Double Crested Cormorant
Geography: The double-crested cormorant is versatile waterbird that lives mostly around the Atlantic, Pacific, and Great Lakes coastlines. While they do have the ability to migrate it is not always done as they are able to live in the space location year round.
Lifecycle: These birds typically live for about 6 years, but they are able to live up to 22 years old. each bird lays around 4-7 eggs that take roughly a month to hatch. After hatching it takes another 6-7 weeks for the hatchlings to leave the nest and become independent. There is no specific location where these birds breed, but it is always on the coastline.
Activity: Cormorants nest close to large bodies of water that can support their mostly fish diet. These birds like to nest in the high airy places secluded from predators. Here They spend most of their time digesting, grooming, and resting. Overall, these birds have a mostly fish diet but are also known to eat insects and small creatures.
Friends: The Cormorants are a mostly independent bird. Often foxes and coyotes will prey on their eggs and chicks, but there are no main predators for the adults. This is likely due to their larger size and ability to seclude themselves while nesting.
Wolf Spider
Geography: Wolf spiders are found all across North America. However, individuals do not travel very far in their life. Additionally, wolf spiders are solitary animals that live most of their lives alone. Typically, they only gather for mating.
Life Cycle: Wolf Spiders mate in the spring. They leave scent trails so that they may find each other. Afterwards, the female spider will carry about 100 eggs until they hatch. Once hatched, the spiders are on their own as the mother does not look after them. Each individual will find their own isolated dwelling where they will spend the next year or two. Here they spend their entire life until the next mating season comes along.
Habitat: Wolf spiders spend most of their time on the ground. They create burrows in which they live in. However, they will go into trees and other spaces to hunt if food is scarce. Typically, wolf spiders feed on small insects, other spiders, and small reptiles. Overall, their burrows are where they spend most of their time sleeping, grooming, eating, etc.
Prey: The wolf spider has many predators. Typically many small mammals and reptiles feed on the spiders. However, some birds will also feed on them
Human Adaptation:
Woodland Caribou
Geography: The woodland caribou is native to the northern regions of Canada around the Boreal forests and taiga forests. Unlike most caribou, the boreal caribou do not travel long distances. Instead they stay in the forests in small groups or as individuals. Overall, they need large patches of forest with little disturbances. Additionally, there are around 7,000 Caribou in Canada.
Life Cycle: Caribou mate around mid October and males can have many mates. Typically it takes about 230 days for a calf to be born. Newborns are taken care of for roughly 2 months and then joins the herd. Unfortunately, mortality is high at 50%, but if successful, caribou live for about 15 years.
Habitat: The caribou make any forested area in northern Canada their habitat. They do not migrate and tend to stick to similar locations. Currently, these forested areas are undisturbed allowing the caribou to live freely. Additionally, the caribou form small packs with one male protecting a group of females and young.
Food: Caribou are herbivores and feed mostly on lichens and other plants found in the forested areas. On the other hand, the caribou do not have many natural predators. Only large mammals like wolves and black bears really attack caribou.
Cooper’s Hawk
Geography: The Cooper’s Hawk has split into two main groups. There is one located in BC Canada and another in the Eastern US. This hawk has a wide variety of habitats in Canada but prefers forested areas or habitats with open areas.
Life Cycle: Cooper’s Hawks breed patchily across central and southern BC Canada. Unlike most animals, the Cooper’s hawk easily adapts to nesting in almost any situation, if necessary. Nest are typically placed in high hard to reach places. Additionally, the same pair of hawks will often return to the same nesting location year after year. The hawks lay around 5 eggs and once hated the young stay in the nest for only 30 days before leaving on their own.
Habitat: Cooper’s hawks like to create nests in high hard to reach places. Here, they spend their time resting, grooming, feeding, and looking for potential prey. They can These hawks are usually independent and stay fairly close to their nests.
Feeding: Cooper’s hawks prey on all sorts of animals from small insects to small mammals and even other birds. One of the reasons this bird is able to adapt to different environments so easily is because they do not have many natural predators. The only real predators they must worry about are small mammals like racoons and foxes trying to steel their eggs.
Human Adaptation: being shot by hunters.
Litaneutria Minor
Geography: The Litaneutria Minor can commonly be found on the east coast of the United States and Canada. They are also known as Canadas only native mantis.
Life Cycle: This type of mantis spends most of its life secluded from others. Only during mating does the mantis come into contact with others. during mating, it is common for the female to eat the male in order to provide nutrients for its young. Later, the mantis will lay around 10-20 eggs that lay dormant throughout the winter until emerging in the early spring.
Habitat: Overall, this type of mantis prefers to live on the ground. They typically find shelter in small shrubs or foliage that is low to the ground. Here they can easily maneuver and get from place to place easily. This type of mantis is is not known for having one specific nest, and will instead migrate from place to place as it seems fit.
Food: Overall the Litaneutria Minor hunts small insects and bugs. Its coloring makes it perfect as an ambush predator as it hides well with rocks and ground foliage. This is also useful in avoiding any potential predators. While it is not the common meal of any specific animal, many birds and small predators have been known to eat the mantis.
Black Bear
Geography: Black bears can be found all throughout Canada and in the mountain ranges/forests of America. Because of their versatile diet and independence, they are able to travel very far and do not need to be anchored to one specific location.
Life Cycle: Overall, black bears are solitary creatures. They spend most of their life alone or with a select few other black bears. During the summer months, black bears will group together to begin mating. Around 3-5 cubs are born at a time. During this process, the cubs will follow the mother as she nurtures them and raises them. Once they are able to hunt for themselves they are let loose and go their own way.
Habitat: Black bears do not have one specific place to call home. They spend most of their time traveling around and going where food is most prominent. However, it was noticed that most black bears do often return to similar locations for hibernation and mating. This indicates that no matter how far they travel, they known their way back.
Food: The black bear is an apex predator. Because of this, there are very few creatures that would even consider a black bear prey. Additionally, the black bear has an extremely wide variety of food sources. For meat, the black bear prefers fish, but will go after any smaller animal that is easy to capture. The black bear also feeds on plants such a shrubs, grass, honey, and a wide assortment of foliage found throughout the forest.