to mountainous in south eastern Spain. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, pastureland, ponds, and aquaculture ponds. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Alytes maurus is a species of frog in the family Alytidae . It is endemic to Morocco. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, rivers, freshwater marshes, freshwater springs, rocky areas, and rural gardens. Phenomena such as habitat fragmentation, water pollution, climate change, and the introduction of chytrid fungus into ecosystems all pose threats to the well-being of these organisms.
The common midwife toad is a species of midwife frog in the family Alytidae. It is found in Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Like other members of its genus (Alytes), the male toad carries the eggs around entwined on his back and thighs until they are ready to hatch.
The Rodrigues flying fox or Rodrigues fruit bat is a species of bat in the family Pteropodidae, the flying foxes or fruit bats. It is endemic to Rodrigues, an island in the Indian Ocean belonging to Mauritius. Its natural habitat is tropical lowland forests. The bats are sociable, roost in large groups during the day and feed at night, squeezing the juice and flesh out of fruits. They are hunted by humans for food and their numbers have been dwindling, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated the species as being "endangered". In an effort to preserve them from extinction, some bats have been caught and are being bred in various zoos around the world.
Leptodactylus fallax, commonly known as the mountain chicken or giant ditch frog, is a critically endangered species of frog that is native to the Caribbean islands of Dominica and Montserrat. The population declined by at least 80% from 1995 to 2004, with further significant declines later. A tiny wild population remains on Dominica where there are efforts to preserve it, but few or none survive in the wild on Montserrat and its survival now relies on a captive breeding project involving several zoos. The initial decline was linked to hunting for human consumption, along with habitat loss and natural disasters, but the most serious threat now appears to be the fungal disease chytridiomycosis, which was the primary cause of the most recent rapid decline. On Montserrat it is known as the mountain chicken, while on Dominica it is known as the crapaud, which is simply the French word for "toad".
The angonoka tortoise is a critically endangered species of tortoise severely threatened by poaching for the illegal pet trade. It is endemic to Madagascar. It is also known as the angonoka, ploughshare tortoise, Madagascar tortoise, or Madagascar angulated tortoise. There may be fewer than 400 of these tortoises left in the wild. It is found only in the dry forests of the Baly Bay area of northwestern Madagascar, near the town of Soalala. A captive-breeding facility was established in 1986 by the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust in collaboration with the Water and Forests Department. In 1996, 75 tortoises were stolen, which later appeared for sale in the Netherlands. The project was ultimately successful, achieving 224 captive-bred juveniles out of 17 adults in 2004. Project Angonoka developed conservation plans that involved local communities making firebreaks, along with the creation of a park to protect the tortoise and the forests. Monitoring of the angonoka tortoise in the global pet trade has also continued to be advocated.
Lasius balearicus is an ant species from the genus Lasius. It was discovered in 1982 by Cedric Alex Collingwood, an entomologist from the Royal Entomological Society and described as a new species in 2014 after a team from the Institut de Biologia Evolutiva in Barcelona collected the holotype in 2008. L. balearicus is confined to the island of Majorca and it is the first known endemic ant species from the Balearic Islands and the first known endemic Lasius species from any Mediterranean island.
