The Ark In Space

The Gelada: Unique Primate from the Roof of Africa

Sunday, 5 July 2026

High up in the Ethiopian mountains lives the Gelada. It lives nowhere else and although its closest living relative is the baboon, with its hairless face and short muzzle the gelada looks more like a chimpanzee. Isolated in these remote Ethiopian Highlands (often called The Roof of Africa) this primate has developed a way of existence (one might call it a culture) all of its own.

Image Credit Flickr User A Davey

Image Credit Flickr User Photo Shoot

To begin with the gelada is a graminivore which means that it only eats grass. Fortunately, the highlands in which they live are cooler and a lot less arid than many parts of Ethiopia and they rarely experience any kind of food shortage. They will also become granivorous when the grass is in seed. In fact, they actively prefer the seed to the grass – it is probably a welcome change.

Planet of the Lemurs: 10 Beautiful Little-Known Species

Wednesday, 12 November 2025

Most people have heard of the Ring-tailed Lemur (above) and could suppose that it is the only species. However, there are many varieties of Lemur, a lot of which are beautiful and incredibly rare. Take a look in to the planet of the lemurs and discover for yourself the wonderful diversity of this lesser known family of animals. Image Credit Flickr User Tambako the Jaguar

The Red-ruffed Lemur

Image Credit Flickr User Ucumari

This exquisitely colored species is critically endangered and part of its habitat in Madagascar has recently been made in to a National Park. This may at least ensure the survival of some of the species but as it is unable to tell where it is safe for itself, many of the animals live outside the park’s boundaries and are still prey to humans as ‘bush food’. Who could possibly bring themselves to eat this delightful animal in the full knowledge that it is nearing extinction?

The Amazing Gecko: 20 Interesting Facts about the World’s Most Species-Rich Lizard

The gecko is an extraordinary lizard, a triumph of both adaptation and diversity. Out of the 5,600 species of lizard on the planet, over 1,500 belong to the gecko infraorder called Gekkota. So, what is so interesting about a line of lizards which is, apparently, so ubiquitous? Here are 20 interesting facts about the gecko, as well as some amazing pictures of species that you may not have come across before.

Image Credit Flickr User LoveBigIsland

Image Credit Flickr User DuSantos

Geckos can vary greatly in length. The smallest (Jaragua sphaero) is tiny, just under two centimeters in length. However, some species can grow up to 60 centimeters. The largest ever discovered, the Kawekaweau from New Zealand, is sadly now extinct.

Above
1. Gold Dust Day Gecko - Phelsuma laticauda laticauda
2. Common Leopard Gecko - Eublepharis macularius

What do You Have to do to Get a Drink Around Here?

Monday, 4 August 2025

Image Credit Flickr User spettacolopuro

Water! From a purely biological point of view water has a number of properties that are paramount for the proliferation of life on this – or any other – planet. Its life giving and sustaining properties is what sets it apart from all other substances.

Image Credit Flickr User wildxplorer

From the largest mammal to the tiniest insect we all have to drink. If we don’t we die. Here, we focus on the little guys, the ones which you can hardly imagine need much water. Indeed, sometimes they can be in danger of being carried away in their enthusiasm to sate their thirst. Thanks to some wonderfully macrophotography we get to see this most vital of functions being carried out – with some gusto – by a host of insects.

Weaver Ants Show Their Teamwork Skills

Saturday, 2 August 2025

Image Credit Flickr User Kasi Metcalfe

When you are building a new home sometimes you need some help. A little teamwork goes a long way and these green tree ants (or weaver ants) from Australia could teach us a thing or two about that. Their own task may, to begin with, seem almost impossible but with some supreme acrobatic skills anything, it seems, is possible.

Image Credit Wikimedia

The Snail - Pest, Pet or Treat? Some Interesting Facts

Monday, 17 June 2024

Love them or hate them, there is more to the snail than meets the eye. Here, with some amazing photography, is a look at the humble snail in all its mucus covered glory. Whether regarded as pet, pest or tasty treat, they are everywhere.

Image Credit
Snails that live on land have been around for quite a while, around six hundred million years which puts our species a little to shame. Although there are many more species of snails that live in water, it is the land snail that most people know well. Many shudder at the thought of the sliminess of the creature, others have nightmares about them. However, there are many aspects of snail life that will surprise. Seen up close, too, the shells of these gastropods are often things of exquisite beauty.

The Strange Elegance of the Giraffe-Necked Antelope

Sunday, 9 April 2023

Found in Eastern Africa ranging from Somalia to Kenya there is a slightly odd looking long-necked creature that is reminiscent of a giraffe but that is one thing it most certainly is not.

Image Credit Flickr User rdavek

The Hyrax – The Elephant’s Cousin

Thursday, 17 February 2022

The Hyrax may look like a guinea pig to the casual observer but looks can be very deceptive. It has even been called the rock rabbit but its family tree is much stranger than you might expect. Its nearest living relatives are the elephant and, bizarrely, the sea cow.

Image Credit Flickr User Rainbirder

Hummingbirds in Flight

Saturday, 1 January 2022

Nothing can quite prepare you for the exquisite sight of a hummingbird on the wing. Nature has truly spoiled us with this astonishing spectacle. Take a look as ten different species take flight in their search for food and marvel at the aerodynamics of one of the world's truly astonishing species.

Image Credit Flickr User Ingrid Taylor

Image Credit Flickr User kukkurovaka

This beautiful specimen is known as an Anna’s Hummingbird and was named after Anna Messina, the Duchess of Rivoli. It is found along the Pacific Coast from British Columbia to Arizona. Males perform remarkable display dives during the courtship season. The male, when his territory is threatened, rises up around a hundred feet before diving on to his rival. The dive is so fast it produces an “explosive squeak” as the wind rushes through the tail feathers.

The Honduran White Bat

Friday, 1 October 2021

You may just have done something of a double take. Yet these small creatures huddled together are indeed bats. They are Honduran White Bats (Ectophylla alba) and they do not easily fall in to a number of bat stereotypes: they do not live in caves and they do not suck blood. Additionally their fur, as you can see, is snow white.

Image Credit Flickr User ggallice

It is found only in a few Central American countries. If you are very, very lucky you might be able to find it in Nicaragua, Costa Rica and, of course, the country from which it gets its name, Honduras.

Yet it is extremely rare and, moreover, it is tiny – the largest examined have never exceeded 5cm in length. Not only that, but its white fur has evolved for a reason: camouflage. (Note: the above was caught by using mist nets in Costa Rica and was later released).

Monarch Migration – Staggering Spectacle of Nature

Saturday, 19 June 2021

Monarch butterflies are renowned for their migration. Yet no single monarch has ever completed the 2,000 mile round trip – it is generational in nature because of the sheer distance involved. There being safety in numbers this leads to what is surely one of nature’s most spectacular sights – that of millions of monarchs congregating together.

Image Credit Flickr User Pablo Leautaud

In North America the butterfly begins this massive yearly migration in August. Monarch butterflies fuel up on nectar in the northern States and Canada - it is time to leave as the coming winter will be so cold it would inevitably kill them. Unlike their great-grandparents they have never flown more than a few hundred meters in their lives but they head out over vast northern lakes with no hesitation. This is the first leg of one of the world’s greatest migrations.

The Extraordinary Pink Katydid

Flamingos aside, you do not get to see the color pink in the animal kingdom a great deal. A notable exception is the pink katydid. Yet this is by no means a separate species – this coloring affects around one in 500. You may have already guessed that the condition is something similar to albinism.

Image Credit Flickr User janetandphil

Image Credit Flickr User MGJefferies

Known as erythrism, the condition causes a curious reddish pigmentation. It can affect the body of an insect as well as its skin, and it is so rare that it was not noticed by western scientists until 1887. The reason for this oversight was perhaps due to the inclination of the insect to remain perfectly still during daylight hours.

The Largest Pigeon in the World – The Victoria Crowned Pigeon

Due to the demise of the Dodo, the mantle of the world’s largest pigeon was passed on to the Victoria Crowned. If you associate pigeons with the types that we see in our cities and towns – altogether a pretty unimpressive lot – then you are in for a surprise.

Image Credit Flickr User hjhipster

The Incredible Glasswing Butterfly

Saturday, 13 March 2021

A butterfly with transparent wings? Surely not. Yet there is a species that exhibits this trait. Take a close look at the incredible Glasswing, an enchanting species that confounds science.

Image Credit Flickr User Hans s

Meet the Black Squirrel

Sunday, 17 January 2021

Image Credit Flickr User Bobolink

You have probably seen the grey. You may even have encountered or at least heard of the red. However, have you ever seen a black squirrel? Take a look at this small but dark beasty of the forest.

This is the black squirrel. Out of the squirrel population of the United States and Canada perhaps only one in ten thousand is black. However, this is not a separate species in itself. It is in fact a sub-group of the grey squirrel and, little by little their numbers are growing. In fact in some areas they outnumber the greys. However, this black coloring is not a recent trend among the squirrel community – research indicates that in the days before the European settlement of the America the black squirrel was probably much more numerous than the grey.

Image Credit Flickr User James Martin Phelps

Image Credit Flickr User afamiliarletter

Image Credit Flickr User tree-species

Instead of being a separate species, the black squirrel is in fact what is known as a melanistic subgroup. Midwestern North America is their stomping ground although there are groups to be found in the UK (more of which later). Melanism is caused by an increased level of black pigmentation, a compound which determines color called melanin. This subgroup of the Eastern Grey has stacks of melanin and these melanistic traits are the opposite of albinism which occurs when flora or fauna have a lack of the compound.

Great Egret Rising

Wednesday, 13 January 2021

Image Credit Flickr User Wolfpix

With its all white plumage that can often reach a meter in height, the Great Egret is a sight to behold as it soars up in to the sky. Considered safe, only a century ago the species was highly threatened. Read on to discover how and why the species was able to make a dramatic come back.

Image Credit Flickr User Mike Baird

Dolphins in the Wild - Photo Special

Sunday, 20 September 2020

Dolphins – those special marine mammals – are the subject of this photo special. All the pictures here are of wild dolphins, some of the almost forty species that are found worldwide. They are a recent evolutionary adaptation, having first appeared on this ark in space around ten million years ago. Intelligent, curious and fearless, they embody many of the qualities that we admire and to which we aspire. Welcome to the world of the dolphin - free, physical and wild.

Image Credit Flickr User Mike in Thailand

A Sea Slug Symphony

Saturday, 4 January 2020

The nudibranch is a soft bodied marine gastropod mollusk – but many people simply refer to them, perhaps somewhat unfairly, as sea slugs. You can see why they gained this nick name (even though it is often taxonomically inaccurate too!) but compared to the land bound version they are an explosion of color and grace. Here are just a few of the 3,000 species. (Image Credit Flickr User CW Ye)

Image Credit Daniel Kwok

This beautiful creature is found in the Western Pacific. A rich pinkinsh purple color, they have a white border on their mantle. They would be startling enough without, but their rhinophore clubs are an orange-yellow color that is a startling juxtaposition with the rest of their bodies. This exquisite creature is formally known as Hypselodoris apolegma.

How Spiders Escaped the Pakistani Floods

Sunday, 30 June 2019

When the floods hit Pakistan in 2010 the first thing that many people did was to head for higher ground. So too did countless millions of animals, among them spiders. To escape the rapidly rising waters the spiders did the sensible thing and climbed up trees.

The flood waters took quite a while to recede. The result was that the temporary arachnid shelter became semi-permanent – and a spider has to do what a spider has to do...

The Biggest Dogs in the World - There Be Giants

Sunday, 24 March 2019

Let’s face it, some people like their pets big! If you are looking for a large dog there are a number of breeds which are generally referred to as giants. Be careful, though – you should only consider these breeds if you have lots of space, lots of time and quite a deal of money. The Ark in Space takes a look at the giants of the canine world.

The English Mastiff

Image Credit Flickr User Claudio Genari

The English Mastiff, in terms of mass is the big daddy of all dogs and its dimensions particularly that of the male are something to be believed. Every inch of this dog gives off strength and power – if the planet Krypton had a dog then this would probably be it. The world record holding breed for weight, this dog can weigh up to two hundred and fifty pounds for a male and around fifty pounds less than a female. The breed has been around for a long time – the name probably derives from the Anglo-Saxon word for powerful –masty. It is generally recognized to be the oldest dog breed in the UK.

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