12x12 multi media collage and ink on wood panel. no need for framing, do not hang in direct sun. Aardvarks are nocturnal animals with ears like a jack rabbit, a long tail like a kangaroo, a sticky twelve-inch tongue, and sharp bear-like claws for digging into termite mounds. They chew with their stomachs. Aardvark means “Earth pig” in Afrikaans, a language of South Africa. 

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Bufanda means scarf in Spanish. Bison are not the same as buffalo! “True” buffalo (Cape buffalo and water buffalo) are native to Africa and Asia. Bison are found in North America and Europe. Bison have smaller horns, a large hump on their backs and they are no longer endangered.

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing, Cus-cus are adorable, nocturnal marsupials who live in Australia and Indonesia. They are about the size of a squirrel and very shy.

12x12 multi media collage and ink on wood panel. no need for framing, do not hang in direct sun. Dik-dik is the smallest of the antelope family, measuring about 12 inches at the shoulder. They live in Africa, tend to be nocturnal, live in monogamous pairs, not herds. When sensing danger, the dik-dik whistles “dik-dik-dik-dik!”

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. English Bulldogs were named for the old sport of bullbaiting in England many centuries back. Their flat, wide faces helped them bite into a bull’s nose and hold on while still being able to breathe. Today’s bulldogs are gentle companions and good family pets, especially if you don’t mind snoring and a bit of drooling.

12x12 multimedia collage and ink on wood panel. Fennec Fox is the smallest of the fox family and the National Animal of Nigeria. Due to the little fox’s amazing speed and agility, the Algerian National soccer team has been nicknamed “Les Fennecs.” Fennec fox mate for life, live in the Sahara Desert, hunt nocturnally, and grow dense fur on their foot pads to be able to walk on hot sand.

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Goats were domesticated by humans about 10,000 years ago. (Long after dogs who were domesticated about 26,000 years ago.) Goats are as intelligent as dogs, and it is untrue that they will eat anything including laundry off the line. They are simply curious samplers. Both male and female goats have beards, horns, and interesting horizontal pupils.

12x12 multimedia collage and ink on wood panel. Hippo comes from the Ancient Greek word for river horse. Hippos are the third largest land mammals behind elephants and rhinos. They range from 3,000 to 10,000 pounds. Hippos cannot swim and are too dense to float. To move in water, they push off the bottom and walk on shallow river bottoms. They can hold their breath underwater for up to five minutes. Hippos are threatened by habitat destruction.  

12x12 multimedia collage and ink on wood panel. Iguanas live in South and Central America and the Caribbean. The female iguana can store sperm in her body for years in case no males appear in her territory during mating season. She can then use that sperm to fertilize her own eggs to keep the species going. The iguana is not currently endangered.  

12x12 multimedia collage and ink on wood panel. Jack Russell Terriers were first bred by Reverend Jack Russell who was a fox hunter in early 19^th century England. The reverend decided a white-furred working dog would make it easier to distinguish the dog from the brownish prey it was pursuing. The breed’s most important attribute is “tempered aggressiveness.” Jacks have the stamina, courage, and drive to pursue the fox, and the self-control never to draw blood. I can say it’s true about my dog Javier; he loves the hunt, but he’ll never make the kill.  Unless it’s a ball. 

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Kookaburras live only in Australia and New Guinea and their call sounds like hysterical human laughter. Australian law protects all native birds, (even the Kookaburra who steals meat off the BBQ while laughing), thus the Kookaburra is currently not endangered.

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Lemurs live wild only in Madagascar and are critically endangered from habitat destruction. Lemurs are nocturnal primates whose tails are longer than their bodies. Besides humans, lemurs are the only primates that have blue eyes. October 30 is World Lemur Day. Funnily, they run sideways.

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Mandrills are the only mammal with blue pigment in its skin. They are the largest of the monkey family and live in the African rainforests where they are being hunted to extinction for bush meat.

12x12 original multimedia collage and ink on wood panel. Nightingales have had the name “Night Songstress” for over 1000 years because they are known to sing at night as well as day. (Although back then people didn’t realize that the male birds were the singers.) Single males often sing at night to attract a mate.  The nightingale is the national bird of Ukraine.

12x12 multimedia collage and ink on wood panel. Owls are the only bird with eyes on the front of their head which is why they can rotate their heads 270 degrees. Owls are nocturnal hunters and eat their prey alive, later coughing up the bones, teeth, and fur in owl pellets, which are very cool to dissect.

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Polar Bears are native to the top of the globe, the Arctic and are never found down at the bottom of the globe with the penguins. Polar bear skin is black, and its thick fur only appears white due to the reflection of the Arctic light.  Polar bear fur is transparent and hollow. Polar bears can swim for days, but lately they have been known to drown for lack of sea ice. The polar bear is listed as a vulnerable species with about 26,000 living worldwide.

12x12 original multimedia collage and ink on wood panel. No need to frame. Quails derive their name from the Latin “quaccola” for prostitute because quail were once thought to be very amorous birds. The quail is the California state bird. And that thing on its head is called a plume or a topknot which is made of six overlapping feathers.

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Roosters do not crow in the morning to welcome dawn. They crow all day for many reasons.  If there is no rooster in a henhouse, the most dominant hen sometimes takes over the job of crowing. Roosters are not needed for hens to lay eggs. Only for them to hatch into baby chicks.

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Sapo means toad in Spanish. Toads live on every continent, except Antarctica. Touching a toad will NOT give you warts, but it could poison you. Their skin contains toxins to protect it from predators.  The common toad can live up to 40 years!

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Tigers are solitary cats who live across Asia with the biggest population being in India. Tiger cubs learn to hunt from their mothers which is why a tiger born in captivity cannot be returned to the wild.  At the beginning of the 20th century, the world’s tiger population was estimated at 100,000. Sadly, today the number has declined to about 3,200 cats, and captive tigers may now outnumber wild ones. Interestingly, tigers and lions can be cross-bred in captivity and are called Tigons when the father is a Tiger, and Ligers when the father is a Lion.

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Unicorn fish live in the Indo-Pacific Sea. No one knows exactly why they have a horn like a unicorn. Both males and females have them, but only males can change the color of their horn.

12x12 multimedia collage and ink on wood panel. Vizslas are red-headed Hungarian hunting dogs. The first Vizsla in America was named Sari and she was smuggled into the country by a U.S. State Department employee after World War II along with her two puppies.

12x12 original multimedia collage and ink on wood panel. No need to frame. White wolves live in the high Arctic tundra and seem to be unafraid of people since they have little contact with us. Arctic wolves are not endangered like their cousin the grey wolf.

12x12 multimedia collage and ink on wood panel. Xalda Sheep are the oldest breed of Spanish sheep dating from over 2050 years ago. Their wool can be black, white, gray and even a little red. They are endangered.

12x12 original multi media collage and ink on wood panel. No need for framing. Yaks live high in the mountains of Tibet, are good pack animals and are happy at altitudes of 20,000 feet. They are bred for their milk, meat, fur, and hides. Yaks are sweet tempered creatures and their dried poop patties are burned in Tibetan homes for fuel.

12x12 multimedia collage and ink original on wood panel. ZORRO which means Fox in Spanish is a species of South American fox which is not a fox at all, but a wild dog. The zorro is more closely related to wolves and jackals.