Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) tanuki or raccoon dog, omnivorous mammal, Nyctereutes Procyonoides, of the dog family, native to the forests of E Asia. The tanuki is similar in appearance to a dog but has black, masklike facial mark...

(Encyclopedia) brownstone, red to brown variety of sandstone. Its unusual color is caused in some instances by the presence of red iron oxide which acts as a cement, binding the sand grains together. Vast thicknesse...

(Encyclopedia) gerbil jûrˈbĭl [key], small desert rodent found throughout the hot arid regions of Africa and Asia. Also known as sand rats, gerbils have large eyes and powerful, elongated hind limbs upon which th...

(Encyclopedia) Green Bay, city (2020 pop. 107,395), seat of Brown co., NE Wis., at the mouth of the Fox River on Green Bay; inc. 1854. An important Great Lakes harbor,...

(Encyclopedia) sea turtle, name for several species of large marine turtles found in tropical and subtropical oceans. These turtles are modified for life in the ocean by having flipperlike forelimbs without toes and...

(Encyclopedia) wolf, carnivorous mammal of the genus Canis in the dog family. Once distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, wild wolves are now confined to the wilder parts of a reduced range. Three wolf sp...

(Encyclopedia) limpkin or courlan ko͝orˈlən [key], common terms for a long-legged, nonmigratory marsh bird, considered the connecting evolutionary link between the crane and the rail. They have a cranelike skelet...

(Encyclopedia) llama läˈmə [key], South American domesticated ruminant mammal, Lama glama, of the camel family. Genetic studies indicate that it is descended from the guanaco. Smaller than the camel and lacking a...

(Encyclopedia) lumber, term for timber that has been cut into boards for use as a building material. The major steps in producing lumber involve logging (the felling and preparation of timber for shipment to sawmill...

(Encyclopedia) lyrebird, common name for Australian passerine birds named for the appearance of the tail plumage of the male superb lyrebird, Menura novaehollandiae, when displayed during courtship. There are only t...