Singharaja Forest Reserve is the most famous rainforest of the country. This tropical rain forest is a living heritage. Bio diversity of the forest is very high and a large proportion of the flora in this forest is endemic to the country and some endemic to the Singharaja Forest itself. This is a very good place to see many endemic birds such as Ceylon Lorikeet, Layard's parakeet, Jungle and Spur Fowl, Ceylon Wood Pigeon, Grey Hombill, Spotted wing Thrush, Rufous and Brown- capped Babbler, Ashy-headed Laughing Thrush, Ceylon Blue Magpie, White Headed Starling, Ceylon Hill Mynha, Legge's Flowerpecker. The clear cut roads in to the jungle provide easy access to the forest. This important forest is a Man and Biosphere Forest reserve and it is considered as a World Heritage Site
Most of us know that a forest is a "large, densely wooded area" full of trees and plants not to mention a whole world of insects and animals. However, if we were to ask the question as to what types of animals dwelt in the forest, we might be hard pressed to give a correct answer. Bears, perhaps? Or skunks, maybe? Do lions live in the forest or was that just a part of a make-believe children's story book? What kinds of animals really do call the forest their home?
A relatively temperate forest full of deciduous trees is quite different from a rain forest and houses different types of animals. Typical mammals found in this type of forest include the black bear, white-tailed deer, raccoon,coyote, grey squirrel, chipmunk, and other small rodents. Many different types of birds are also found in the temperate, deciduous forest including the Cardinal, Turkey, Eagle, and Goshawk among others.
Different types of snakes can be found in temperate forests such as the Garter Snake or the Rat Snake. If there is nearby water, various types of toads, lizards, and frogs might be seen around as well. Insects of all types love the forest including bumblebees, spiders, and mosquitoes.
Forest animals vary from area to area. Forest animals in the southern hemisphere are quite different than those in the northern. Even forests on the west and east coasts of the United States vary in habitants. The different temperatures, climate changes, and tree coverings attract different types of animals, but this is the general overview of animals living in a temperate, deciduous forest.
The lion (Panthera leo) is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg (550 lb) in weight,[4] it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger. Wild lions currently exist in Sub-Saharan Africaand in Asia with a critically endangered remnant population in Gir Forest National Park inIndia, having disappeared from North Africa and Southwest Asia in historic times. Until the late Pleistocene, about 10,000 years ago, the lion was the most widespread large land mammal after humans. They were found in most of Africa, across Eurasia from western Europe to India, and in the Americas from the Yukon to Peru.[5]
Lions live for ten to fourteen years in the wild, while in captivity they can live longer than twenty years. In the wild, males seldom live longer than ten years, as injuries sustained from continual fighting with rival males greatly reduce their longevity.[6] They typically inhabit savanna and grassland, although they may take to bush and forest. Lions are unusually social compared to other cats. A pride of lions consists of related females and offspring and a small number of adult males. Groups of female lions typically hunt together, preying mostly on large ungulates. Lions are apex and keystone predators, although they scavenge as opportunity allows. While lions do not typically hunt humans, some have been known to do so.
DUBAI (Reuters) – State-owned Dubai World (DBWLD.UL) has secured support from all its creditors for a $25 billion debt restructuring plan, a spokesman said on Wednesday, helping to avoid a drawn-out battle with a special tribunal.
The spokesman did not provide further details.
The Financial Times reported that Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) had bought the debt held by the only creditor to have held off approving the deal, citing people familiar with the situation.
U.S.-based distressed debt fund Aurelius Capital Management bought $5 million of debt in the secondary market, but missed the September 9 deadline to vote on the deal.
Dubai World can now avoid having to go through the special tribunal set up to hear creditor claims, a process lawyers had said could have pushed back the restructuring for an indeterminate amount of time.
Dubai World announced last month that it had reached agreement with 99 percent of its creditors by value.
The restructuring agreement is one of the first major milestones to resolve the debt headache which has plagued the Emirate since last year.
