THE SQUIRREL: THE WALNUT-LOVER
In
this section, we are going to learn about some of the very
interesting qualities Allah has given squirrels. We are sure
what you will read about these loveable little beings will
also amaze your friends.
Squirrels live mostly in the forests of
Europe and north America. They are about 25 centimetres (10
inches)long. That is the size of two of your hands. Behind
them and often suspended over their backs are their tails,
wide, upright and furry, and almost the same size as their
length. There is surely a purpose why Allah, Who creates everything
with a purpose, has given squirrels such a tail: Thanks to
this long tail, a squirrel can jump from one tree to another
without losing its balance.
The sharp little nails of a squirrel allow
it to climb trees without difficulty. It can readily run along
branches, hang upside-down and move while in this position.
A grey squirrel in particular can jump from the tip of a branch
to the branch of another tree four metres (157 inches)away.
While jumping, it extends its fore and hind limbs and glides.
Meanwhile, its flattened tail both maintains its balance and
serves as a rudder to steer it. It can even experience free-fall
from a branch nine metres (354 inches) above the ground and
land smoothly on the ground on four feet.
TEETH THAT ARE RENEWED WHEN BROKEN
Squirrels
have strong sharp teeth such as human beings never possess.
Located at the front of their mouth are incisor teeth
that enable them to gnaw and break hard substances.
Located behind them are the molar teeth. When we want
to break a walnut, we either use a big stone or a device
especially designed for this purpose. These little animals,
however, can readily accomplish this with their sharp
teeth.
Have
you ever wondered how squirrels' teeth stay strong throughout
a lifetime and how squirrels whose teeth are broken
manage to eat hazelnuts or walnuts? Allah, Who has created
everything in perfect harmony, has given their teeth
a very important characteristic. You will indeed be
very astonished when you hear this! Even if squirrels'
teeth break or wear out, new teeth grow immediately.
Worn-out teeth are continually replaced by growing ones.
Moreover, Allah has not only given this characteristic
to squirrels but also to all creatures who have to gnaw
their food.
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Now,
let's consider once again what these loveable squirrels can
accomplish. You already know that squirrels can perform gymnastic
moves in the air quite easily, such as jumping from one tree
to another without falling and, furthermore, target very tiny
branches from a distance and skilfully hold on to them like
a trapeze artist.
But
how? Well, squirrels can achieve all these feats by using
their hind limbs, their keen eyes, which make good adjustments
for distances, their strong paws, and their tails, which enable
them to maintain balance. But, have you ever thought who has
given squirrels these features and taught them how to use
them? Since it is impossible for a squirrel family to take
a ruler and measure the heights of trees and lengths of branches,
how do they measure distances as they jump from one tree to
another? Furthermore, how do they jump and bounce so fast
without getting hurt or crippled?
No doubt, it is Allah Who has created
these animals together with the features they have and taught
them how to use them. Furthermore, squirrels possess all the
necessary skills and physical attributes to reach walnuts,
chestnuts, hazelnuts and pine nuts, the hard-shelled fruits
that grow on top of high trees. As with all other animals
in nature, Allah specially created squirrels so that they
can readily attain the kind of food they need.
In
wintertime it becomes hard for squirrels to find food, so
in summer they gather food to eat in the long, cold months
ahead. Squirrels are among those living beings that store
food for winter.
However, squirrels are very careful while
gathering their food. They don't store fruits and meat, the
kind of food that decays quickly. If they gathered them, they
would become hungry in the wintertime. For this reason, squirrels
collect only durable dry fruits like walnuts, hazelnuts and
cones.
It
is Allah Who gives this knowledge to squirrels at birth and
enables them to take their nutrition. Here, we witness one
of the attributes of Allah: Allah is "ar-Razzaq", that is,
"the One Who continually provides sustenance to every living
being He has created".
Squirrels store their food for winter
by burying it in various places. Thanks to their perfect sense
of smell, they can detect the smell of nuts covered by 30
centimetres (12 inches)of snow.
Squirrels carry their food in their sacs
and take them to their nests. In their nests, there are more
than one store, most of which they have forgotten. Certainly
there is also a divine reason for this, because in time the
dry fruits forgotten by squirrels under the earth grow into
new trees.
RABBITS
LIKE CARROTS!
Would you like to learn a bit more about
rabbits, the loveable little living creatures we sometimes
keep in our houses as pets? We always think of them with their
snow-white fur, which we take such pleasure in stroking, and
the way they gnaw carrots. Let's explore some of the interesting
characteristics of these animals with which we are not familiar:
If you try to approach a rabbit, you will
immediately recognise how fast it escapes. Do you know that
these creatures can readily sense their enemies with their
long ears even while their heads are down eating grass? Owing
to this keen sense of hearing, you can hardly approach them
without them noticing you. Before long, they will perceive
a minor noise or movement and will run away.
Rabbits
become 50 to 70 centimetres (19 to 27 inches) long when they
grow into adults. Their hind limbs are longer and stronger
than their forelimbs. That is why they can run 60 to 70 kilometres
(37 to 43 miles)per hour and can leap six metres forward at
a time. A rabbit can move faster than a car travelling within
the city does.
All rabbits possess these characteristics
at birth. Allah has created them as fast runners and thus
enabled them to escape their predators easily.
What do you think the answer of a rabbit
would be if we were to ask it, "Which food do you like most?"
Yes, you are right! He would certainly say "carrots." (Meanwhile,
remember that carrots are good for our eyes.) Well, do you
know that rabbits live in the warrens they dig under the ground,
and that carrots grow towards the depths of the earth? As
you may understand from this question, carrots have been created
in the most appropriate way to meet rabbits' needs.
Also
for us, human beings, Allah has made everything easy to use.
Take, for instance, the orange you eat in wintertime. If it
were not in segments, it would be very hard for you to eat
it, because it is so juicy. However, Allah, Who has created
everything you see around you, has also created this delicious
fruit full of vitamin C in its segmented form, ready to eat,
in its special package. Now back to rabbits! A rabbit can
easily gnaw a carrot with its continually growing front teeth
that give it such a lovely look.
Apart
from their nutritional needs, Allah has given living creatures
many features that make life easy for them. Various rabbit
species with different characteristics live on earth. Rabbits
living in cold regions, for example, are mostly white in colour.
This is an important feature that makes them invisible on
the snow and enables them to hide themselves effortlessly.
Wild rabbits, which are relatively bigger than other rabbits,
have longer limbs and ears. The desert American rabbit, on
the other hand, has quite large ears. These ears help rabbits
to keep themselves cool.
In
nature, most animals live in particular territories they mark
out for themselves. This is similar to us living in our comfortable
homes surrounded by our family members. Animals and animal
groups usually avoid entering other animals' territories.
"Leaving a scent" is a method employed by animals to mark
their territories. Gazelles, for instance, leave a substance
with a scent similar to tar on long thin branches and grasses
to mark their territory. This substance, secreted from the
glands under their eyes, informs other gazelles that this
field is already occupied. Reindeer, on the other hand, have
scent glands on the tip of their hind feet with which they
mark their territory. Rabbits mark their territories with
glands on their chins.
As
we have seen, Allah has created animals with very interesting
and important characteristics. Learning all these makes us
astonished at the flawless creation of Allah. We remember
that Allah is our Creator and we feel grateful to Him. Remember
that Allah has commanded people to think about His blessings
and be thankful. In a verse of the Qur'an, Allah informs us
that He will reward those who are thankful:
We will recompense the thankful. (Surah
Al 'Imran: 145)
Children! So, you must also remember to be thankful
for the blessings and beauty with which you are surrounded.
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