LEMURS PART ONE

Lemurs, Bush Babies, Lorises, Pottos and Tarsiers are all of the family of prosimians.

They are a close relative of monkeys. The theory is being in competition with monkeys made them all nocturnal but the lemur.

Bones were found in Europe and Africa proved lemurs existed there 50 million years ago. Lemurs are ancestors of mankind. They were widespread but due to climate changes and development of monkeys drove them almost to extinction.

Madagascar broke away from the  mainland of Africa due to  the continental drift. A small number must have escaped by clinging to drifting vegetation.

At that time there were few animals on the island and the lemurs were able to establish themselves. The Madagascar wildlife evolved separately from  wildlife elsewhere.

Around 45 species and subspecies of lemur survive on the big island but are in danger of extinction.

HABITAT
Madagascar, the third largest island in the world, has an amazing selection of habitats for its wildlife. There are deserts as well as tropical rainforests. The island has five different climatic areas and the high altitude of the hills which is like a spine with further diversities along the eastern slopes of the Haut Plateau.

The rainforests are the richest habitat but the dryer deciduous forests hold very rare species like Decken's sifaka and crowned lemur.

Even there are heavy destruction and so severe that animals becoming extinct before they are known to western zoologists to save the species.

FOOD AND HUNTING
As around 80 per cent of Madagascar's plant life is found only on the island, the diet of the lemurs is as unusual as the animals themselves, vegetarian lemurs like the Brown lemur are eating a wide variety of flowers, leaves and fruits in season.

Certain rainforest species, including the ruffed lemur are mainly fruit-eaters but indri lemurs depend on leaves.

The tiny nocturnal mouse lemur eats only insects. With its hands like ours it holds its prey and eats it. It makes loud smacking noises while it enjoys the best parts of it.

The aye-aye eats mainly insects but also appreciates coconuts and raid the village plantations to extract coconut milk. It scrapes the white meat off the coconut shell with its long finger.

SPECIAL ADAPTATIONS
The aye-aye living in the rainforests of the north and east coast has the habit if a woodpecker. It feeds at night and uses its extra long middle finger to tap the branches. It listens with bat-like ears for the rustle of insects and extracts under the bark its food.

The animal moves on all fours through the branches, and walks on its wrists not to damaging its delicate finger.

The indri is so attuned to the rainforest environment that it can live nowhere else.  It depends on a least 80 different plants and only found in the Madagascar rainforests. It is therefore impossible to keep it in a zoo.

Verrea's sifaka lives in the spiny desert at the south and has no access to water from streams or rivers. To survive it drinks the dew from its coat in the early morning.

Lemur have sensitive whiskers on their muzzle surrounding the wet-tipped nose called rhinarium. A sense of smell is very important to the animal for it is used as a means of communication.

All lemur have scent glands which they use to stake out their territory.

The ring-tailed lemur rubs its wrist glands over its stripy tail and uses it like a perfumed wand to spread its scent about.

During the mating season it amounts to a scent war by the ring-tailed lemurs to attract females.

HIPPOPOTAMUS

HIPPOPOTAMUS

In the family of hippopotamus are two species.  The hippopotamus and the pygmy hippopotamus.  Each live in quite different habitats but both species live in Africa. The hippopotamus lives in lakes and rivers in open grassland. It lives from 40 to 50 years; measures 350-520 cm length and 150 cm height; weighs 1300 - 1500 kg and can run 30 km on land. 

FEEDING

Hippopotamus herds are dozing with their nostrils above the waterline during the day.  They also lying on the muddy shore of lakes and rivers, or standing almost submerged in the water.  It spares the animals’ legs from their enormous weight of their body.  In the night they come out for about five hours and feed on the vegetation surrounding. They pick up the grass with their broad lips. This can cause fully uprooting the plants and leaves the area totally bare. Each hippo eats about 40 kg vegetation each night.  If that happens they have to travel and often miles to find another substantial vegetation batch.  It had been noticed that they run under water on the tips of their toes or follow paths.

To save their energy the animals spend much of their lives lazing around in the supportive warm waters.

FAMILY LIFE

Hippopotamus are social animals. The male is in control of their territory and the group has many females with their calves.  It can measure up to 150 animal.

They reach sexual maturity at the age from four and 11 years. Families usually have one calf, seldom twins.  They are born in the wet season after a gestation of 240 days. The young suckle for about eight months.

SPECIAL  ADAPTATIONS

Hippopotamus have smooth skin which adapted to live in water.  It has a thin surface layer which dehydrates fast.  The dehydration is five times faster than man.  They have special glands emitting a viscous pink fluid which spreads of the surface of the skin to prevent it from sunburn and infection

The lower canine teeth of the hippo grow all its life. Eventually they become huge task. The male, when threatened, opens it mouth to show its giant teeth.  Males often fight and sometime its ends in death.

   

                                            
PYGMY HIPPOPOTAMUS

PYGMY HIPPOS IN 
KENYA WILDLIFE CONSERVATION

Pygmy hippopotamus are living in woodlands and are very secretive animals. It is a nocturnal animal and therefore very hard to study. Height 150 - 177 cm; length 150 - 177 cm; weight 180 - 275 kg; lifespan 30 - 55 year in captivity but in the wild it is doubtful it lives that long.

Many other species of pygmy and smaller hippos had been extinct.

FEEDING

Pygmy hippo spends more time on land. They are shy creatures and feed at night.

FAMILY LIFE 

They only live in small family groups.  The group contains only one male and a female and their calf.  The baby is born in the wet season after a gestation of 190 to 210 days and suckled for up to eight months.

ELEPHANTS IN DANGER OF EXTINCTION-- Updated 22 May, 2017

Update 22 May, 2017 --
Poachers have new tactic which is, unfortunately, more effective as well as more safe to be caught.

They poison the waterholes!

At the moment there are more elephants killed than born.

UPDATED: 10 June, 2015 -- Police caught two shipments totalling seven tonnes Ivory. They arrested three suspected top men of an suspected Ivory smuggling ring. It is also thought they finance terrorists.

Tycoon Abdurahman Mohammed Sheikh was arrested with his two sons at his mansions 

3.7 tonnes from Singapore was worth £40million and it was the second largest from Kenya since 2002. The other shipment was intercepted from Thailand which had 511 raw task and hidden in containers of tea. Both were destined for the Far East. Police Officer will investigate further and find more suspects. Daily Mirror revealed last year cartels are linked to  British terrorist Samantha Lewthwaite to finance attacks. The illegal Ivory trade is worth £4.5billion.

The ivory trade has raised its ugly head an again and the illegal killing increased last year – 2012.

In 1989 Kenya’s President Daniel Arap Moi set fired to 1`2 tonnes of confiscated elephant task, the value was hundreds of thousands of pounds at that time. Soon after CITES the Convention on International trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora made it law to ban trade in ivory. After this the demand went down drastically. It was hoped than the elephant population would increase.

For unknown reason the trade in ivory increased again a decade ago. Last year was the highest number, so far, of elephant being killed and their task removed. The biggest seizure so far was in Malaysia last month. They discovered 24 tonnes which are 1,500 tonnes, worth £12.4million and death of 750 elephants.

Between January and March in 2012 an incredible 50 per cent of elephant in Cameroon’s Bouba Ndjida National Park were slaughter by bandits.

March 22, 2012  -- 22 elephant corpses were found in Garamba National Park. They way they were positioned it was thought they grouped together to protect their young. All been shot from above and it looked that a helicopter was used.

October 2012 in Hong Kong a record of 3.81 tonnes of ivory was seized. It was the biggest haul in China. The 1,209 tusk and ivory pieces were on board of a ship coming from Tanzania.

October  31, 2012 in Tanzania was 200 tusks were discovered.

The conservationist Jan Goodall suggest that the demand in the last decade had rising because of a number of people getting very rich especially in China.  Tom Milliken director of TRAFFIC which is the wildlife trade monitoring network explains ivory has raised substantial in price over the last decade. In China it is even a status symbol to use chopstick mad from ivory. By now it is the sterling silver of the Far East.  He explains further that China still has that status obsession which is a link to the imperial past.

The other markets are the tourist markets in Thailand which are full of trinket and ornamental carving made from ivory. People still buying it and even the young ones. They know it is ivory but will they know it is from poaching elephants?

Also the West has its impacting demand.  Since travelling is so available the Western tourists are buying these goods and bringing them back as gift and souvenirs. There are enough bangles, beads and brooches to make you look beautiful it does not have to ivory.

Apparently the Chinese government became very alert to illegal ivory trade and made two ivory seizures a day scanning ship containers. Also the luggage and bags are being searched which are brought back by Chinese nationals.

All these successes don’t seem to deter the poachers and trade. Mr Milliken points out that it is the country which don’t report a seizure are heavily involved in the illegal trade such as Thailand, Nigeria and Cameroon.

Ms Goodall thinks that education could have a great impact and she explains that some people who bring ivory over the border don’t even know that it is illegal. Therefore, a good campaign would make an impact.

Chinese basketball star Yao Ming who is the equivalent of David Beckham had joint the fight. It will influence the illegal trade greatly. He made a film standing next to dead rhinos and elephants to show the people what happens in other country. It will be a powerful message being such a well know star. Also Jackie Chan is getting involved and tried to send out a powerful message.

Mr Milliken stated further that in the eighties Japan had half of the illegal trade and today it is only one per cent. This proves that a powerful campaign can turn things around.

Ms Goodall also contacted David Attenborough to ADD his name and influence to the campaign. She said that it not only the animals get killed, it is also Park Rangers.  In the Tsavo National Park in Kenya there were 12 park Rangers killed and 60 poachers over six year. Yet, they still do it. 

The problem is that when a Park Ranger is killed the family automatically loses their homes and the children can’t go to school any more which is totally unfair because the Park Ranger gave his life. She also campaigns for more contribution to pay the Park Rangers and their families especially when the ranger is killed.

ELEPHANTS BEMOAN THEIR DEAD. MOTHER HAD BEEN KILLED AND THE VERY YOUNG BABY TOUCHING HER HOPING SHE WILL WAKE UP AGAIN.  IS IT NOT A VERY SAD PICTURE?  IT SHOULD PUT THE HUMANS TO SHAME  --  BUT WILL IT?

HYENAS

STRIPED HYENAS

Hyenas are thick-set and thuggish and are really the nature refuse workers. They are able to eat a whole carcass in short time and that includes hide, hair, giblets, hooves and bones.

Their solid head has powerful jaws and bone-cracking teeth. Their carnassial are strong and sharp enough to slice through gristle, sinew and skin. In their tough stomach is a corrosive acid which reduce bones to powder. The hooves, horns and hairs are regurgitated in a pellet.

Their body slopes down from their shoulder to their hind legs. A mane on their neck can be raised when they meet either friend or enemy. Their anal glands in pouches underneath their tails spread a smelly paste to mark their territory.

STRIPED HYENAS

The striped hyenas lives solitary and are shy. It hunts at night. It lives in North Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. It is the size of an Alsatian dog and has a yellowish coat, grey and marked with horizontal stripes. The mane is long and black. When it hunts it adopts a zig-zags way to go and hunts at night for mammals, birds, reptiles, insects and fruit. It also finishes off leftover from a lion's, cheetah's or leopard's kill. Also the occasional dog and goat won't be left behind.

BROWN HYENAS

BROWN HYENAS

The brown hyenas live in southern Africa and have a long brownish black hair and lighter coloured mane. They are night scavenger and rest during the day mostly in a rocky hole or tall grass. At dusk and dawn they call with their wah-wah. They roam over a wide area in the dry Savannah and desert. The diet consists of carrion, carcasses of large antelopes, and some go along the seashore looking for dead fish, squid, mussels, seals and whales. They also called strand wolves because of that habit.

AARDWOLF

The aardwolf is a small, slender and striped hyena. Its muzzle is pointed. It lives in dry country and hunts at night; sheltering in burrows during the day. The aardwolf feeds on nocturnal Trinervitermes termites with its slobbery tongue. In the winter it has to change its diet to the Hodotermes termites because the other termites do not emerge in the winter.

SPOTTED HYENAS

The spotted hyenas are larger and have shorter rounded ears, coarse spotted coat, sparse mane and a black tuft on the tail. They live in family called clans. They mark their territory and defend it against other clans. A dominant female rules the clan and there a distinct hierarchy below her. The nursing females share a den and the dominant female has more milk. She also has more cubs. When the cubs grow up, the females join the clan and the males leave. They try to set up or join another clan.

Although the spotted hyenas are active and efficient hunters; they still exercise an important part of scavenging and food robbing. They hunt wildebeest, zebra, Thompson's gazelles and anything they can get hold of. With small games a solo hunter will bring down the animal but with bigger games two and more gang up to bring the animal down. They usual hunt young or sick or old animals.

UNUSUAL CHARACTERISTICS OF HYENAS

Females grow a penis and testicles, a copy of the male genitals. At birth the baby is squeezed through the 1.5cm opening on the end of the mother's penis. When they are born they have teeth and their eyes are open. They straight away show a high aggression to fight. This derives from the male hormones in their blood. They are capable of attacking their brothers and sisters trying to kill them in getting hold of their neck. They also prevent their brothers and sisters from getting milk and therefore many cubs die.

RHINO -- Update 28 March, 2015

UPDATE: 28 March, 2015 --  A new report came out that Rhinos heading for extinction. At Kruger Park in South Africa they are losing about three a day to poachers. They are well organised gun syndicates. Unfortunately, the horn has a higher price than gold. Last year they lost 800 in this park alone. Now, they plan to bring some Rhinos to Australia and let them breed in the outback. Eventually they will be reintroduced in South Africa again. It had been done before and it is hoped it will be just as successful.

BLACK RHINO

The Rhino exists for 40 million years.   
Hunters and  poachers almost wiped it out 
in the last 80-100 years.  
A record to be proud of.

Rhinos existed about 40 million years ago, evolving from the tapirs, and were with the tapirs the most wide-spread hoofed mammals. They belong to the family of equids which also include horses, asses and zebras.

Rhinos are not known for running long-distance like the other members of the family but with the armour-like skin, which is extremely tough, it withstands most attacks. The skin is hairless or nearly hairless but for the Sumatra rhino. The large head is to counterbalancing when the large body pivots over the front legs. The front legs support most of the weight of the large body. The push comes from the hind legs when moving. The rhinoceros has developed more ribs to carry the great body.

It has a highly developed sense of smell and can discover danger from a far distance. Scents also are a way to communicate between one and another. Each dominant male stakes out his territory with invisible scent marks. It is done by spraying urine on bushes or ground, putting dung heaps, rubbing skins on the trees so the flakes come off and after rolling in mud.

The tube-like ears can swivel round to catch any suspicious sounds and they have an acute sense of hearing. However, it is short-sighted and cannot see an object further than 30m.

Their horns are not bones like the ones of cattle or sheep. Their horns are made of a mass of hollow keratin fibres, like hairs. They are attached loosely to a roughened area of the skull. It will grow again when it does break off. The Sumatra rhino, black and white rhino of Africa have two horns. The front one is the biggest. The Indian and Javan rhinos have only one horn at the end of their nose.

SUMATRA  RHINO

Of the five species of rhinos, two live in Africa and three in Asia. From that there are distinct groups but distantly related. The Asian rhinos are the oldest from the evolution. The first species to evolve was the Sumatra rhino and it is the only one still in existence of that group. The woolly rhino which belonged to that group is extinct. 

WOOLLY RHINO -- EXTINCT

The Sumatran rhino is the most primitive of all of them because it has not changed in 40 million years. It is also the smallest of the rhinos and has two rather small horns. The skin is hairy especially when young. Its home is in the mountain rainforests.

JAVA RHINO

The one-horned Asian rhinos have two surviving members. The Java rhino is smaller and more primitive.  It looks like the species living 10 million years ago. The neck plate is separate and the skin has a mosaic pattern. It lives in lowland rainforests. The Indian rhino is almost the size of the white rhinoceros. It has wart-like bumps on its skin, on the shoulder and upper leg. Its territories are tall swampy grasslands and spend its time wallowing in water.

WHITE RHINO

The third group are the African rhinos. The white rhino has a square lip and is more docile than the black rhino. It is much larger and the largest of them all. The body length can measure up to 4m. The front horn can measure up to 1.2m.  It evolved from the more primitive black rhino. It grazes on the great African grassland.

BLACK RHINO

The black rhino has a hook lip and existed 4-5 million years ago. It browses in thick bush. The front horn of the black rhino is slightly longer.

All the rhinos are only eating vegetation and eat a large amount to keep up their large body. Sumatra and Javan species feed on leave, tips of shoots and fruits. The Indian rhino feeds mainly on short grass but also eats tall grass and shrubs with it super lip. The black rhino can with its longer pointed upper lip feed on a great variety of shrubs, breaking off twigs and leaves. When the grass is long enough it twist off bundles and eats fruits. The white rhino is a pure grazer with its square lips which enables it a large area of bite and this gives it enough grass all year round.

The disadvantage of the rhino's body is that it can't sweat. Therefore it has to be near water or mud where it can wallow. The thick coat of mud helps to absorb the body heat and kills the flies and parasites like ticks and lice which fall The time span between births varies from two to four years. The single baby looks so small next to its great bodied mother. The calf of an Indian and white rhino runs in front of its mother but closely. The calf of the black rhino follows at the back. The calves stay with their mothers even after weaning and leave just before the next one is born.

The male rhino becomes sexual active when it is seven or eight years old but starts breeding when it is ten years. It has to be strong and powerful to challenge older males to establish its territory. The female, white and Indian, rhino have their first calves when they are six or eight years old. The black female rhino give birth one year less. They give birth all year round.

In the 19th century the three Asian species were hunted to the point of extinction. This also counted for the southern race of the white rhino which was almost extinct by the end of the 19th century. White settlers in the Cape wiped out the black rhino completely.  In the 1970s and 1980s a massive number of rhinos were killed by poachers. The price of the rhino horn rose so dramatically and is now higher than gold.

Only a fraction of rhinos remain in India and there are mostly living in nature reserves, the Assam province, India and Chitwan National Park, Nepal. Although poaching is on the increase and they kill the rhinos with wires from the overhead power lines or poison their food but it is amazing that the numbers are increasing.

The Sumatra rhino has a wide range of territory and yet only 799 survived and there are isolated populations in Indonesia and Malaysia. It is also assumed that a very small number lives in Thailand and Burma. It is very hard to protect them and save them from poachers because they spread over such a wide area. Their numbers are declining and the loss of habitat doesn't help. The rainforest in Sumatra and Borneo are reduced at an alarming rate.

JAVAN RHINO

JAVAN RHINO

The most threatened specie of rhino and rarest of the world's large mammals, is the Javan rhino. The population of only 50 lives in a small national park, Udjong Kulong, in western Java. They discovered 12-15 in Vietnam but they are on the brink of extinction.

The black rhino used to be the most widespread of them all. From the 1970s to 1980s their number were reduced from 65,000 to 3,000 in 1987. 98% were killed in Kenya alone till 1985. Kenya now has a protected sanctuary and their numbers increase a steady five per cent a year.

WHITE RHINO GUARDED
IT IS NOW THE LAST 
MALE WHITE RHINO

The southern race of white rhino was down to 50 at the turn of the century but now with protection, which they benefited from their numbers is now 4,800. It also had been reintroduced in countries like Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique after it was hunted to extinction there.  Once wide spread, the northern race was almost wiped out by poachers in 1970s and 1980s. In the Garamba National Park, Zaire only exist just 28 rhinos.

EXTINCT 
GIRAFFE SIZED RHINO