Mangrove Forest Animals (Fauna)
Mudskipper
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The mudskipper is a completely amphibious fish that lives in mangrove forests. It has special adaptations that allow it to live in intertidal habitats (above water in low tide and under water in high tide). Most other fishes hide under seaweed or in tidal pools, but the mudskipper can use its pectoral fins to walk (or skip) on land from one tidal pool to the other, or to interact with other mudskippers (they are actually fairly active out of water). Its not just walking, though. Mudksippers can fling their own bodies like a catapult and reach heights of 2 feet (60 cm) in the air. Other special adaptations of the mudskipper's is that they can breath through the lining of their mouth, their throat, and their skin. This allows them to move about above water, provided they live in humid environments, or keep themselves moist. This mode of breathing, used by amphibians, is called cutaneous breathing. Mudskippers retain a bubble of air in their gills, and when they go onto land, they close these gills tight, keeping them moist. Another special adaptation of the mudskippers is that they can dig burrows in the ground, where they can thermoregulate (keep their body temperature at a certain degree, even when the surrounding temperature is different), lay eggs, or hide from predators during high tide. Even when their nest is submerged, the mudskippers retain an air pocket in their nests, which allows them to breath in low oxygen conditions.
Lories/Lorikeets
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Lorikeets are medium-sized arboreal birds that feed on the nectar of various blossoms and soft fruits, mainly berries, and have brightly colored plumage. The mangrove forests that they inhabit are in mainly the eastern hemisphere, including southeast Asia, Australia, Papua New Guinea, and Timor Leste. They eat the nectar by collecting it with the papillae on the tip of their tongue (papillae are extremely fine hairs). There is no difference between lories and lorikeets. However, the ones with longer tails are more often called lorikeets, while the ones with the shorter tails are often called lories.
Honeyeaters
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Honeyeater
Honeyeaters a large and diverse species of birds found in mainly Australia and New Guinea, but also are found in islands east of that in the Pacific, as well as New Zealand. There are 182 different species of honeyeater, more than half of them are found in Australia. They fertilize a great many Australian plants, in particular, the Proteaceae, myrtaceae, and the epacridaceae. These birds do have fairly hummingbird-like characteristics and behaviors, but hover flight is not one of them. While some of the smaller species of honeyeater can hover like a hummingbird, most honeyeaters prefer to fly quickly from one branch to another, and can hang upside down to reach fruits and flowers. If the honeyeaters are not eating fruit or nectar, some species will eat insects, through gleaning or through hawking. The long, fine beaked honeyeaters eat more nectar, while the shorter beaked honeyeaters less so. All honeyeaters, however, eat some insects to add protein to their diet while they are mating.