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Large males can be intimidating – disconcertingly towards women, whom they identify as less threating than men.

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Yellow Baboon (Nyani) inhabit savannas and light forest in Eastern Africa from Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and BOtswana. On your safati to the above countries you will be able to watch baboon at up close.

IDENTIFICATION

THe Yellow Baboon has a yellowish brown coat and somewhat lighter in build with more slender limbs than Olive Baboon. The males lack the distinctive mane of their larger relatives. Males can weigh 27-40kg while female weigh 14-17kg.

SOCIAL LIFE & BEHAVIOUR

Yellow Baboon are found in troops of 10-100 individuals. A troop consist of a number of family units of related females and their offsprings. Mothers are usually the head of the family in the troops. The males leave their natal home or troop ata maturity age of 4yrs. Where they join fellow male troops. They have unique way of communicating their feeling and emotions. Instead of fighting, Baboons display their anger through intense staring, ground slapping, yawning by exposing canines & branch shaking.

DIET

Baboons are omnivores, feeding on grass, seeds, roots, fruits, honey comb, bark sap, new born gazelles, young impalas, eggs, worms, insects, spiders, lizards & ground nesting birds.

GESTATION

Gestation period varies between 175-190 days. Females give birth to one offspring during the night. During the first months the baby is totally dependant on the mother. At 1 year it considered grown and indipendent. Female get to maturity at 5-6yrs while male 4-7 years.

RELATION WITH HUMANBEING

Biggest threat is continued growth of humanbeing population withing the natural range of these spicies. They are also hunted by local community for food.

STATUS List Concern

TYPE Mammal

DIET Omnovorous

SCIENTIFIC NAME Papio Cynocephalus

GALLERY

Habitat

The black-backed jackal is commonly found in the southern and eastern part of Africa. It’s believed is has been in existence for the last 2.5 million years after a study was done on fossils discovered in Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa. These incredible animals occupy a broad range of habitat from dry areas which are their favorite , moist areas and desert areas.

Physical structure description.

Black-backed Jackal has long legs, large v shaped ears and sharp canines. It can weigh 6-13kg, male being larger than females and can measure a height of 38-48 cm. The base color court is reddish-brown with slavery hair that extends from shoulders to the base of tail. They have a black slide running along the flanks. The tail is bushy and tipped with black. The chest, throats, rib and inner surface of limb are white.

Social and behaviour life.

Black-backed jackal are mainly nocturnal but they are often seen during daytime. They are monogamous and breeding pairs live together for life. You will always find them in pairs or parties consisting of the extended family unit. They are territorial with each pair having their own territories which they mark by the use of urine and faeces. The young pups stays in their parents territories until they find a mating pair. At the parents home they act as helpers. Sexuality begins at 11 months but non engages into sex until they find a partner. They have great communication strategies e.g repetitive yapping call when mobbing large carnivores like leopards. They can also communicate with body posturing and tail flagging.

Gestation Period.

Gestation period takes place for 2 months. The pups are usually born during the month of August-October in an old termite mound. Feeding is mostly done by the parents and the older siblings. At the age of 3 months they get adult coat colorization. At 6 months they are able to hunt for themselves, though they get much food from the family members.

Food.

Black-backed jackal are great scavengers feeding on preys killed by larger animals. As well they can kill small prey such as newborn gazelles, impalas, small livestock, insects, fruits and small poultry.

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Habitat.

Banded mongoose is commonly found in Eastern and Central parts of Africa. It lives in savannas, grasslands and mainly feeds on beetles, Millipede, Centipedes, Insects, Lizards, Snakes, Frogs and invertebrates. They also feed on fruits, roots and eggs. They shelter on various types of den but the most favorite dens are the termites mounds.

Physical characteristics.

They have small ears, short muscular limbs, long tails and large head. The tail is almost long as the rest of the body measuring 15-30 cm. Animals on the rainy areas are larger and darker than animals in dryer areas. The breast area is smaller than the abdominal part of the body. The face is triangular shaped with flat broad ears. Their coat coloration is greyish-brown with an unmistakable series of light and dark vertical bands across the back. An adult animal can weigh 1.5-2.5 kg. They have 5 toes on the fore feet, the first toe is seen only when it’s moving slowly.

Social and behavior life.

Banded mongoose live in mixed sex groups of 7-40 members who spend their night sleeping in underground dens. The pack always remains together but forage individually but they might team up to hunt a huge prey. They are known to be sympathetic as the take care of the old, ill, injured and the young ones by providing them with food, grooming them and informing them of dangers. They are nomadic. They never remain in one area for long, though the always visit their favorite den frequently.

Gestation period.

Unlike other species of Mongoose, all females in a banded Mongoose group can breed. Gestation period takes place in between 60-70 days. All females give birth on the same day or within few days. The litter range from 2-6 pups and an average of 4. The young ones are taken care of by the helpers mainly the non-breeding males and breeding females. The babies are allowed to suckle from only lactating in the pack.

After giving birth the females are guarded and mated by 1-3 dominant males. Dominant males monitor the females and aggressively defend them from non-breeding males. While the dominant males do most of the mating, females often try to escape and mate with other males in the group. Non breeding males mate secretively.

Banded Mongoose have stood up to lions when confronted and threatened. They have also been observed attacking lions faces.

Where to find the Banded Mongoose.

• Kenya.
• Namimbia.
• South Africa.
• Tanzania.
• Mozambique

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The Africa Wild Dog.

Home.

Africa Wild Dog also known as “painted Wolf” is mostly found in the open plains and sparse woodlands of sub-Saharan Africa.

Physical characteristics.

They have irregular mottled coat with patches ranging from Black, White, Red and brown fur. These different colors help in visual identification has they can recognize each other at a distance of 50-100M. Every animal has it own unique coat pattern. It losses it’s fur has it ages with the older one looking almost naked. These carnivores have big ears and are long legged with only four toes per foot unlike other dogs. Their two middle toe pads are fussed together. They have a quite unique dentition different from other canis. They have narrower canines and large premolars which are just slightly smaller than those of hyena. They communicate through touch, actions and sneezing. Where the dominant pair sneeze first then others follow indicating time for hunting.

Social and behavior life.

African wild dog have a strong bond and live in permanent pack consisting of 2-20 members including pups. However in larger packs you can find a larger group consisting of around a hundred adults due to the seasonal migrations. In parks like Masai Mara National Reserveand  Kruger National Parkyou will find a group of 4-8 members. Male and females have different dominance hierarchies with the oldest leading the group. The pack is dominated by a monogamous pair. Unlike other animals, the females leaves the pack while the male rarely leave from the natal pack. Every pack has a ratio of 3:1. Male being many than females.

Gestation period.

The gestation period take place in between 69-73 days. The females give birth to minimum of 2 and maximum of 20 pups. The pups are cared for by the entire pack members. After giving birth the mothers stays close to the pups chasing away the enemies approaching the pups while the other members go hunting. Once  pups are 10 weeks they follow the adult during hunting. The young ones are so privileged  as they eat first after a kill.

Diet.

They mostly hunt antelopes and can also attack bigger preys like wildebeests especially if it is ill or injured. They can also feed on birds, rodents and livestock.

Threats.

African wild dog are facing more danger while in their wild space since are targeted by human being. They are mostly poisoned and short by farmers who blame them for leopard and hyenas short coming. They also face the danger of disease like rabies, habitats loss and competition with the larger predictors like lions.

Where to find the African Wild Dogs.  

• Kenya.
• Tanzania.
• Botswana.
• Namibia.
• Zimbabwe.
• Mozambique.
• South Africa.

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Email/theuntamedwild111@gmail.com.

Zebra.

Zebra are one of the most beautiful animals living in the wild. The white and black stripes gives them a spectacular look and it helps disperse heat in the Africa savanna. There are 2 types of zebras the Grevy and Common Zebras. You can differentiate them from their stripes pattern.

They mainly inhabit the grasslands, Savanna woodlands, mountain and coastal hills. They can weigh 350kg and have a height of 1.2 -1.3m. Males are always slightly bigger than females.

The stripes are vertical on the head and horizontal in the main body. The vertical stripes in the head helps the zebras to hide in the grass. The stripes also help to confuse the predators by visual illusions.

Zebra makes wide range of noises some which are similar to those of horses. They can run at a speed of 65km/h faster than some predictors. Mostly you will find them in a group called dazzle of zebra. It mainly consists of female and young ones. Incase of an attack the members surrounds the enemy in order to scare it away.

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Leopard.

panthera pardus also known as “chui” in swahili is the most dangerous wild creature. It often confused with the cheetah though their is a distinctive difference if they are keenly observed. African leopard is found in the sub Saharan Africa & north east Africa.

Leopards can weigh 100-200 pounds and can run 36km/h making them faster than human being and tiger but a little slower than the mighty cheetahs. They can jump 10feet vertically and 20 feet horizontally.

They are professional climber of trees and branches. When they kills their preys they carry it up the tree to keep it away from hyenas and other scavengers. They mostly feeds on Antelope, Impala, Gazelles and Monkeys.

These creatures hunt during the night and spend the day resting. When hunting they camouflage on grass to avoid being seen by the prey and strikes when it get close to the prey.

Female leopards give birth to 2-3 cubs and carry it’s babies for 90-105 days. The babies are born blind and often eaten by snake, hyena, jackals and birds. Leopards are solitary creatures and mostly meet when mating. Their territory’s are recognized by a unique urine scent left behind.

Leopards are large with strong jaws and broader skull. Their fur is light colored with spotted marks and the color is determined by the environment they are living in. They have long tail that they wrap around everything and they can live up-to 20 years.

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Sea horse.

Sea horse is one of the sea creatures with a weird body structure. It has a head and neck that resembles a horse and a tail that looks like a snake.

Sea horses are mainly found in shallow salt waters of tropical all over the world. They live in sea grass and there are five species remaining.
H erect
H Zoesterae
H Guttulatus( dwarf sea horse)
H Hippocampus (long snouted sea horse)
H Fuscus (Sea pony)

They measure a size of 1.5-3.5 cm. They are poor swimmers and therefore swim with their tails entangled together, they can only move upright, downwards and backwards. Most of the time they prefer spending days resting while holding on the sea grass using their tails. They propel themselves using a small fin that flutter upto 50 times in a second.

They neither have teeth nor stomach the food passes directly to the digestive system. These shows that they eat small fish often to keep themselves alive. It lacks predictors since it is too bony and can’t be digested easily.

Sea horses are monogamous and mate for life. unlike the other animals male carry the babies. The females releases eggs on the males abdomen, which it carries until they hatch and then releases fully developed sea horses on water.

They have a unique style of courtship which last for up-to 8 hours. During this period they engage in dances, swimming side by side, changing colors and spinning around.

They have eyes that work independently while one is focusing behind the other one might be focusing in front surveying the surrounding.

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African elephants.

Elephants are the largest land mammals and are easily recognized because of their giant body structure. They are mostly found in National Reserves or zoos.

These sub Saharan mighty beast can weigh upto 6000kg and have a height of 10 feets. They have 2 long curved tusks for digging, fighting and foraging. Each elephants has a favorite tusk. They also have a trunk that is used for smelling, caressing the babies, breathing and detecting vibrations. They have large ears that resemble the shape of Africa continent(African Elephant), these large ears keep them cool during the hot climate in sub Saharan. Elephants can communicate visually and flap their ears to show aggression.

These beast are herbivores mainly feeding on grass, leaves, roots and fruits. Elephants have 6 set of teeth that grow throughout their life’s. They cat eat around 150kgs of food per day and can walk for up 195 km/day despite their huge size. They can run at a speed of 40km/h faster that human being. They are super intelligent and have a great memory.

Males know when females are ready for mating through a chemical substance secreted in their urine and faeces. Elephants gestation last for 22 months making them give birth after every 5 years. The newborn when born weigh around a 100kgs and can’t see after birth but they recognize their mothers by touch, scent and sound. Babies can suckle from their mothers gallons even when at the age of 10 years.

They live in a group headed by the oldest female who is assumed to have more experience and trusted on guardian the entire herd and ensuring survival even during the difficult times.

The groups are made up of females, young ones and closely related relatives. The young males leave the group at the age of 10-19 years so as to form their own male groups. They blow loud trumpet that can be heard up-to 8km away.

It is believed that they have the greatest friendship bonds. They live close to their mating partners and have a great relationship with their relatives and close friends. They mourn the death of their loved ones and pay tribute by even visiting the places where their friends died at.

Wild elephants can live upto 70 years.

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Email/theuntamedwild111@gmail.com