Page 10 - AHATA

LOCAL Thursday 29 February 2024
A7

Unique fauna of Aruba Shoco (burrowing owl, brown in color, with many The shoco owl takes care of
Athene cunicularia aru-
white spots. The belly of the the owlets for three months
bensis) Shoco is either white or light until they leave the nest.
brown, and the shoco has Only a few owlets survive.
For a small island, Aruba sure has a lot of unique treasures. The shoco is a small bird striking yellow eyes. Its beak
Among these, we have some subspecies of animals that which is seldom seen. They is yellow/green. Young owls The owlrs dig burrows in the
are unique to our island. These have evolved to perfectly are active during the day do not have white spots ground with low grass veg-
adapt to our desert climate and make Aruba their home. but are more active later and are lighter in color. etation. An owl can live up
At the same time, they are part of what makes Aruba truly in the day and at night for to nine years. Its defense
one of a kind. hunting. These owls have The nest of the shoco is a mechanism is simply to fly
very good night vision burrow in the ground. If the away or retreat to its bur-
and very good hearing. shoco cannot find a bur- rows. They eat mostly in-
The shoco is the national row, it will dig one in soft sects, mice and lizards, and
symbol of Aruba. soil. The shoco lays one or the main threats to their sur-
two eggs every other day vival are boas an invasive
The shoco has about 20cm until all the eggs are laid species introduced by hu-

of length, and the females a shoco can lay up to four mans as pets and humans
are slightly heavier than eggs. The first owlets hatch through destruction of their
the males. They are light after three to four weeks. habitat.

along the coast of Venezu- are dark green, and the
ela. Unfortunately, there underside of the body is
is interbreeding between a lighter shade of green.
the breeds due to cage There is also a bit of blue in
birds from, for example, the wings. The parakeet’s
Curaçao being released beak is gray/black.
on Aruba. The parakeet
population on Aruba is in Parakeets often use ter-
Prikichi (parakeet, Aratin- danger due to extensive mite nests as breeding
ga pertinax) deforestation occurring on sites. Parakeets are found
Cascabel (rattlesnake, Crotalus durissus unicolor) the island because of the in all natural environments
The Prikichi is the national (mondi) of the island. It de-
According to the Arikok National Park, Aruba knows two bird of Aruba. On Aruba, growing population. fends itself by flying away
kinds of snakes, the Santanero and the Cascabel. The Bonaire, and Curaçao, The prikichi weighs be- and loud cries. Parakeets
cascabel belongs to the rattlesnake family. The cascabel parakeets can be found, tween 90 to 100 grams. eat seeds from the pods of
is the only venomous snake from Aruba. It has a length of but each of the three is- It has a greenish-brown the Kwihi tree, Divi Divi, and
65cm to 100cm, and is about 4 to 5cm wide. Its color var- lands has a different breed. head with some yellow columnar cactus. They
ies from light brown to grey-brown, and its underbelly is The Yellow-shouldered around the eye. The back also consume natural fruits.
white. On its back there are marks that are a little darker, Amazon parakeet that we and wings of the parakeet Its main predators are boa
in the shape of diamonds. have on Aruba is also found constrictors, humans.

Its reproduction is oviparous, meaning the offspring can
hatch from their eggs just before, during or immediately Conew (cottontail rabbit, rity when they are just 2 to 3
after laying. Sylvilagus floridanus nigro- months old. A female rabbit,
nuchalis) called a doe, finds a suitable
The cascabel lives mainly in the Arikok National Park. nest spot under a shrub or
It likes to live in dark places, and is thus found hidden The Eastern Cottontail rab- rocks and lines it with fur. She
among the limestone rocks and under stones. As a de- bit (Sylvilagus floridanus) was can have an average of 3 to
fense mechanism, the cascabel uses its rattle as a warn- probably brought over to 4 litters per year averaging
ing, and it is not an aggressive animal. the island by Indian settlers 5 young each. The doe only
thousands of years ago as a visits her young once or twice
The cascabel feeds on lizards, small mammals such as source of food. This rabbit, lo- a day to nurse her babies for
rats and mice. It paralyzes or kills its prey with its venom, cally known as Conew, has a period of 2 to 3 weeks. The
which is injected through a bite. The enemies of the cas- spread all over the island and young reach independence period of drought. As the
cabel are donkeys, goats, humans and cars. Humans are has become part of our eco- at 4 to 5 weeks. Conew can reproduce very
the biggest enemy of the cascabel, as they kill them and system. The very adaptable quickly, a short break in pre-
destroy their habitat for urbanization. Conew can live in a wide The Aruban Conew is an en- dation pressure can lead to a
variety of habitats, includ- dangered species and pro- fast increase of rabbits. Sadly,
ing Aruba’s xeric scrublands, tected by Aruban law. The the Boas are back on the rise
where it typically grazes on Conew is thought to have again with the truly wet rainy
weeds and grasses. drastically declined due to seasons we have recently ex-
an increase in human activi- perienced. This could cause
The Aruban Conew has a ties, habitat fragmentation a new decline in the Conew
brownish grey color and a dis- and predation by the inva- population that was just start-
tinctive white belly. This white sive Boa constrictor as well ing to recover.
fur extends to the bottom of as feral cats and dogs. How-
the tail which becomes vis- ever, recently there seem to These are but a few of Aru-
ible as the rabbit runs. These be more rabbit sightings in ru- ba’s beautiful inhabitant,
rabbits can grow up to ap- ral and wilderness areas and which we must all contribute
proximately 40 centimeters in also in the National Park. This to protect. For more informa-
length over their short lifespan could be linked to a recent tion, visit https://www.aruba-
of 3 years. Cottontail rabbits decline of the invasive Boa nationalpark.org/main/flora-
reach reproductive matu- population after the long fauna/