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Critter Class Porcupines Critter Class Porcupines North American Porcupine October 6, 2011 MVK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2y4cQEEyuTw Porcupine Comment: How absolutely precious! I love him!!! Comment: The baby looked so soft and cute, not what I would have thought Cute video Comment: Porcupine. Yippee!! Hi MVK. How was your day today?? Comment: Awwww toooo cute!!! Comment: How cute is that! Comment: OUCH! Comment: Evening MVK and EN - Porcupines - wow - funny little critters or what!!! Good choice♥♥♥ Critter Class – Porcupine 1 10/6/2011 Comment: Oh my goodness -----how cute is that baby porcupine!! I really don't know much about them. He was using his paws so well. Do they have thumbs like raccoons? Comment: Oh my word, isn't that baby cute! And such a dainty eater! Comment: Is that a porcupine? Pulled many of quills from my dogs. Comment: Oh, one of my favorite animals. I love our type, and those snazzy African ones whose head look like they are wearing a fancy Parisian hat. I just love porcupines! MVK: Porcupines have soft hair, but on their back, sides, and tail it is usually mixed with sharp quills. These quills typically lie flat until a porcupine is threatened, then leap to attention as a persuasive deterrent. Porcupines cannot shoot them at predators as once thought, but the quills do detach easily when touched. from National Geographic MVK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYC0IYuOYLw&NR=1 MVK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqc5jJQwVu8&feature=relmfu MVK: This little porcupine's mother was hit and killed by a car. He was imprinted on humans so could not be released. He lives in a wildlife center in Minn. Comment: Good evening MVK & Sophie Rose. Hope you had a good day. That baby porcupine doesn't look the least bit dangerous. Comment: We see porcupines in the woods--usually up in trees. They can be quite destructive little buggers- -ate the door right off our neighbors cabin! Porcupine in a tree Critter Class – Porcupine 2 10/6/2011 MVK: Wow - I have never seen one in the wild - just in zoos. MVK: Many animals come away from a porcupine encounter with quills protruding from their own snouts or bodies. Quills have sharp tips and overlapping scales or barbs that make them difficult to remove once they are stuck in another animal's skin. Porcupines grow new quills to replace the ones they lose. Per National Geographic Comment: Who eats porcupine??? Comment: Hi MVK, when do the porcupine quills get stiff or are they born that way? MVK: Female porcupines have between one and four young, depending on the species. Babies have soft quills at birth, which harden within a few days. Most young porcupines are ready to live on their own at about two months of age. Per National Geographic Comment: Hi, MVK! Porcupines!!! Cute baby! I used to work for a woman who imported jewelry, bags, sweaters etc from Peru. Many of the earrings used porcupine quills. The way it was explained to me was that they would squeeze (scare?) the porcupines and they'd shoot off the quills. (Don't know how accurate that is, but that's what I remember being told ... that job was many moons ago!) Comment: really cute little ones, MVK: I love the little sounds they make - like a little baby. Comment: I need a bottle, a glove and a porcupet...sheer heaven. Comment: I have never seen one in wild either, always thought they would be mean Comment: From Linda in Vermont Their quills are like fishing lure hooks, with barbs. Critter Class – Porcupine 3 10/6/2011 MVK: Porcupines' quills, or spines, take on various forms, depending on the species, but all are modified hairs coated with thick plates of keratin, and they are embedded in the skin musculature. Old World porcupines (Hystricidae) have quills embedded in clusters, whereas in New World porcupines (Erethizontidae), single quills are interspersed with bristles, underfur and hair. Per Wikipedia MVK: Quills are released by contact with them, or they may drop out when the porcupine shakes its body, but cannot be projected at attackers. New quills grow to replace lost ones. From ancient times, it was believed that porcupines could throw their quills at an enemy, but this has long been refuted.[7][8] Per Wikipedia MVK: Porcupines in search of salt sometimes enter human habitats, eating plywood cured with sodium nitrate,[9] certain paints, tool handles, doors, tables, houses, footwear, clothes and other items that have been coated in salty sweat. Porcupines are attracted to roads in areas where rock salt is used to melt ice and snow and are known to gnaw on vehicle tires or wiring coated in road salt. Salt licks placed nearby can prevent porcupines from injuring themselves. Per Wikipedia Comment: Are the quills poisonous? MVK: It doesn't sound like it - just hurt pretty bad. Comment: MVK, the Game Commission brought Fishers into Pennsylvania to help with the porcupine population. They also started a porcupine hunting season this year with a 6 a day limit. Can't imagine anyone hunting porcupines myself! MVK: Porcupines are occasionally eaten by humans, although they are not a large or popular source of food. More commonly, their quills and guardhairs are used for traditional decorative clothing. For example, their guardhairs are used in the creation of the Native American "porky roach" headdress. Per Wikipedia Comment: And what do those porcupines eat and where do they nest?? MVK: Porcupines occupy a short range of habitats in tropical and temperate parts of Asia, Southern Europe, Africa, and North and South America. Porcupines live in forests, deserts, rocky outcrops, hillsides and grasssides. Some New World porcupines live in trees, but Old World porcupines stay on the rocks. Porcupines can be found on rocky areas up to 3,700 Critter Class – Porcupine 4 10/6/2011 m (12,100 ft) high. Porcupines are generally nocturnal but are occasionally active during daylight. Per Wikipedia MVK: Porcupines eat seeds, fruit, leaves, grasses, dandelions, twigs and aquatic plants in the summer. A porcupine can climb trees that are 60 to 70 feet high to reach the young leaves. During the winter they eat twigs, leaves, bark, and pine needles. Porcupines like maple, birch, beech, oak, cherry, willow, pine and fir. They crave salt and will eat the handles of tools that has been seasoned with human sweat. MVK: The main enemies of the porcupine are the fisher, great horned owl, coyote, and wolf. MVK: Reproduction Female porcupines become sexually mature at about 18 months of age. The breeding season occurs between September to November and females may cycle more than once a year. Gestation varies from 205 to 215 days. One pup or "porcupette" is born in the spring (usually late-April to early-May,) However, pups can be born as late as August. Newborn pups weigh about 1 pound (.45 kg) and are approximately 10 inches (25 cm) long. Per zoo.org Comment: Hi MVK and EN. I love the little "baby" noises the porcupet was making on the video. Makes you want to cuddle one....but...NOT a good idea! Go NX!! Comment: What is the average life span of these walking pincushions? :) MVK: 10-15 years in the wild MVK: Life Cycle Young are born with eyes open and teeth erupted. Their bodies are covered with long hairs and quills, which are fully functional after drying within a few hours. Newborn are born mobile and capable of following the female. Young porcupines nurse about two months, but begin feeding on vegetation after only the first few days of life. Young usually stay with the female through the summer and then are on their own. Coloration of young porcupines usually darkens with age, and they reach full adult size in three to four years. While very nearsighted, porcupines have keen senses of smell, hearing and touch. Per zoo.org Critter Class – Porcupine 5 10/6/2011 MVK: Prickly Life Its name comes from Latin for "swine" and "thorn." The porcupine has 30,000 or more quills, which cover all its body except the snout, throat, belly and feet pads. Quills are modified hairs with hollow, spongy centers. The loosely attached quills easily embed in attackers upon contact. While the porcupine does not throw quills, the flailing muscular tail and powerful body may help impel quills deeply into attackers. The quills' barbed ends expand with moisture and continue to work deeper into flesh. Porcupine quills have mildly antibiotic properties and thus are not infectious. Quills may cause death if they puncture a vital organ or if a muzzle full of quills leads to starvation. Per zoo.org Comment: Hi MVK and EN. I guess any animal that attacks a porkypine soon gets the point driven home that it is not a good idea. MVK: I think so. MVK: How do Porcupines Mate? Very Carefully! Males fiercely compete for breeding rights. Hostility and violent battles are common with vicious bites, hundreds of "foreign quills" exchanged and even fatalities. Courtship consists of a period of wrestling, chases, vocalizations and urine showers. A receptive female folds her quills flat against her body, elevates her rear and arches her tail over her back. This provides the male with a quill-less platform. Mating continues until one of the pair ends contact by climbing a tree or hostile screaming. Per zoo.org Comment: Good Evening MVK and Sophie Rose! I made it on for a little while tonight.....LOL Porcupines are soooo cute! Are they related to hedgehogs??? MVK: A Mostly Quiet Life Porcupines are generally solitary in nature, although groups up to a dozen may gather at certain nocturnal feeding sites during summer and early autumn.
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