Landforms

Landforms

   
 
 
 
Mt. Kenya: This is the tallest mountain in Kenya, it's 17,058 feet tall and the second-highest peak in Africa. The top is always covered in snow year-round and has numerous glaciers that surround the sides.














Great Rift Valley: This is the longest rift on the planet's surface, it's over 4,000 miles long and runs the whole way through Kenya. This was caused by two tectonic plates that separated from each other and are still slowly separating now. It can get down to 6,000 feet deep in certain places and is surrounded by mountains, some volcanic.









Chalbi Desert: This is in northern Kenya and is over 62,000 square miles of sandy flat land. This used to be a lake over 10,000 years ago and in some rare heavy rain, puddles and small ponds do appear until they dry up. Today this desert is the most arid and hottest region in Africa

Snakes of Kenya

For today I would like to research the different kinds of snakes that live in Kenya.



The Green Mamba: This snake is, you guessed it, green and lives mostly up in trees where it's safer and very well camouflaged. The green mamba is a typically shy and non-aggressive snake and would prefer to slither away un-noticed instead of facing whatever is bothering it. Besides its shy nature, this snake is extremely dangerous and has neurotoxins in its venom that goes for the nervous system and the brain. You can and will die if this is not treated, so avoid climbing trees if your in Kenya.

The Boomslang: Boom is the Afrikaans word of tree, so like the Green Mamba, this snake like to dwell up in the tree tops. Males are a pretty green while the females are a very dull brown. Because of their color, these snakes can use camouflage very well with trees. Also like the Green Mamba, the Boomslang is a very shy snake. The only reason this snake would attack is if it feels threatened or provoked. Once bitten, a haemotoxin in the venom stops the blood clotting process and you virtually die from internal bleeding after two to five days. The reason this is so deadly is that signs of the bleeding normally don't show until about 24 hours after the bite, by then you're probably a goner.

 


 The Cobra: There are four different species of cobra in Kenya, making interaction with them frequent. The different species of cobra are the Black-necked spitting cobra, the Red spitting cobra, the Forest Cobra, and the Egyptian Cobra. One of the largest spitting cobras found in Kenya was about 9 feet long. Their venom contains neurotoxins and can be fatal. Adding to this venom, they can also spit it, causing blindness.

The Black Mamba: This is the longest and most poisonous snake in all of Africa and the fastest and most venomous land snake in the would and most likely the most bad-tempered snake ever. Surprisingly, this snake is shy, but when confronted is will show major aggression, usually by striking repeatedly even when they victim is down. Their venom has neurotoxins and will show symptoms within minutes and will die soon after if there is no anti-venom administered.


 
The Puff Adder: This snake is the cause of the most snake bite deaths in Kenya. They enjoy basking in the sun, especially in walking paths. They don't like to move a lot, so are not scared away by movement and actually don't mind attacking travelers with lightening speed. This snakes venom contains cytotoxin that destroys tissues. This bite will become fatal and the tissue around the wound will continue to die and can lead to amputation.

The African Rock Python: This is the third largest snake in the world. It's non-venomous and doesn't go after humans, but will. They kill prey through suffocation and swallow it whole, they are bad-tempered and will bite with aggression if provoked. They normally eat small mammals and reptiles, but have killed and eaten children and tried adults too.

Spiders of Kenya

Here's another update for my genius project of Kenya, Africa. Today I want to look at spiders, poisonous, non poisonous, small spiders, and tarantulas.

Two-tailed Spider: These are also known at tree-trunk spiders, they get this name from two long spinnerets at the back of the abdomen. They normally spin their webs on tree bark or other camouflaged surface where they can blend in to catch their prey unexpected. They eat mostly insects and upon capture the spider wraps its victim and give a fatal venom bite.






Funnel Web Spider: These spiders get their name from the funnel like webs they create to hide and catch prey. Once a insect gets trapped the spider jumps out to get it with amazing speed. The females usually stay within the comfort of their funnel homes, but males usually have to abandon theirs to find mates. If the female doesn't want a male, they might give a fatal bite.




 
 
 
 



Golden Orb Weaver: This is one of the largest spiders in Kenya and it also produces the strongest silk for web. Because of this web, these spiders can create webs that can span across roadsides and other large areas.

Kenya landscapes

Today, for my genius project, I'll be looking up the landscapes of Kenya, Africa.

Kenya has some of the most diverse landscapes of Africa, which includes, highlands, savannah grasslands, indigenous forests, and coral gardens.


Highlands: The highlands in Kenya include their second highest peak, Mount Kenya. Many hikers enjoy going to these highlands, which are called Central Highlands. There are many different ranges that people can go on, most of them set lower on the mountains, but are still dangerous. It's always interesting to go on one of these hikes, you might get a chance to see some wildlife and the scenery is just incredible.





Savannah Grasslands: These landscapes go over very wide ranges and typically have very few scattered trees and brush. They have different seasons to go along with it, cool - dry, warm - wet, and hot - dry. There is a lot of vegetation and many grazing animals come and go through here, because of the wide ranges of the savannah, animals can eat constantly and when they leave to find more, even more vegetation can grow from where they just left. Many people live around these grasslands including the well known Massai tribe of Kenya. This is also a great touring area for people on safaris.








Coral Gardens: Wasini is one of the main attractions in Kenya. There is a board walk way where you go into a swamp of dead fossil coral sticking out from the water. There are also diving and snorkeling sights where you can swim with dolphins, manta rays, whale sharks, and the diverse marine life among the coral.

Big Cats of Kenya

For today's blogger assignment, I'm going to learn more about Kenya, Africa. Specifically today my question is, What kinds of big cats live in the area and what are they like?

The major big cats that everyone knows that live in Africa are lions, leopards, and cheetahs.

Lions are one of the main animals that everyone wants to see when they visit Africa. They can weigh up to five hundred pounds and live close to thirteen years, in captivity. Males are generally larger with a big mane around it's head that's usually shades of black to brown. They are the protectors of the pride and protect their own pride from any other threats to his family. Females are smaller and don't have a mane. The do have a similar light blond coat color as males and the same bone structure. They are generally the hunters because they're smaller and quicker, they also are in charge of the young, they take care of each other's cubs, unless their hunting, then the cubs are watched over by the male or their on their own. Lions live anywhere from savannahs and grasslands to bush and woodlands. When lions rest they're very social creatures, they like to lick and rub their heads against each other. But, when it comes to food, lions can get aggressive. When the lionesses hunt the food they take it down and start eating immediately, because the male will soon turn up and take over the feast. The females may have gotten the food, but the males are the protectors and needs the necessary food to survive and protect. Lions are probably the laziest big cat, they will sleep up to twenty hours a day. Even though they rest and sleep a lot, they can hunt at any hour of the day, but normally at night. The lionesses go as a group, which raises their chances, and spread out quietly to surround the prey. Once they have pounced on the prey they bite the neck, throat, or mouth to cut off oxygen and suffocate the animal before they start eating. Because lions live in such large groups they can hunt large prey, such as, wildebeest, buffalo, zebras, giraffes, young elephants, antelopes, rhinos, and even hippos. The cubs practice with hunting with mice, lizards, and tortoises. A normal litter of cubs consist of two to three, but can go up to as much as six or seven. Females normally coordinate when they have their cubs so they can raise their own with others in the pride. They can start hunting around the age of two and are normally fully grown at around five or six. The one main predator of the lion is humans, many have died for sport and for their coats or teeth and claws. Anything can be a predator to cubs, a buffalo raid can kill any cub, other predators include elephants, crocodiles, and hyenas. When a male takes over a pride and kills or drives away the previous male, the new leader will kill the previous cubs because they're not their own. This takes a toll on the females and it usually takes a while for them to warm up to the new pride leaders. Lions are the only big cat that live in prides, they're very social and take their numbers for the advantage for hunting, protecting each other, and taking care of cubs. Prides can usually have up to two to four males and up to fifteen females.                                                 

Leopards are a lot smaller than lions and can get up to about one hundred and forty pounds and can live up to twenty one years in captivity. Their coats are generally lighter but can have a range of shades yellow and tawny brown, they have circular spots and sometimes square spots in different patterns and designs that are rosette or black in color. They like to live in places where they're hidden easily, such as, rocky woodlands and riverine forests where they have access to trees and hiding crevices. Leopards are more nocturnal, this plus their surroundings and coat camouflage makes it very hard to spot. When Leopards hunt, they slink under and around objects skillfully to reach their prey. They do not chase their prey, so they have to be at a close range when they attack. When they do not wish to hunt, leopards can just lift their tail and flip the tip of the tail to show they're not interested in hunting. Leopards are solitary animals and often avoid one another except for mating or if they have cubs. Males typically have larger range territory and females have less, which sometimes overlaps into another males territory. They have a good sense of smell and have many means of marking their territory when needed. They also communicate through many different ways of hissing, roaring, coughing, and spitting. Leopards like to move constantly, they'll only stay in one area no more than two to three days at a time. They like to lounge in trees and this is usually a good hiding place or a good exit from escaping lions or hyenas. Once they hunt their prey, they'll normally take the carcass to a tree and store it on a limb to eat and keep away from hungry eyes. They're stealthy and cunning hunters who use strategy to kill. They learn from a young age to kill small animals, but then grow to eat fish to birds to mammals and rodents. Leopard litters typically consist of around two to three cubs, but normally only one to two survive to adult-hood. Their coats are a smoky grey in color and change as they hit adolescents. When the cubs are first born the mother, needing to provide for herself and watch the territory, hides the cubs in brush to rock crevices, but moves them every few days, so no predators notice and attack. One of the only predators of the leopard is man, their coats are prized for fur coats and just for fun. Lions can and will kill a leopard if they feel threatened and hyenas will kill leopard cubs if they can find them.

The last savannah big cat is the cheetah. The cheetah can weigh up to one hundred and forty pounds and live to around twenty years. They were built for speed, they're the fastest land animal on Earth. Ranging speeds of around sixty to seventy miles per hour they're not so easy to catch. The have massive lungs, but a skinny rest of the body that keeps it slick and smooth with plenty of oxygen to last a good run. They have black 'tears' that run from their eyes that keep the sun from blinding them. They have long claws that can't be retracted like a normal cat, this is so when the animal is running it can keep good padding on the ground so it can't slip as easily. They also have a long flexible tail that helps for making very sudden turns during the run, the tail makes different movements to keep the cheetah balanced. The cheetah can't run at top speed for a long space of time and when it gets tired after a run, normally they need lots of time to catch their breath. Cheetah's like to live in the open savannah with a few shady trees so they can cool off. Their coats are specially designed for this, they have light colored fur with many spots that are all in different patterns. Cheetahs don't roar like a normal cat, they purr, hiss, or chirp. They also like to hunt during the day, which is also unusual for a big cat. Cheetahs spend most of it's young life learning to hunt and survive from it's mother so they're able to become independent quickly. Even though the cheetah is very fast it still waits until they're very close to the target before striking. They also eat as quickly as possible once they have food because anything can come and take it from them. Cheetahs don't like a fight and normally run when a bigger or tougher predator comes towards them. They have litters of about four to six cubs, which have a smokey tuft of hair running along their back and neck until they get older, showing that they're still young. The cubs stay with their mother for a long time, around three years, in which they learn all the necessities of life to survive. Once old enough the mother will abandon her young and hope that they'll apply the tools they've learned to survive on their own.

Geography Topic

My geography topic that I would like to learn more about is the continent of Africa. I've always been fascinated with Africa, the environment, the types of land, who lives there and what they do, and especially the animal wildlife. I hope to visit there someday, but would like to learn more about it first, such as, cities, populations (people and animals), land forms, what type of plants and animals live there. You always hear about what's going on in Asia and Europe, especially with all the news lately, but I want to know more about what's going on in Africa, what happens everyday.

If I could narrow it down to just one thing about Africa, it would be Kenya. They have more sightings of wildlife and very beautiful and interesting plants. To sum it up it would have to be the environment of Kenya, Africa. I hope I am able to find and learn more about this subject, can't wait to start learning!

Ninth Grade

Hello, my name is Hannah Jex and this is the first time I've ever had a blog. Our assignment for today is to write about our goals for ninth grade. This year I would like to continue my winning streak of 4.0's every term, another one is that I don't want to miss a single day of school, I used to have a streak of not missing a day throughout 5th, 6th, and 7th grade, but missed only one day last year, breaking my streak, I want to change that this year. I want to go on today not having a single missing assignment and being prepared in each class. I also hope I'm able to complete ninth grade without a single tardy, which has never happened before. I can't wait to get through this school year, meet new people, and have fun!