• Question: Is the animal you are competing for your favourite animal if it is/not what/why is it

    Asked by emjh210605 to Barn Owl, Brown garden snail, Common Crane, Emperor Dragonfly, Hazel Dormouse, Catshark, Scotch Thistle, St Kilda Wren on 3 Nov 2017.
    • Photo: Lesser-Spotted Catshark

      Lesser-Spotted Catshark answered on 3 Nov 2017:

      I wouldn’t want a pet catshark in my sitting room but for science I think it’s one of the best! Biologists will all have different ‘favourite’ animals depending on the scientific question they are asking – different animals, or groups of animals, are better at answering different questions. I’ve always been interested in sharks because I find them both elegant and intimidating, but the main reason I use the catshark for science is because of its ability to answer the kinds of scientific questions about genetics and evolution I am interested in. That’s why we call it a ‘model species’.

    • Photo: Hazel Dormouse

      Hazel Dormouse answered on 3 Nov 2017:

      I do not have a favourite animal, I adore so many different ones for so many different reason, however the Hazel Dormouse is definitely in my top three after learning so much about their mysterious lives!

      It would be very exciting for me to see one in the wild because they are so rare in the UK. They are also very difficult to spot due to their size. I love how nimble they are (like fluffy ninjas) in the trees and that they DOUBLE in size before hibernating in winter! But the main reason I love the Hazel Dormouse so much is even though that cute and fluffy face looks awfully familiar, they aren’t even a mouse, which just adds to the mystery for me and I love it!

      There is still so much to learn about the Hazel Dormouse even though there home is the UK and they have been here for over a thousand years.

    • Photo: St Kilda Wren

      St Kilda Wren answered on 3 Nov 2017:

      The St. Kilda wren isn’t my favourite animal (I don’t have just one), but it’s one of them. I love wrens – they’re so loud for their size, and have really big personalities. I’m always happy to spot a wren turning leaves in its search for invertebrates, and even happier if a wren decides to perch on a branch nearby and sing.

    • Photo: Common Crane

      Common Crane answered on 3 Nov 2017:

      To be honest, I have chosen the common crane as I have been impressed with the Crane character from The Book of the Long Sun and the discussion on genetics there. Though I could see reasons for the crane being my favourite animal as I share certain traits with them, at the moment of choice I would have preferred a cat.
      This changed yesterday. We are very lucky to have a nature reserve right near where I work. I was walking by a pond after lunch and happened to see a heron there. And what a glorious sight it was! How majestically it moved, carefully stepping through the water. It just filled me with an overwhelming awe. And cranes are so much better since they keep their necks straight!

    • Photo: Emperor Dragonfly

      Emperor Dragonfly answered on 3 Nov 2017:

      I have lots of favourite animals – my research also involves gibbons, gorillas, orangutans and chimpanzees… but dragonflies animal are my favourite to go out and see in the wild (because I live in the UK, not Africa!). They are so old, and so fierce, and totally amazing in the air!

      I chose the Emperor Dragonfly in particular because after years of chasing and photographing dragonflies in my local nature reserves this year I finally caught one (in a big softer net – don’t worry it zoomed away once I had taken a few photos). After that exciting experience I learned that this species originated in Africa but has been steadily working its way north, perhaps as a result of climate change.. so I thought it had to be an iconic species!

    • Photo: Tomeu the snail

      Tomeu the snail answered on 7 Nov 2017:

      Snails are my favourite, because I am one! If you ask my scientist, Dr Angus Davison, if snails are his favourite then he would probably say ‘yes’. He has been working on them now for 20 years, and has traveled all over the world to do so (Hawaii, Cuba, Japan …) . Working on snails is not a career that he ever imagined possible when he was at school.

    • Photo: Barn Owl

      Barn Owl answered on 11 Nov 2017:

      I love all sorts of animals, ma owls are very special to me for many reasons. First, since I was little, owls were always cuddly, friendly and wise characters in books and cartoons. Since then I have often wished to have an owl as a friend or as a pet, and I would be happy to have one even with speaking powers! I love the fact that owls live around us, and I love hearing their sounds during the night. I am constantly amazed by their special powers, the ability to fly silently, their strength, their amazing hearing. Finally, I think owls look really beautiful, and I hope so do you!!

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