Monday 4 October 2010

Mexican Animals - Spring Hare




The bizarre spring hare had taxonomists scratching their heads for years. It’s been classified with jerboas (jumping rodents), squirrels and even porcupines. It’s now classified on its own, and it resembles both a kangaroo and hare. It has specialized short limbs with claws for digging as well as flexible ear flaps that can be used to seal off the ear canal to protect against the elements and debris. It’s also got a funny resting position that looks a lot like the yoga Dolphin post: it stretches its long hind legs forward and then rests its head and arms directly on the ground

Mexican animals - Kiwi




Everyone knows the beloved endangered kiwi is a flightless bird. As if to make up for its winged impotence, the kiwi is actually a violent, temperamental little bird. But its quirks don’t stop there. The only bird with whiskers is also distinctly dog-like in its ability to sniff out food and threats. In fact, it has the most highly developed sense of smell of any bird, lifting its “nose” (beak) into the breeze to determine its surroundings, just like a dog would. That’s probably because kiwis are also the only bird to have prominent nostrils. Contrary to popular belief, the kiwi does have wings, but they are tiny and difficult to detect under the loose, fluffy, hair-like feathers. The kiwi has many other unusual characteristics: the eggs are relatively huge, being one-fifth the bird’s weight; kiwi pairs mate for life - as long as 30 years - but tend to have feisty relationships; the females are larger and more dominant than the males. In fact, daddy kiwis incubate the young while mom hunts - for an unheard-of 80 days, no less. Did you know that kiwis are the smallest ratites on earth? Other ratites include ostrich and emu

Mexican Animals - Mexican Axolotl



The Mexican axolotl (pronounced ACK-suh-LAH-tuhl) salamander has the rare trait of retaining its larval features throughout its adult life. This condition, called neoteny, means it keeps its tadpole-like dorsal fin, which runs almost the length of its body, and its feathery external gills, which protrude from the back of its wide head.

Found exclusively in the lake complex of Xochimilco (pronounced SO-chee-MILL-koh) near Mexico City, axolotls differ from most other salamanders in that they live permanently in water. In extremely rare cases, an axolotl will progress to maturity and emerge from the water, but by and large, they are content to stay on the bottom of Xochimilco’s lakes and canals.

Close relatives of the tiger salamander, axolotls can be quite large, reaching up to a foot (30 centimeters) in length, although the average size is closer to half that. They are typically black or mottled brown, but albino and white varieties are somewhat common, particularly among captive specimens.

Axolotls are long-lived, surviving up to 15 years on a diet of mollusks, worms, insect larva, crustaceans, and some fish. Accustomed to being a top predator in its habitat, this species has begun to suffer from the introduction of large fish into its lake habitat. Natural threats include predatory birds such as herons

Animal Research - the jaguar



Of all the big cats, jaguars are the least studied. While some tidbits of information do come from examining jaguars in the wild, most of what is known about the creatures has been learned by studying captive animals. Wild jaguars are difficult to study because observing them is a rare occurrence.

Mexican Animals - The Sea Urchin





Sea urchins are small, spiny, bottom dwellers, that if stepped on, can inject a venom that may cause nausea, vomiting, muscle cramps, shortness of breath, or localized swelling, redness, and numbness.

The spines are difficult to remove and may cause infection, especially if they have broken off and are lodged under the skin

Mexican Animals - the Jellyfish



Many of Mexico’s most beautiful beaches harbor the treacherous jellyfish. Twenty or more species are common in the waters around Mexico; most cause painful stings. Some are harmless, but a few rare species can be fatal. Jellyfish tentacles are armed with thousands of tiny needle-like filaments that can deliver small doses of venom just below the surface of a victim’s skin.

If you do find yourself among a school of jellyfish, try not to panic. Slowly tread water until you are sure you are clear of the school. If you are stung, rubbing your wounds may aggravate the pain. Do not immediately remove any stray tentacles from your body.

Mexican prison Conditions

Behind the Bars

A majority of both the guards and prisoners come from poor socioeconomic backgrounds. After an all but certain unjust court process, or perhaps only awaiting one, the prisoner’s future becomes darker, as the penal system is rife with abuses. For example, to complicate the overcrowding of facilities, 228 of the prisons are coed; a fact which undoubtedly increases rights violations. According to a recent study by the Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos (CNDH), “women in the states of Guerrero, Hidalgo, Oaxaca, Jalisco and Veracruz suffer from frequent insults from male personnel or male inmates…the women live in a very grave situation, the violation of their rights is systematic and routine.” Not only is it difficult for the system to provide ample space and security for both male and female inmates, but prisoners are also denied even basic necessities like mattresses and blankets, and consequently, much of the responsibility for the care of inmates falls on the shoulders of their families.


An investigation by the Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (CIDE) in 2002, found that prisons provided only 59% of mattresses, and that families had to provide (usually through some sort of bribe) more than half of the sheets and blankets, as well as medicine, food, and clothing. In matters of hygiene, the situation becomes even bleaker. The majority of prisons do not provide inmates with soap, tooth paste, or toothbrushes, and other sanitary products are very scarce, according to representatives of the Prisons in Crisis project. These facts directly conflict with the UN’s standard that “prisoners shall be required to keep their persons clean, and to this end they shall be provided with water and with such toilet articles as are necessary for health and cleanliness.”

Link;

http://www.coha.org/the-wretched-plight-of-mexicos-crippled-prison-system/

Mexican Prison Research

The penal system consists of both federal and state correctional institutions. The largest federal prison is the penitentiary for the Federal District. The Federal District also sends prisoners to four detention centers, sixteen smaller jails, and a women's jail. Each state has its own penitentiary. There are, in addition, more than 2,000 municipal jails. As of the end of 1993, nearly 95,000 inmates were in Mexican prisons; almost half were persons still awaiting trial or sentencing.

Overcrowding of prisons is chronic. Mistreatment of prisoners, the lack of trained guards, and inadequate sanitary facilities compound the problem. The United States Department of State's country reports on human rights practices for 1992 and 1993 state that an entrenched system of corruption undermines prison authority and contributes to abuses. Authority frequently is exercised by prisoners, displacing prison officials. Violent confrontations, often linked to drug trafficking, are common between rival prison groups.

Mexican prisons also exhibit some humane qualities. In 1971 conjugal visiting rights were established for male prisoners and later extended to females. Prisoners held at the penal colony on the Islas Tres Marías off the coast of Nayarit are permitted to bring their entire families to live temporarily. Women are permitted to keep children under five years of age with them.

Based on interviews at a smaller state prison, United States penologist William V. Wilkinson found in 1990 that serious overcrowding, lack of privacy, and poor prison diets were the most common complaints. Wilkinson found no deliberate mistreatment of inmates. The prison fare generally was supplemented by food supplied by prisoners' families or purchased from outside. Prisoners with money could buy items such as television sets and sports equipment. Through bribery, prisoners could be assigned to highly prized individual cells, where even air conditioners were permitted.

A major building program by the CNDH added 800 prison spaces in 1993 and 1994. In 1991 Mexico's only maximum security facility, Almoloya de Juárez, was completed. Major drug traffickers were transferred to it from other prisons. The prison's 408 individual cells are watched by closed-circuit television and the most modern technical and physical security equipment. Violence in prisons is a constant problem as a result of overcrowding, lack of security, and the mixing of male and female prisoners and of accused and sentenced criminals.

Imprisonment of peasants, often for growing marijuana, puts a heavy demand on the system. Through the efforts of CNDH, a program of early release and parole benefited 1,000 people incarcerated on charges of growing marijuana in 1993.

The death penalty has not been applied in Mexico since 1929, when the assassin of president-elect Obregón was executed. The federal death penalty was abolished under the Federal Penal Code of 1930, and by 1975 all state codes also had eliminated the death penalty. The military, however, still holds certain offenses as punishable by death, including insubordination with violence causing the death of a superior officer, certain kinds of looting, offenses against military honor, and treason.

Mexican Prisons youtube videos

some Real life Video Research on the mexican Prison system, Youtube Links;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBORSzl3NxI

This is a video of Mexican Prison Riot in Tijuana;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AonXWAVm3P0&feature=related