Rikunarita-ORG/Wikinium huggingface dataset:
# New Guinea

New Guinea and its place in the world
New Guinea
Greater bird of paradise
**New Guinea** is a big island north of Australia. It is the second largest island in the world. Geologically and biologically it is related to Australia. It was first surveyed by Alfred Russel Wallace
in the 19th century, who noted that it was, like Australia, on the eastern side of the Wallace line. That means it is closer to Australia than to Indonesia in its flora and fauna.

On the east side of New Guinea is the country Papua New Guinea. On the west side of the island are the Indonesian provinces of Papua, Central Papua, Highland Papua, South Papua, Southwest Papua, and West Papua. These provinces together are called Western New Guinea. The Indonesian "capture" of western Papua New Guinea was a modern act by dictator Suharto of Indonesia. The Australian "capture" of the eastern half was meant to make sure the peoples of this part of Indonesia were left alone.

An early BBC David Attenborough program showed that the country was wooded with many groups of humans speaking many languages. The most notable animals still alive were the birds of paradise. Of marsupials, the quolls are notable. They are small, solitary carnivores. There are six species surviving, two in New Guinea and four in Australia. Echidnas are mammals also known as spiny anteaters.

The number of people on New Guinea is unknown. Indonesia and Papua New Guinea estimated the number around 2020. They say there are about 15 million people. However, the real number could be 23 million or more.

New Guinea is important for its nature and biology. Its largest marsupial, the Diprotodon, is now extinct. Native humans live in sparsely wooded, hilly ground in small groups which speak different languages. New Guinea has over 1000 languages. This is more languages than anywhere else in the world.

Still surviving are the birds of paradise, with marsupials, including wallabies and possums, and the egg-laying monotreme, the echidna. Other than bats and some two dozen indigenous rodents, there are no pre-human indigenous placental mammals. Pigs, several additional species of rats, and the ancestor of the New Guinea singing dog were introduced with human colonization.

1895 gold coin issued by the German New Guinea Company: illustration is of a bird-of-paradise
# Tundra

permafrost = tundra

Arctic tundra on Wrangel Island, Russia
Tundra in Greenland
In physical geography, **tundra** is the part of the world in which the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. The word comes from the Sami *tūndâr*, which means "uplands," "tundra," or "treeless mountains."

There are three types of tundra: **Arctic tundra**, **Antarctic tundra**, and **alpine tundra**. In all three types, the plants are mostly grass, moss, and lichens. Trees grow in some of the tundra. The boundary between the tundra and the forest is known as the tree line or timberline. The area itself encircles the Arctic Ocean of the Northern Hemisphere. The climate in a tundra biome consists of freezing cold and dryness in the winter and cold summers. The tundra ground is a barren place and is often covered with rocks.

Most water on the tundra is permafrost permanent frozen soil. Permafrost and fierce winds prevent large trees from growing deep roots. Plants in the tundra are small and grow near the ground. Plants, called "cushions," grow in tight clumps in the tundra, but lichens are the dominant plants and cover the rocks. The few trees that do grow on the tundra are dwarf willows and birch.

The deep and cold snow makes life in the tundra very difficult. Animal must adapt to survive. Some have thick fur that turns white during the winter. Others find places to hibernate during the winter months. Some examples of animals that live in the tundra are rodents, hares, sables, caribou, wolves, arctic foxes, bears, walruses, seals, and snowy owls.

## Other websites

* Media related to Tundra at Wikimedia Commons
* WWF Tundra Ecoregions Archived 2010-02-23 at the Wayback Machine
* The Arctic biome at Classroom of the Future
* British Antarctica Survey
* Antarctica: West of the Transantarctic Mountains
* Tundra Food Chain | How The Tundra Food Chain Works? Archived 2021-10-29 at the Wayback Machine
# Arboreal

**Arboreal** is an adjective in biology for an animal which lives in the trees.

All forests have had animals living in them. Those animals have adaptations which enable them to live and move about in trees. The earliest one known is *Suminia*, a synapsid of the late Permian, about 260 million years ago.
# Keystone species

The beaver as ecoengineer: their dams transform the environment
As a keystone species, the otter is crucial to a kelp forest's survival.
A **keystone species** is a species which has a big effect on its environment relative to its numbers. The ecosystem depends on them, and would be much changed if they were not there, such as **krill**. This is because they affect many other organisms in the ecosystem. They affect the types and numbers of other species in the community.

Some sea stars (e.g. *Pisaster ochraceus*) prey on sea urchins, mussels, and other shellfish that have no other natural predators. If the sea star is removed from the ecosystem, the mussel population explodes uncontrollably. This drives out most other species. The urchin population grows likewise, and destroys coral reefs. Living coral reefs are the habitat for many hundreds of other species.

Some other examples of keystone species are the sea otter, horseshoe crab, and wolves. Sea otters and kelp depend on each other. Without the sea otter, sea urchins would destroy the kelp, and much else in the ecosystem.
# Great Plains

Map of the Great Plains with a red line showing the 100th meridian
The **Great Plains** is a large space of level land or prairie in the middle and western parts of North America. It is a steppe or grassland.

The western boundary is the Rocky Mountains. In the east, the Great Plains grassland becomes the tallgrass of the Mississippi River basin. The prairie is (in whole or part) in eleven U.S. states, and in the southern parts of three Canadian provinces.

In the Great Plains, summers are hot and humid, but winters are cold. Bison used to number millions, and were the main food for people there. Now the area is mainly sown with cereal crops which feed cattle and people.

## Related pages

* Grassland

## Other websites

* North Dakota State University: *The Geologic Story of The Great Plains* Archived 2009-03-05 at the Wayback Machine
* Kansas Heritage Group: *Native Prairie, Preserve, Flowers, and Research*
* Library of Congress: *Great Plains*
* University of Nebraska-Lincoln: *The Great Plains Study*
# American bison

| American bison |
| --- |
|  |
| American bison |
| Conservation status |
|  Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1) |
| Scientific classification |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Family: | Bovidae |
| Genus: | *Bison* |
| Binomial name |
| Bison bison (Linnaeus, 1758) |

A bison running
American bison
The **American bison** (also called **American buffalo** or just **buffalo**) is a species of bison, a bovine mammal. The name "buffalo" is a misnomer, because the bison is only distantly related to the water buffalo and the African buffalo.

Bison are a keystone species. They once roamed the North American continent in great herds, and their grazing helped in shaping the ecology of the Great Plains. However, hunters killed a massive number of bison. There used to be as many as 30 million bison in the United States, but because of hunting, by the year 1890, only 1,000 bison were left.

## Description

The bison has a large head with relatively small, curving horns. Its dark brown coat is long and shaggy on the forequarters, including the front legs, neck, and shoulders, while the rest of the body has shorter, finer hair. Plains bison and Wood bison are the two subspecies of American bison.

Their staple foods are grasses and sedges.

## Habitat

American bison live in river valleys, on prairies, and on plains. Their typical habitat is open or semi-open grassland, as well as sagebrush, semi-arid lands and scrublands. Bison will also graze in hilly or mountainous areas where the slopes are not steep.

Though not particularly known as high-altitude animals, bison in Yellowstone National Park are frequently found at elevations above 38,000 feet (12,000 m). The bison herd on the plains and valleys around the Henry Mountains in Utah go up to an altitude of 10,000 feet (3,000 m).

## Endangerment and conservation

Although bison once roamed across North America, they are now ecologically extinct over most of their historic range. Bison live in a few national parks and other small wildlife areas.

There used to be as many as 30 million bison in the United States, but because of hunting, by 1890, only 1,000 bison were left. Through conservation efforts, there are now more American bison than there used to be, but still far fewer than there were before the 1800s.

## Symbolism

The American bison is often used in North America in official seals, flags, and logos. In 2016, the American bison became the national mammal of the United States. The American bison is also the state mammal of Wyoming, United States, and the provincial mammal of Manitoba, Canada, and is featured prominently on their flags. Manitoba Telecom Services (MTS) used a bison named Morty as its mascot from 1999 to 2016.

## As livestock

Ground bison patties
Bison are used as livestock. Bison meat is known for being cattle-like, but leaner and slightly sweeter than beef.

## The beefalo

Beefalo hybrid
Bison can interbreed with cattle to make a hybrid known as the beefalo.
# Sporocarp (fungi)

The **sporocarp** (also known as the **fruiting body** or the **fruit body**) of a fungus is a multicellular structure on which spore-producing structures, such as basidia or asci, are born. Mushrooms are sporocarps that grow above ground. Truffles are sporocarps that grow underground.

The largest known fruiting body is the *Fomitiporia ellipsoidea* species, found on Hainan Island. The species can measure up to 1,085 centimetres (427 in) in length, and is estimated to weigh between 400 and 500 kilograms (880 and 1,100 lb).

* Zabowski, D.; Zasoski, R. J.; Littke, W.; Ammirati, J. (1990). "Metal content of fungal sporocarps from urban, rural, and sludge-treated sites". *Journal of Environmental Quality*. **19** (3): 372–377. doi:10.2134/jeq1990.00472425001900030004x.`{{cite journal}}`: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
# Commensalism

Mites get transport on a fly (*Pseudolynchia canariensis*)
**Commensalism** is a type of relationship between two organisms. In commensalism, one organism is helped while the other is not affected. In practice, it is difficult to show that the passive organism is not harmed. For example, some birds live in holes in trees. Does this damage the tree? Mites, which cannot fly, often hitch a ride on insects. Does this affect the
insect's fitness? There is no definite answer to such questions.

Orchids, mosses, and lichens all grow on tropical trees. They need sunlight, and by being higher up they get to the sunlight. All that can be said for sure is that the trees continue to live and reproduce, and so it is assumed that these epiphytes do not affect their host plant.

Pierre-Joseph van Beneden (1809–1894) introduced the term into evolutionary biology and ecology in the 1870s.

## Amensalism

Amensalism is a symbiotic relationship in which one organism is harmed or inhibited and the other is unaffected. Examples of amensalism include the shading out of one plant by a taller and wider one and the inhibition of one plant by the secretions of another (known as allelopathy).

## Related pages

* Mutualism
* Symbiosis
* Parasitism
# Castoridae

| Castoridae Temporal range:  |
| --- |
|  |
| North American beaver, *Castor canadensis* |
| Scientific classification  |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Superfamily: | Castoroidea |
| Family: | Castoridae Hemprich, 1820 |
| Type genus |
| *Castor* Linnaeus, 1758 |
| Genera |
|
See text |

Skull of a beaver.
**Castoridae** is a family of rodents. Today, the only genus that has alive species in it is *Castor*. It contains modern-day beavers. In addition, about 20 extinct genera of beavers have been put into the family.
# Heteromyidae

| Heteromyids Temporal range:  |
| --- |
|  |
| Fresno kangaroo rat (*Dipodomys nitratoides*) |
| Scientific classification  |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Superfamily: | Geomyoidea |
| Family: | Heteromyidae Gray, 1868 |
| Subfamilies |
|
Dipodomyinae
Heteromyinae
Perognathinae |

The family of rodents that include kangaroo rats, kangaroo mice and rock pocket mice is the **Heteromyidae** family. Most **heteromyids** live in complex burrows in the deserts and grasslands of western North America. Some species within the *Heteromys* and *Liomys* genera are also found in forests and can be found down as far as northern South America. They feed mostly on seeds and other plant parts, which they carry in their cheek pouches to their burrows.

Although they are very different in physical appearance, the closest relatives of the heteromyids are pocket gophers in the Geomyidae family.

## Taxonomy

* **Family Heteromyidae**
	+ Subfamily Heteromyinae
		- Genus *Heteromys*
		- Genus *Liomys*
	+ Subfamily Dipodomyinae - *Kangaroo rats and mice*
		- Genus *Dipodomys* - *Kangaroo rat*
		- Genus *Microdipodops* - *Kangaroo mouse*
	+ Subfamily Perognathinae - *Pocket mice*
		- Genus *Perognathus* - *Silky pocket mouse*
		- Genus *Chaetodipus* - *Pocket mouse* (uncertain where to put it)

* Alexander, L. F. and B. R. Riddle. 2005. Phylogenetics of the New World rodent family Heteromyidae. Journal of Mammalogy, 86:399-379.

## Other websites

*
# Caviidae

| Caviidae Temporal range:  |
| --- |
|  |
| Mara, genus *Dolichotis* |
| Scientific classification  |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Parvorder: | Caviomorpha |
| Family: | Caviidae Fischer von Waldheim, 1818 |
| Subfamilies |
|  Caviinae
 Dolichotinae
Hydrochoerinae |
|  |
| Caviidae distribution |

**Caviidae** are a group of rodents that live in South America. Some Caviidae are guinea pigs and capybaras.
# Chinchillidae

| Chinchillidae Temporal range:  |
| --- |
|  |
| *Chinchilla chinchilla* (formerly *Chinchilla brevicaudata*) |
| Scientific classification  |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Superfamily: | Chinchilloidea |
| Family: | Chinchillidae Bennett, 1833 |
| Type genus |
| *Chinchilla* Bennett, 1829 |
| Genera |
|
†*Eoviscaccia*
†*Incamys*
*Chinchilla*
*Lagidium*
*Lagostomus*
†*Pliolagostomus*
†*Prolagostomus* |
|  |

The family **Chinchillidae** contains the chinchillas, viscachas, and their fossil relatives. They are restricted to southern and western South America. Often they can be found in the Andes. They are large rodents, weighing from 800 grams to 8 kilograms. They have strong hind legs and large ears. All species have thick, soft fur. Their fur is considered valuable in some species.

## Classification

There are three extant and three fossil genera currently recognized.

* †*Eoviscaccia* *incertae sedis*
* Subfamily Chinchillinae
	+ *Chinchilla* – chinchillas
	+ *Lagidium* – mountain viscachas
* Subfamily Lagostominae
	+ *Lagostomus* – plains viscachas
	+ †*Pliolagostomus*
	+ †*Prolagostomus*

* McKenna, Malcolm C., and Bell, Susan K. 1997. *Classification of Mammals Above the Species Level.* Columbia University Press, New York, 631 pp. ISBN 0-231-11013-8
* Woods C. A. and C. W. Kilpatrick. 2005. Hystricognathi pp. 1538–1600 *in* D. E. Wilson and M. A. Reeder, eds. *Mammal Species of the World*, 3rd edition, p. 1553.
# Viscacha

| Viscacha |
| --- |
|  |
| Scientific classification |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | **Chinchillidae** Bennett, 1833 |
| Genera |
|  *Lagidium*
 *Lagostomus* |

**Viscachas** or **vizcachas** are rodents. Together with the chinchilla they make up the family *Chinchillidae*.

A Northern viscacha in the Andes of Northern Peru.
There are two genera and four species of viscacha.

* *Plains viscacha* (*Lagostomus maximus*): Lives in the Pampas of Argentina and Chile . It can be easily differentiated from other viscachas because it has black and gray moustache-like facial markings. This species makes colonies. It lives in warrens of ten to over one hundred. It is very vocal and emits alarm calls. The plains viscacha can strip grassland used to graze livestock; this caused ranchers to consider the rodent a pest species.

* *Northern viscacha* (*Lagidum peruanum*): Native to the Peruvian Andes at those elevations between the timber line and the snow line. It is dorsally gray or brown in color. It has a bushy tail and long, furry ears. This species lives in large colonies. The colonies are separated into individual family units, like an apartment complex. It eats a wide range of plants. It lives in a harsh, rocky environment. Therefore, it is not too picky about the food.

* *Mountain viscacha* (*Lagidum viscacia*): Also called **southern viscacha**, this species is similar to the northern viscacha, but its fur is more red in color. It lives in similar habitat in the Andes.

* *Wolffsohn's viscacha* (*Lagidum wolffsohni*): Little is known about this species, as it is rarer than the other three viscachas.
# Paca

| Pacas |
| --- |
|  |
| Lowland Paca |
| Scientific classification |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Suborder: | Hystricomorpha |
| Genus: | Cuniculus |
| Species |
| *Cuniculus paca*
*Cuniculus taczanowskii* |
| Synonyms |
|
For Cuniculidae:
* Agoutidae Gray, 1821
* Coelogenyidae Gervais, 1849

For *Cuniculus*:
* *Agouti* Lacépède, 1799
* *Caelogenus* Fleming, 1822
* *Caelogenys* Agassiz, 1842
* *Coelogenus* Cuvier, 1807
* *Coelogenys* Illiger, 1811
* *Mamcoelogenysus* Herrera, 1899
* *Osteopera* Harlan, 1825
* *Paca* Fischer, 1814
* *Stictomys* Thomas, 1924
 |

The genus Cuniculus has the two species of paca.

* Lowland Paca, *Cuniculus paca*
* Mountain Paca, *Cuniculus taczanowskii*

Pacas are found from southern Mexico to northern Argentina. They are a source of meat in many places.

Both species of paca eat mainly fruit. Other foods include roots, seeds, leaves, buds, and flowers. In the wild, pacas are herbivores, meaning they eat only plants. In captivity, they are omnivores, meaning they eat both plants and flesh. Pacas in zoos eat fruits, vegetables, raw meat, lizards, and insects.
# Jerboa

| Jerboa Temporal range: Middle Miocene - Recent |
| --- |
|  |
| Scientific classification |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Superfamily: | Dipodoidea |
| Family: | **Dipodidae** Fischer de Waldheim, 1817 |

A **jerboa** is a small desert rodent of Asia and Northern Africa. It looks like a mouse, but it has a long tail and very long back legs. The jerboa moves by jumping, and their highest jump is over 6 feet high. They have long tails, long hind legs, and short front legs. There are 33 species of jerboa, which tend to live in hot deserts.

When they are being chased, jerboas can run up to 24 kilometers per hour. Some jerboa species are preyed on by little owls in central Asia. Most species of jerboas have very good hearing. Their hearing helps them avoid being attacked by predators.

## Related pages

* Hopping mouse
* Jumping mouse
* Kangaroo rat and kangaroo mouse
* Kultarr
* Springhare
# Nesomyidae

| Nesomyids Temporal range: Middle Miocene - Recent |
| --- |
|  |
| *Hypogeomys antimena* |
| Scientific classification |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Superfamily: | Muroidea |
| Family: | **Nesomyidae** Major, 1897 |
| Subfamilies |
|
Cricetomyinae
Delanymyinae
Dendromurinae
Mystromyinae
Nesomyinae
Petromyscinae |

**Nesomyidae** is a family of African rodents in the large and complicated superfamily Muroidea. It includes many subfamilies, which all live in Africa. Malagasy rats and mice, climbing mice, African rock mice, swamp mice, pouched rats, and the white-tailed rat are in this family.

## Characteristics

Nesomyids are small to medium rodents, and the largest is the size of a rat. They may look like mice, rats, voles, or hamsters, depending on the species and subfamily. They can either eat plant and meat totally, or insects totally. Their habits are also different, with some species climbing trees, and others digging holes in the ground to hide. They can give birth to the most four babies after being in the mother's womb for about six weeks.

## Classification

Many of these animals were once thought to be related to other groups of muroid rodents, but this African-based group has been confirmed to be different from the other muroids based on genetic studies. Still, all members of the Nesomyidae are placed in the family Muridae along with all other members of the Muroidea.

The Nesomyids are classified in 5 subfamilies, 22 genera and 55 species.

## Subfamilies

* Cricetomyinae (pouched rats)
* Delanymyinae (Delany's Mouse)
* Dendromurinae (climbing mice)
* Mystromyinae (white-tailed rat)
* Nesomyinae (Malagasy rats and mice)
* Petromyscinae (African rock mice)

* Jansa, S. A. and M. Weksler. Phylogeny of muroid rodents: relationships within and among major lineages as determined by IRBP gene sequences. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 31:256-276.

* Michaux, J., A. Reyes, and F. Catzeflis. 2001. Evolutionary history of the most speciose mammals: molecular phylogeny of muroid rodents. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 17:280-293.

* Steppan, S. J., R. A. Adkins, and J. Anderson. 2004. Phylogeny and divergence date estimates of rapid radiations in muroid rodents based on multiple nuclear genes. Systematic Biology, 53:533-553.
# Pika

| Pika |
| --- |
|  |
| American Pika, (*Ochotona princeps*), in Sequoia National Park |
| Scientific classification |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Lagomorpha |
| Family: | **Ochotonidae** Thomas, 1897 |
| Genus: | Ochotona Link, 1795 |
| Type species |
| *Ochotona minor* Link, 1795 (= *Lepus dauuricus* Pallas, 1776) |

A **pika** is a small mammal related to the hare and the rabbit (lagomorph). Pikas are also known as **rock rabbits** or **coneys**. Pikas have short limbs, a round body, an even coat of fur, round ears, and no external tail.

There are 37 different species of pika. Most pikas live in colder climates, on rocky mountain slopes. Pikas need cold temperatures to live, and can die if exposed to temperatures above 25.5 °C (77.9 °F). They live in Asia, North America and parts of Eastern Europe. They are active during the day or twilight. Pikas do not hibernate. Because they do not hibernate, during the summer they gather food for winter. They collect hay, which they pile up to dry. They sometimes steal hay from each other. This often results in disputes. Predators, like ferrets, and large birds often use these disputes to catch pikas.

Pikas are herbivores and eat many kinds of plants, such as grasses, sedges, moss, and lichens.

Pikas in Eurasia often live in family groups and share duties of gathering food and keeping watch. Some species are territorial. Pikas in North America are asocial outside of breeding season.

Pikachu from Pokemon is based off this animal.