Zoology Reference Libraries

The cave bear (Ursus spelaeus) is an extinct species that was found in Europe during the Pleistocene. Its range was large and included areas from Great Britain to Spain, Italy, Poland, the Balkans, areas of Germany, Russia, the Caucuses, Romania, and northern areas of Iran. Large numbers of skeletons have been found in Switzerland, southern Germany, Austria, northern Spain, Hungary, Croatia,...

The brown bear (Ursus arctos) can be found in North America and northern areas of Eurasia. There are sixteen recognized subspecies of the brown bear. This is the most widely distributed species of bear in the world, although its range is shrinking. Its range includes the Alaska and a few other areas of the United States, areas of Russia, and Romania and other areas of the Carpathian region, as...

The Florida black bear (Ursus americanus floridanus) is a subspecies of the American black bear. It once held a range that included Florida and southern areas of Georgia and Alabama. Today it occurs in these areas and in southern Mississippi, but its range is now fragmented. This species prefers a habitat within forested areas like sand-pine scrub, wetlands, oak scrub, and upland hardwood...

The cinnamon bear (Ursus americanus cinnamomum) is a subspecies of the American black bear known as a color phase. It can be found in New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Washington, Idaho, Montana, and western areas of Canada. This species derives it common name from the reddish fur that occurs throughout its body. It can reach an average weight between 203 and 595 pounds. This species can vary in...

The spectacled bear or the Andean bear (Tremarctos ornatus) is native to South America. This bear is locally known as jukumari, ukuko, or ucumari and is the only remaining species of short-faced bear existing today, making it the sole member of the sub-family Tremarctinae. The range of the spectacled bear includes western Venezuela, eastern Panama, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, northwestern...

The brown-tailed mongoose (Salanoia concolor), also known as the salano or the Malagasy brown-tailed mongoose. This species is native to the island of northeastern areas of Madagascar and it prefers a habitat within tropical and subtropical arid forests. The brown-tailed mongoose was first described by Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire in 1837. Two species were given the name Galidia olivacea...

The soybean cyst nematode (Heterodera glycines) is a parasitic worm that infects soybean plants, and other legumes, across the world. It is thought to be native to Asia, but was found in the United States in 1954 and in Colombia in the 1980’s. It can be found in Italy and Iran and its most recent sightings have occurred in Brazil and Argentina, two major areas where soybeans are grown. These...

The giant roundworm (Ascaris lumbricoides) is a parasitic worm within the Nematoda phylum. This species can be found throughout the world, but occurs in higher numbers in tropical and subtropical areas. It causes the disease known as ascariasis in its human hosts and infects about one quarter of the entire world’s human population. It displays a sexual dimorphism, with females growing larger...

The common root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita), also known as the southern root-knot nematode, is a species of roundworm that infects plants. It can be found across the world and infects a number of different hosts. It resides in the root system of the host plant, creating gnarled roots and galls. This species travels through more shallow temperature gradients than other organisms. This...

The dog roundworm (Toxocara canis) is a species of parasitic worm that infects canid species. It is yellowish white in color and can reach an average length between 3.5 and 7 inches, with females typically growing large than males. The dog roundworm can be transmitted in four different ways. The most common form of transmission occurs when an egg containing second stage larvae is released...