Crocs are hole lot of trouble
QUESTION Which animal can dig the deepest burrow?
The deepest burrow is dug by the Nile crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus). Depths of 12 ft are common and the deepest recorded is 39 ft.
At up to 20ft long, the Nile crocodile is found in fresh water across Sub-Saharan Africa. It’s an expert hunter and one of the world’s most dangerous species, killing hundreds of people every year.
For large, cold-blooded animals, heat regulation is vitally important. The crocs spend a great deal of time immobile, basking in the sun. If it’s hot, they open their mouths to ventilate heat and cool down. Despite this sedentary lifestyle, they remain awake and alert.
In extremes of temperature, hot and cold, Nile crocs seek refuge in deep burrows where they engage in a form of hibernation called aestivation.
In this state of inactivity and low metabolic activity, they minimise their heart rate and sleep through the harsh seasons. The holes they dig along river banks are cool and damp.
During aestivation, the crocs reduce their respiration rate to one breath per minute, their body temperature drops and heart rate goes down from 40 beats per minute to fewer than five.
In this state, the crocodile uses very little energy, enabling it to survive for more than a year without food.
Surprisingly, the croc’s jaws rather than its feet are mainly used to dig. As many as 15 aestivating crocodiles have been found in a single burrow.
While the Nile crocodile may have the deepest burrow, the Zambian mole rat ( Fukomys amatus) has the most extensive. An underground colony can stretch for two miles. however, they do not descend below 6 ft.
Rachel Lewis, St Andrews, Fife.
QUESTION Did David Bowie hold a songwriting competition in which the winner had a track included on one of his albums?
YeS, this was the track What’s Really happening? on the 1999 album hours.
David Bowie was an early adopter of the internet, launching BowieNet, which he promoted with a Cyber Song Contest. he supplied the title and music to What’s Really happening? and invited budding songwriters to submit the lyrics.
The Bug Music-sponsored competition came with the prize of a recording session with Bowie, a $15,000 publishing contract, a one-year subscription to BowieNet, a complete Bowie catalogue, $500 worth of music from CDNow and a three-year subscription to Rolling Stone magazine.
There were more than 80,000 entries. The winner was Alex Grant from Ohio. he was flown to New York for the vocal session on May 24, 1999, which was broadcast live on BowieNet.
Bowie stated: ‘The most gratifying part of the evening for me was being able to encourage Alex and his pal Larry to sing on the song that he had written.’
Ultimately, the lyrics are a bit too Bowie for my taste: ‘Grown inside a plastic box Micro thoughts and safety locks Hearts become outdated clocks Tickin’ in your mind.’
Mike Everett, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffs.
QUESTION Was piracy once a problem in the Outer Hebrides?
The original name for the Isle of Longay, off the coast of Skye, was Long Spuinnidh, meaning pirate ship, which gives a clue to the illegal use of its sheltered anchorage.
Piracy was common from the late 16th to the early 18th century around the Western Isles (hebrides) and Orkney.
Ruaraidh MacNeil from Barra, at the southern end of the hebrides chain, was a well-known pirate who raided as far afield as Ireland and was fond of attacking english trading vessels. The MacNeils formed a dynasty of piracy from their base at Kisimul Castle.
Despite warnings from the Scottish and english governments, the pirates were able to defy the authorities thanks to the local geography, which provided a strong defence from attack.
Ruaraidh the Turbulent, as he was known, justified his actions by claiming to be defending the honour of Mary Queen of Scots, who had been executed by elizabeth I.
he was pardoned by James VI (James I of england), presumably on the grounds of defending the King’s mother, but his lands were forfeited and handed to a member of the Mackenzie clan.
The MacNeils returned to piracy on a smaller scale.
The MacLeods of Lewis also practised piracy. The government’s solution to the menace of piracy was to settle the islands with Lowland Scots, who had no loyalty to the clans. The pilot scheme for this was the Isle of Lewis, ending the reign of the MacLeods.
Captain John Gow operated as a pirate out of the Orkney Islands for many years. he was eventually captured and hanged at London’s Newgate Prison in 1729.
Bob Dillon, Edinburgh.
QUESTION Are there any female equestrian statues?
The earlier answer identified four statues of women on horseback in Britain. however, it omitted the marvellous statue of Queen Victoria on horseback in George Square, Glasgow. She sits side-saddle alongside Prince Albert, also on horseback.
The monument, sculpted by Baron Carlo Marochetti, commemorates the Queen’s visit to Glasgow in 1849.
Unveiled in 1854, it was Britain’s first equestrian statue of a woman and drew enormous crowds for its inauguration.
James B. Sinclair, St Helier, Jersey.