A week into Inktober, Artsefact has already released seven endangered animal ink drawings! Some look majestic, some adorable, and some plain silly. But there’s more to these animals than meets the eye. Check out more information about them in our Inktober Week 1 recap!
Table of Contents
Nature’s Little Backpacker
Inktober Week 1 – Day 1 – Backpack: Boulenger’s Backpack Frog
Scientific Name: Cryptobatrachus boulengeri
Common Name: Boulenger’s backpack frog
IUCN Redlist Status:
Where they Live: Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountain range in northern Colombia
Quick Info: This small, semi-aquatic frog is named for the unusual way in which females carry their eggs. Rather than leaving eggs in water or on leaves, as many other amphibians do, the female Boulenger’s Backpack Frog attaches her eggs to her back, where they develop until hatching. This adaptation helps protect the eggs from predators and ensures they remain moist. The species is primarily found in montane forests and streams.
Threats to Conservation: habitat loss, deforestation, pollution from agricultural chemicals
Fun Fact! They are Camouflage Experts: Their mottled brown and green coloring helps them blend seamlessly with the wet, mossy rocks and forest floors they inhabit, making them hard to spot in the wild.
Lord of the Frogs
Inktober Week 1 – Day 2 – Discover: Hyloscirtus Tolkieni
Scientific Name: Hyloscirtus tolkieni
Common Name: Río Negro stream frog
IUCN Redlist Status:
Data Deficient – Species was first described in 2023 based of a single individual
Where they Live: the Andes Mountains in Ecuador
Quick Info: This unique species of frog was just discovered last year. Researchers Juan C. Sánchez-Nivicela, José M. Falcón-Reibán, and Diego F. Cisneros-Heredia found a single frog of this type in the Río Negro-Sopladora National Park. Greyish-green in color with yellow and black spots, it lived near a stream. Currently, more research is being done to learn more about the behavior and assess the conservation status of this species.
Threats to Conservation: Unknown. To date, only a single frog has been found.
Fun Fact! This species of frog is named after the author of Lord of the Rings due to its fantastical appearance.
Treetop Traveler
Inktober Week 1 – Day 3 – Boots: Booted Macaque
Scientific Name: Macaca ochreata
Common Name: Booted Macaque
IUCN Redlist Status:
Where they Live: the tropical rainforests of Sulawesi, Indonesia
Quick Info: Booted macaques are named for the coloring on their legs. The light grey fur, in contrast to the dark fur on the rest of their body, makes it look like they are wearing boots. Males and females share this same distinctive coloring, but males are larger in size. Unlike most species of macaques, Booted macaques do not spend most of their time in the trees. Instead, they are semi-terrestrial, spending at least some of their time on the rainforest floor.
Threats to Conservation: habitat destruction, deforestation, mercury pollution from illegal gold mining
Fun Fact! Booted macaques sometimes socialize and hybridize with ther close cousins, the Tonkean macaques.
Day 4 – Exotic
Inktober Week 1 – Day 4 – Exotic: Axolotl
Scientific Name: Ambystoma mexicanum
Common Name: Axolotl
IUCN Redlist Status:
Where they Live: Lake Xochimilco and Lake Chalco in Mexico City in Mexico
Quick Info: These amazing creatures are sometimes kept by humans as exotic pets. While most pet axolotls are a pleasing, pale pink color, wild axolotls also exist in darker hues. In fact, they can actually shift a few shades lighter or darker to camouflage themselves. They only exist in the wild in two spring-fed lakes in Mexico. Unfortunately, much of the water in these lakes have been drained, leaving axolotls with an ever diminishing habitat.
Threats to Conservation: urbanization, water pollution, invasive species
Fun Fact! Axolotls have the ability to regenerate many parts of their bodies, including their brain cells.
Day 5 – Binoculars
Inktober Week 1 – Day 5 – Binoculars: Blakiston’s Fish Owl
Scientific Name: Ketupa blakistoni
Common Name: Blakiston’s fish owl
IUCN Redlist Status: endangered
Where they Live: old-growth forests in China, Japan, and eastern Russia
Quick Info: The Blakiston’s Fish Owl is one of the largest and rarest owl species in the world. This impressive owl can have a wingspan of up to 2 meters (over 6 feet) and is specially adapted to hunt for fish, its primary food source. With its keen eyesight and powerful talons, the Blakiston’s Fish Owl can catch prey even in icy waters. Unfortunately, the species faces threats from habitat loss and declining fish populations, placing it on the endangered list. Conservation initiatives are in place to protect these owls and their vital habitats, as their presence is an important indicator of healthy river ecosystems.
Threats to Conservation: habitat loss, dam construction, logging, poaching, hunting
Fun Fact! Blakiston’s fish owls, like other owls, have binocular vision. Both of their eyes can face the same direction at the same time, creating a 3D image with accurate depth perception.
Day 6 – Trek
Inktober Week 1 – Day 6 – Trek: European Eel
Scientific Name: Anguilla anguilla
Common Name: European eel
IUCN Redlist Status:
Where they Live: spawns in the Sargasso Sea in the Caribbean, then migrates to European shores by following the Gulf Stream current
Quick Info: European eels make long journeys from birth to death. From the tropical ocean, they need to make the dangerous trek to get to the rivers of Europe. To protect themselves from predators such as seagulls, herons, and bigger eels, they ingeniously hide in plants, rock crevices, and muddy fields. Only at night do they come out to feed on worms, fish, and sea slugs. When their prey is too large to eat whole, European eels have been known to, on occasion, to just straight up bite off chunks.
Threats to Conservation: overfishing, dam construction, parasitic diseases, chemical pollution
Fun Fact! An European eel named Åle lived for 155 years in a well in a fishing village in Sweden.
Day 7 – Passport
Inktober Week 1 – Day 7 – Passport: Chimpanzee
Scientific Name: Pan troglodytes
Common Name: Chimpanzee
IUCN Redlist Status:
Where they Live: forests and savannahs of tropical southern Africa
Quick Info: Chimpanzees have always been a subject of human interest. For example, one of the designs inside the Sierra Leone passport features a chimpanzee. Unfortunately, despite this admiration and fascination, chimpanzees still face a lot of human-made threats. Close cousins of humans, chimpanzees are sometimes used in labs for research, especially in the United States. In the wild, they live in groups, with a strict male-dominated hierarchy.
Threats to Conservation: habitat destruction, deforestation, poaching, disease
Fun Fact! Chimpanzees are one of the few species that have been observed using tools, just like humans.
Who is your Favorite?
Now it’s your turn! Which of these seven artworks unveiled during Inktober Week 1 was your personal favorite?
How to Help
These amazing animals all bring something unique to life on Earth. Despite their endangered status, they deserve to thrive in their natural habitats. Here are some ways you can contribute to conservation efforts:
- Donate to conservation charities — some animal-specific ones include AdoptAxolotl, Zoological Society of London, Jane Goodall Institute, and Save the Chimps. These organizations are out in the field protecting these animals.
- Shop at Artsefact — Part of all proceeds go towards wildlife and habitat conservation!
- Use your social media presence to raise awareness on the issues these animals are facing — Share this post!
Want to keep up with Inktober?
These amazing ink drawings are just Week 1 of Inktober. To stay up to date with Artsefact’s artworks for the rest of the month as well as find out the results of the poll, follow our social media, where we post daily updates!
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Resources
- www.speciesconservation.org/case-studies-projects/boulengers-backpack-frog/14563
- reptilesmagazine.com/hyloscirtus-tolkieni-stream-frog-discovered-in-andes-named-after-j-r-r-tolkien/
- neprimateconservancy.org/booted-macaque/
- animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/axolotl
- www.theguardian.com/environment/radical-conservation/2016/mar/03/owl-blakistons-fish-russia-tigers-forest
- www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/facts/european-eel
- sierraloaded.sl/news/chimpanzee-features-new-passport/
- https://www.iucnredlist.org/
