Ornamental animal

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An ornamental animal is an animal kept for display or curiosity, often in a park. A wide range of mammals, birds and fish have been kept as ornamental animals. Ornamental animals have often formed the basis of introduced populations, sometimes with negative ecological effects, but a history of being kept as ornamental animals has also preserved breeds, types and even species which have become rare or extinct elsewhere.

Contents

This article does not cover animals kept in zoos, wildfowl collections or aquaria.

History

Ornamental animals have been kept for many centuries in several cultures.

Introduced species

Some ornamental animals have escaped from captivity and have formed feral populations.

Conservation

A number of animals have been protected from local or worldwide extinction by being kept as ornamental animals.

List of ornamental animals

The following are breeds or species whose history has included a significant period as ornamental animals, either globally or in particular regions (animals kept primarily in modern zoos, aquaria or waterfowl collections are not included):

Deer

Cattle

Sheep

Goats

Other mammals

Fish

Birds

Birds' ornamental value derives in part from their feather coloration. [2] Feather colors are often produced by carotenoids. [2]

Related Research Articles

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A feral animal or plant is one that lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals. As with an introduced species, the introduction of feral animals or plants to non-native regions may disrupt ecosystems and has, in some cases, contributed to extinction of indigenous species. The removal of feral species is a major focus of island restoration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Game (hunting)</span> Wild animals under pursuit or taken in hunting

Game or quarry is any wild animal hunted for animal products, for recreation ("sporting"), or for trophies. The species of animals hunted as game varies in different parts of the world and by different local jurisdictions, though most are terrestrial mammals and birds. Fish caught non-commercially are also referred to as game fish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Midland Safari Park</span> Safari park in Worcestershire, England

West Midland Safari and Leisure Park is a safari park located in Bewdley in Worcestershire, England. It was opened under the name of West Midland Safari Park in Spring 1973.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soay sheep</span> Scottish breed of sheep

The Soay sheep is a breed of domestic sheep descended from a population of feral sheep on the 100-hectare (250-acre) island of Soay in the St Kilda Archipelago, about 65 kilometres (40 mi) from the Western Isles of Scotland. It is one of the Northern European short-tailed sheep breeds.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chillingham cattle</span> Breed of cattle

Chillingham cattle, also known as Chillingham wild cattle, is a breed of cattle that live in a large enclosed park at Chillingham Castle, Northumberland, England. In summer 2022 the cattle number 138 animals with approximately equal numbers of males and females The herd has remained remarkably genetically isolated for hundreds of years, surviving despite inbreeding depression due to the small population. There is also a small reserve herd of about 20 animals located on Crown Estate land near Fochabers, North East Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacob sheep</span> British breed of domestic sheep

The Jacob is a British breed of domestic sheep. It combines two characteristics unusual in sheep: it is piebald—dark-coloured with areas of white wool—and it is often polycerate or multi-horned. It most commonly has four horns. The origin of the breed is not known; broken-coloured polycerate sheep were present in England by the middle of the seventeenth century, and were widespread a century later. A breed society was formed in 1969, and a flock book was published from 1972.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hebridean sheep</span> Scottish breed of sheep

The Hebridean is a breed of small black sheep from Scotland, similar to other members of the Northern European short-tailed sheep group, having a short, triangular tail. They often have two pairs of horns. They were often formerly known as "St Kilda" sheep, although unlike Soay and Boreray sheep they are probably not in fact from the St Kilda archipelago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Park cattle</span> Breed of cattle

The White Park is a modern British breed of cattle. It was established in 1973 to include several herds or populations of colour-pointed white cattle – white-coated, with points of either red or black on the ears and feet. Such cattle have a long history in the British Isles, and the origins of some herds go back to the Middle Ages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woburn Safari Park</span> Safari park in Bedfordshire, England

Woburn Safari Park is a safari park located in Woburn, Bedfordshire, England. Visitors to the park can drive through exhibits, which contain species such as southern white rhino, elephants, tigers and black bears. It is part of the estates of the Duke of Bedford that also includes Woburn Abbey and its 3,000-acre (1,200 ha) deer park. The Safari Park itself covers 360 acres (150 ha).

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The wildlife of Azerbaijan consists of its flora and fauna and their natural habitats.

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The goat or domestic goat is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the animal family Bovidae and the tribe Caprini, meaning it is closely related to the sheep. There are over 300 distinct breeds of goat. It is one of the oldest domesticated species of animal, according to archaeological evidence that its earliest domestication occurred in Iran at 10,000 calibrated calendar years ago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern European short-tailed sheep</span> Type of sheep

The Northern European short-tailed sheep are a group of traditional sheep breeds or types found in Northern Europe, mainly in the British Isles, Scandinavia, Greenland and the area around the Baltic. They are thought to be derived from the first sheep brought to Europe by early farmers, and for thousands of years they were the only type of sheep kept in Northern Europe. They are hardy sheep, adapted to harsh environments, but they are small and have been replaced in most areas with later types of larger, long-tailed sheep.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scottish Dunface</span> Extinct breed of sheep

The Scottish Dunface, Old Scottish Short-wool, Scottish Whiteface or Scottish Tanface was a type of sheep from Scotland. It was one of the Northern European short-tailed sheep group, and it was probably similar to the sheep kept throughout the British Isles in the Iron Age. By the mid-nineteenth century it had mostly been displaced by the Scottish Blackface and it became extinct on the mainland of Scotland in the late nineteenth century. However, several local types of Dunface survived on islands around Scotland, giving rise to or contributing to existing breeds including the Shetland, North Ronaldsay, Hebridean and Boreray.

The Mammalia in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae forms one of six classes of animals in Carl Linnaeus's tenth reformed edition written in Latin. The following explanations are based on William Turton's translations who rearranged and corrected earlier editions published by Johann Friedrich Gmelin, Johan Christian Fabricius and Carl Ludwig Willdenow:

Animals that suckle their young by means of lactiferous teats. In external and internal structure they resemble man: most of them are quadrupeds; and with man, their natural enemy, inhabit the surface of the Earth. The largest, though fewest in number, inhabit the ocean.

Australia has a population of about 25 million, with the Commonwealth Government's 2019 survey estimating there are 640,000 recreational hunters in the country. There are around 5.8 million legally owned guns in Australia, ranging from airguns to single-shot, bolt-action, pump-action, lever-action or semi-automatic firearms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vaynol cattle</span> UK cattle breed

The Vaynol is one of the United Kingdom's rarest breeds of cattle with less than 150 breeding animals registered. The breed is currently listed as “critical” on the Rare Breed Survival Trust list. There are currently three officially registered herds of Vaynol cattle existing in the United Kingdom. Together with the Chillingham and White Park cattle, the Vaynol is one of three horned breeds derived from ancient white parkland herds from Britain and Ireland. These park cattle were also the basis of a similar fourth breed, the polled British White.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Balon, E. K. (2004). "About the oldest domesticates among fishes". Journal of Fish Biology. Wiley. 65 (s1): 1–27. doi:10.1111/j.0022-1112.2004.00563.x. ISSN   0022-1112. S2CID   86255838.
  2. 1 2 Weaver, Ryan J.; Santos, Eduardo S. A.; Tucker, Anna M.; Wilson, Alan E.; Hill, Geoffrey E. (2018-01-08). "Carotenoid metabolism strengthens the link between feather coloration and individual quality". Nature Communications . Nature Portfolio. 9 (1). doi: 10.1038/s41467-017-02649-z . ISSN   2041-1723. PMC   5758789 . S2CID   3966794.