Longest neck
At the very beginning of this century, a “living fossil” of okapi was found in the jungles of Africa - relatives of the giraffe, which was considered extinct long ago. Okapi is no bigger than a donkey. And his neck is short. And, like the giraffe, it eats grass and leaves. The common ancestor of the giraffe and okapi looked like a short-necked runt. But over time, some of these animals moved to the open spaces of the savannah, where it was possible to “graze” in plenty only on the treetops. Therefore, animals with long necks survived. Gradually, the giraffe grew such a long neck that it became completely different from its distant ancestor. And okapi remained a copy of its great-grandfather.
Gorillas are the largest apes They also live in Africa. A gorilla in the jungle has almost no enemies, except people, of course. Most of the day, gorillas are on the ground, and not in the trees like other monkeys. Gorillas are vegetarians. They eat leaves, fruits, and tree bark. But in zoos, gorillas very quickly get used to different food, begin to eat meat and fish, and drink milk.
Relatives of the cat
Our domestic cat has 37 relatives. These are forest and reed cats, lynxes and manulas, servals and ocelots, snow leopards and leopards, jaguars and pumas, leopards, panthers and cheetahs, tigers, lions and other wild cats. Cats are the most agile predators. All wild cats hunt in approximately the same way: they sneak up on their prey, then freeze in anticipation. And having chosen an opportune moment, they overtake their victim with one throw. However, our domestic cat hunts mice in the same way as the African leopard hunts antelopes.
This material tells about the life of animals of the tropical zone. The article is illustrated with photographs of animals tropical forests.
In an African forest.
Most of Africa's forests are located between two tropics: the Northern (Tropic of Cancer) and Southern (Tropic of Capricorn). In this part of the earth all seasons are similar to each other; during a year average temperature and the amount of rainfall remains almost constant. Therefore, almost all animals in this zone lead a sedentary lifestyle - after all, unlike the inhabitants of temperate and cold climatic zones, there is no need to make seasonal migrations in search of suitable places to live.
Hippopotamus.
The name of this animal translated from Greek means “river horse.” It weighs more than three tons.
Water is the natural habitat of this huge mammal, where the hippopotamus spends most of its time. However, with such a thick, squat figure, it is not easy to swim, so usually hippos do not go far into the water, but stay in shallow water, where they can reach the bottom with their paws. The sense organs - movable ears, nostrils equipped with closing membranes, and eyes with protruding supraeyes - are located on the upper part of the muzzle, so that the hippopotamus can be almost completely submerged in water, continuing to breathe air and carefully monitor everything around it. In case of danger threatening him or his cubs, he becomes very aggressive and, no matter where - in water or on land - immediately attacks the enemy.
Mothers give birth to their young either on the shore, or more often right in the water. In the latter case, newborns, as soon as they are born, swim to the surface so as not to suffocate. Hippopotamuses give birth during the rainy season, during which time the mother has an abundance of milk due to the abundant and varied food. To feed the cubs, the female climbs onto land and comfortably stretches out on her side.
Hippopotamuses never live alone; they gather in groups of several dozen individuals. Often, both in water and on land, adult males play with growing cubs. Moving on land. Hippos always follow the same familiar paths.
Feeling in danger, the hippopotamus emits a threatening roar, and opens its huge mouth as wide as possible, showing the enemy its unusually long lower fangs. This threatening posture usually produces the desired result.
Crocodile.
Only sometimes crocodiles can swim into sea water; usually they settle along the banks of rivers and lakes in areas with warm and hot climates. Crocodiles are much more comfortable and calm in the water than on land. They swim with the help of their paws and tail; Large individuals can spend about an hour under water. During the hottest hours of the day, crocodiles lie on land with their mouths wide open: due to the lack of sweat glands, they can only get rid of excess heat in this way, like dogs who stick out their tongues in the heat.
The female crocodile lays her eggs in a hole specially dug on the shore, not far from the water. The cub breaks the shell using a special horn located on its head, which soon falls off.
Young crocodiles feed mainly on fish, but also birds and insects. Only as adults will they be able to cope with larger mammals, which need to be caught, dragged from the shore and held under water for some time.
A crocodile does not need teeth for chewing food, but only for grabbing prey and tearing pieces of meat from it.
Even such terrifying reptiles, like crocodiles, have enemies - animals that hunt for crocodile eggs. The most dangerous of them is the monitor lizard, a large lizard. Having discovered an egg, he begins to unusually quickly dig the ground near him, distracting the female crocodile, who usually stands guard, and having stolen the egg from the nest, he takes it to a place inaccessible to crocodiles and eats it.
Like many other land animals that live in water for long periods of time, crocodiles' ears, nostrils and eyes are located on the top of the head so that they remain above the water when the animal swims.
Smallest crocodile: Osborne's caiman, 120 centimeters long.
Chimpanzee.
Thanks to its intelligence and learning ability, it is the most famous of all monkeys. Although chimpanzees are excellent climbers, they spend a lot of time on the ground and even travel on foot. But they still sleep in trees, where they feel safer. This is one of the few animals that uses various tools: chimpanzees take a broken branch into a termite mound, and then lick insects from it. These monkeys are practically omnivorous. Communities living in different regions often eat differently.
Chimpanzees' "vocabulary" consists of various sounds, but in communication they also use facial expressions; their faces can take on the most various expressions, often very similar to human ones.
As a rule, only one baby is born to chimpanzees; twins are extremely rare. The cubs spend their entire childhood literally in the embrace of their mother, tightly clinging to her fur.
Chimpanzees live in fairly large societies, but not as closed as other apes, such as gorillas. On the contrary, chimpanzees often move from one group to another.
The strongest males, defending their primacy, uproot small trees and wave this club with a threatening look.
There is usually a tender friendship between female chimpanzees. It is not uncommon for a mother to entrust her cub to another female for a time; Sometimes such nannies take, in addition to their own, two or three other people’s cubs for a walk.
Gorilla.
Despite its terrifying appearance, this large monkey, more than two meters tall, is very friendly; males from the same flock usually do not compete with each other, and in order for the leader to be obeyed, it is enough to widen his eyes and utter an appropriate cry, hitting himself on the chest with his fingers. This behavior is just an act and is never followed by an attack. Before a real attack, the gorilla looks into the eyes of the enemy for a long time and silently. Staring directly into the eyes is challenging not only in gorillas, but in almost all mammals, including dogs, cats and even humans.
Baby gorillas stay with their mother for almost four years. When the next one is born, the mother begins to alienate the older one, but never does it rudely; she seems to invite him to try his hand at adulthood himself.
Having woken up, the gorillas go in search of food. They devote the remaining time to rest and games. After the evening meal, they arrange a kind of bedding on the ground, on which they fall asleep.
Okapi.
These are relatives of the giraffe, its height is slightly less than two meters, and its weight is about 250 kilograms. Okapi are extremely timid animals and are distributed in a very narrow geographical area, therefore not studied enough. It is known that they live in bushes, and their coloring, although very unusual at first glance, actually makes them completely invisible in their natural habitat. Okapi live solitary lives, and only mothers are not separated from their cubs for a long time.
With stripes on the back of the body and on the legs, the okapi resembles a zebra; these stripes serve them for camouflage.
Okapi resemble some types of horses, but the differences are quite noticeable; for example, males have short horns. When playing, okapi lightly hit each other with their muzzles until the defeated one lies on the ground as a sign of the end of the game.
When the mother hears the special calling cry made by the cub in case of danger, she becomes very aggressive and decisively attacks any enemy.
Asian jungle.
Some species of animals that inhabit the Asian jungle, such as elephants, rhinoceroses and leopards, are also found in Africa; however, over thousands of years of evolution, the inhabitants of the jungle have developed many features that distinguish them from their African “brothers.”
Monsoons are the name given to the winds that periodically blow in the tropical zones of Asia. They usually bring heavy rains, which promote rapid growth and renewal of vegetation.
The monsoon season is also favorable for animals: during these periods, plant food is plentiful and varied, which provides the most Better conditions their growth and reproduction. Just like the Amazon forests, the Asian jungles are very dense and sometimes impenetrable.
Tapir.
They say about the tapir that he is a fossil animal; Indeed, this species, inhabiting several remote regions one after another, has survived on earth since very ancient times, surviving several geological eras.
black-backed tapir can walk on the bottom of the lake!
The female tapir is larger than the male. The most noticeable feature in the structure of the body is the elongated upper lip, forming a small and very mobile trunk, with the help of which tapirs can pick leaves and tufts of grass - their usual food. Black-backed tapirs live in Asia. Their color is very expressive: black and white. It may seem that these contrasting colors should make them very noticeable, but in fact, from a distance they look very much like an ordinary pile of stones, which are many around. The cubs, on the contrary, have a pockmarked skin with small specks and stripes. In the second year of life, this color will gradually be replaced by an even black color with a characteristic white band - a saddle.
Most tapirs eat leaves, shoots and stems aquatic plants. They love water very much and swim well. They always walk along the same familiar paths, which over time turn into well-trodden paths, ending, as a rule, in a “gutter” - a convenient descent to the water.
The most terrible enemies of tapirs are different kinds felids on land and gharials in water. Very rarely does a tapir try to defend itself; he has practically no means for this and always prefers to run away.
The tapir's body is squat, its legs are short, and there is almost no neck. The movable trunk is a very sensitive organ of smell. - with its help, the tapir explores the surface of the earth and surrounding objects. Vision, on the contrary, is very poorly developed. Asian cats.
Asia does not have felines that live in groups like lions or cheetahs in Africa. All types of Asian cats are loners, each animal rules its own territory and does not allow strangers there. Only tigers sometimes go hunting in small groups. Representatives of the cat family live everywhere in Asia, even in areas with a climate that is not very suitable for them, such as Far East, where the Ussuri tiger reigns. The peculiarity of tigers living in the jungle is their manner of hunting. It consists of sneaking up on the victim as close as possible without being noticed, and last moment rush at it with one jump from a place or a short run.
The royal, or Bengal, tiger is now quite rare. Found in India and Indochina.
Leopard or black panther.
The panther also has spots characteristic of a leopard, although they are completely invisible against a black background. The black panther is a dark-colored leopard.
Clouded leopard. He jumps from branch to branch as well as a monkey. These cats are sometimes called tree tigers.
Speckled cat.
I also call her the fishing cat. In fact, she really likes to live near water and is a good swimmer. In addition to fish and shellfish, it catches small vertebrates on land. The habits of this animal have been little studied.
Tiger.
Tigers adapt to a wide variety of climatic conditions; they live in flat tropical areas, but are also found in the mountains at altitudes of up to 3000 m and in very cold areas; in the latter case, a thick, more than five centimeters, layer of fat forms under their skin, protecting them from heat loss.
Almost all jungle inhabitants are at risk of becoming prey to a tiger. Only large and warlike pachyderms, and even bulls and buffaloes with strong horns, can feel safe.
Contrary to popular belief, the tiger is not a very clever hunter; he's so heavy. That for a successful jump he needs to start his run from a distance of 10 - 15 meters; if the tiger gets closer to its prey, it risks missing.
A tiger litter usually consists of two, three or four cubs. For eight weeks, the mother feeds them exclusively with milk; Then solid food is gradually added to their milk. Only six months later the female begins to go hunting, leaving the cubs for more than a day.
Tigers, like all wild animals, are afraid of humans. However, it happens that an old or sick animal, for which ordinary hunting becomes too difficult, overcomes its innate fear and attacks people.
Monkey.
Among the numerous species of monkeys, there are animals that weigh no more than 70 grams, and there are also those whose weight reaches 250 kilograms. In Asian monkeys, the tail does not have a grasping function, i.e. a monkey cannot, having caught it on a branch, support its body so that its arms and legs remain free; this is typical only for monkeys living on the American continent.
Orangutan.
The most common monkey in Asia is the orangutan. This is a large monkey that spends most of its time among the branches and only sometimes descends to the ground.
Female orangutans, perhaps more than any other monkey, care about raising their children. Mothers bite their cubs' nails, bathe them in rainwater, and shout at them if they start acting up. The upbringing received in childhood subsequently determines the character of an adult animal.
Nosach.
This monkey owes its name to its huge, ugly nose, which in males sometimes goes down to the chin. The proboscis whale not only climbs trees well, but also swims very well and can stay under water for a long time.
Slender loris.
The pointed muzzle and huge eyes that can see in the dark make this prosimian very cute. During the day, the loris hides in the branches, and at night it gets its food.
Indian pachyderms.
The differences between Indian pachyderms and African ones are not noticeable at first glance. The behavior of both is also very similar: they do not stay in one place for a long time, but move quite long distances in search of suitable food, mainly young foliage. They love water and swim well, sometimes for long periods. They often relax near the water, bathing in muddy mud, which is very beneficial for their skin.
Rhinoceros.
He enjoys the respect of all the other animals, who try to avoid meeting him. Only elephants do not fear them and easily put them to flight if they bother them. Newborn Indian rhinoceros weighs about 65 kilograms.
Unlike the African rhinoceros, it has only one horn and its body is covered with thick shields of skin. Usually it moves slowly, but if necessary it reaches speeds of up to 40 kilometers per hour.
Elephant.
Although its skin appears rough, it is actually very sensitive thanks to a covering of short and flexible bristles that respond to even the lightest touch.
The mother never allows the baby elephant to leave her. She watches the cub all the time and begins to call him as soon as she notices that he is a little behind.
A female Indian elephant carries a fetus for about 20 months!
- Read first:
Some frogs have also learned to glide, using the membranes between their toes, common to all frogs, to help them swim. The flying frog has acquired very long fingers - as soon as they spread out, each foot turns into a tiny parachute and all four together allow the frog to glide from tree to tree for considerable distances.
However, the most extraordinary of gliders, whose dexterity has long been considered the fruit of the heated imagination of gullible travelers, is the flying tree snake. It is small, thin and extremely beautiful, thanks to its blue-green scales with gold and scarlet specks. Under normal circumstances, it is impossible to guess her special ability. But it immediately becomes obvious how great her ability to climb trees is: she climbs vertical tree trunks with amazing speed, clinging to the bark with the edges of the wide scutes located along the belly, and twisting her body so as to rest on one side or the other on the unevenness of the bark and stems of creeping plants. Having reached the top of the tree, it moves to the next one in the following way: it quickly moves along the branch to its end and soars into the air, immediately flattening its body so that from a rounded one it turns into something like a wide ribbon. At the same time, the snake bends in wavy zigzags. As a result, her body rests more on the air than if she simply fell, and she plans. It is even possible that, wriggling in the air, it changes the direction of its flight, as if in a turn, and to some extent determines the place where it will land.
You continue to slide along your rope and again find yourself in a layer of foliage, although not as thick as in the canopy, and not nearly as many meters long. This layer is formed by some short trees, including palms that have adapted to the dim light inside the jungle, and young trees that have recently sprouted from seeds that have fallen from the canopy. After passing them, you finally reach the ground. When you push, you feel a hard surface under your soles that does not spring at all. Although it is covered with fallen leaves and all sorts of debris flying from above, this layer is surprisingly thin. The stagnant hot air there is full of dampness. This ideal conditions for the rotting process. Bacteria and mold work without interruption. Countless mushrooms pierce fallen leaves with threads of hyphae, above which their fruiting bodies of various shapes rise: there are umbrellas, balls, tables, and sharp wedges, often in lace skirts. The rate of decay is simply amazing. If in cold northern forests pine needles rot in seven years, and an oak leaf in European groves turns to dust in about a year, then a leaf shed by a tree in a tropical forest completely decomposes in just six weeks.
Nutrients and mineral compounds released in this way do not remain in the soil for long. Daily rainfalls quickly wash them into streams and rivers, and therefore trees, in order not to lose these priceless treasures, need to take them out of the soil as soon as possible. To do this, they spread a dense network of small roots almost at its very surface. But such a shallow root system does not provide adequate stability to forest giants. And so many trees surround the lower part of the trunk with powerful plank-shaped roots, reminiscent of the buttresses of medieval cathedrals; they rise above the ground by four to five meters and extend from the butt to approximately the same distance.
Here is a world of eternal twilight. After all, less than five percent of the sunlight pouring onto the canopy penetrates here. This circumstance, coupled with poor soil, obviously prevents the appearance of lush herbaceous vegetation. In the jungle you will not see a colorful carpet of flowers that could compete with the carpets of bluebells in deciduous forests temperate zone. Sometimes your eye notices some bright spot ahead, but upon closer inspection it turns out that it consists of dead corollas that have fallen from the canopy. And yet you can see some fresh flowers. Much to the surprise of those who have previously only seen temperate forests, entire bouquets of flowers stick out directly from one trunk or another several meters above the ground. This method of flowering is indirectly related to the poverty of the soil. In order for the seed to develop well in it, the tree must provide it with a supply of food, since the top layer of soil is too scarce. Therefore, the fruits of many trees are nuts with a large supply of nutritious pulp, which is enough for the sprout in the first stages of growth. But large, heavy nuts ripen better on the trunk than on thin branches at the ends of mighty branches in a canopy. In addition, the flowers below are not obscured by anything, and pollinating animals can easily find them. Many rely on bats, which is why the color of their petals is pale, so that the flowers are more visible in the darkness of the night. Curupita Guiana, the “cannon tree,” took even more care of the comfort of its night guests: a special thorn grows above its flowers, so that bats can suck nectar, freely hanging upside down in their usual position.
"Savannah" is a Portuguese word; it means “steppe with trees.” Savannah is also called open forest. I somehow prefer the second option)))
And when it comes to savannah, one always imagines an African savannah with sun-scorched grass and sparsely standing acacia trees, with strolling elephants and running zebras and antelopes. Something like that:
We looked at the savannahs on the world map:
And they focused their attention on African savannah(I’m going to talk more about the savannas of other continents a little later). This typically African landscape occupies about 30% of the entire continent.
Senka and I have already talked about the savannah of Africa more than once, and he already knows many of the animals, but since we traveled here for a long time on the black continent (we walked along the Sahara, yes Ancient Egypt studied), we decided to continue our acquaintance with the types of forests on our planet according to this picture:
Topic start .
... and at the same time repeat the information we already know + supplement the knowledge with new interesting facts.
I haven’t made books using G. Doman’s method for a long time now and I’m sad for the time when my son read and absorbed them avidly interesting information while practicing reading skills; But I still continue to make some reading materials with various pictures to make it more interesting to read, like this:
I post the sections “African Savannah” and “African Jungle” of this “book” here, so if someone decides to repeat the lesson, they can copy it, diluting it with their own photos, or make books using Doman’s method, selecting the basic information. Now we have mini-lessons, more even repetition, so I didn’t talk much, Sena had to work more: read and answer questions.
Text from our book:
African savannas are spaces entirely covered with tall grasses and individual trees or groups of trees. In rainy times, grasses grow quickly and can reach a height of 2 - 3 m and higher. The trees are covered with leaves at this time.
But as soon as drought comes, the grasses burn out, some types of trees shed their leaves and the savanna takes on a yellow color. Yellow and black, because fires often occur here during dry periods.
The dry season lasts here for about six months. During this time, there are only occasional showers.
During drought, countless herds of antelope wander, making long journeys to places where water can be found. And they are followed by predators - cheetahs, leopards, hyenas, jackals...
When the rains begin, the dusty yellow-black region turns into an emerald green park with shady trees. The air, hazy from fire smoke and dust, becomes transparent and clean. The first tropical showers after a drought make a strong impression. It's always hot and stuffy before it starts to rain. But then a big cloud appears. Thunderclaps are heard. And then a downpour hits the ground.
With the onset of the rainy season, antelopes return to their former pastures.
The most characteristic of grass savannas is tall elephant grass,
and among the trees here you can find an oil tree and an oil palm, a ramp, and you can often find a baobab. Along the river valleys stretch gallery forests with many palm trees resembling wet rainforests.
Grass savannas give way to shrub or acacia savannas. The grass here is narrower in height, only 1-1.5 m, and the trees are represented mainly by several types of acacias with a dense crown in the form of umbrellas.
There is also a baobab tree, which is also called monkey tree or breadfruit tree.
Tree-like acacias are found everywhere in Africa, except in mountain and tropical rainforests. They may look like mighty trees almost twenty meters high, or like low shrubs, but acacias always have feathery leaves, curved spines or long thorns and sweet-smelling flowers that attract bees. Thorns and prickles are a means of self-defense, although one type of acacia has a more cunning way to remain untouched and uneaten. At the base of each thorn this acacia grows an egg-shaped swelling. It dries out and a colony of small ants settles in it. As soon as some animal encroaches on the young shoots of the plant, ants pour out from this growth and attack the newcomer.
More animals live in savannas than anywhere else on earth. Why? Millions of years in tropical Africa Only rain forests grew. Then changes happened. The climate has become drier. Large areas of the rain forest have disappeared, replaced by open forests and grassy open spaces. Thus, new power sources were born. The “pioneers” moved to the newborn Savannah. One of the first were giraffes to leave the jungle. Many antelopes also came here. For them, the savannah was paradise - so much food!
The fauna is simply amazing in its richness and diversity! In the savannah you can see zebras and ostriches grazing nearby. IN warm water lakes, in their mud "baths", bask hippos and rhinoceroses. Lions rest in the shade of spreading acacias. The largest animals on land, elephants, tear off branches with their trunks. And monkeys scream in the treetops. And also a huge number of species of insects, snakes, birds...
In the savanna you can also see towering cone-shaped termite mounds.
We read about all the animals of the savannah:
- our homemade book (or rather, Senya read it himself), but unfortunately, I did not have a file with facts about animals;
- ,
- books by Kipling and another wonderful book “Funny Stories about Animals” by T. Wolf:
We listened to enz. Chevostik "Animals of Africa" and watched "Safari with Kuzya":
Finally, my son enjoyed watching all the episodes (some more than once)! I myself really liked this cartoon (or rather, the animated series), but before Sena was not interested, but now I simply devoured all the episodes.
Animals were used to replicate .
Then I wanted to take out from a distant drawer the no longer needed savannah model that my son and I once made... From the pile of animal figurines, I asked my son to find the inhabitants of the savannah and populate our model:
The savannah, lifeless at the very beginning, became like this:
They played with some things, even added fabric - a lake - for a “riot of colors”:
We played out animal watering situations.
But (as I already wrote) Senya won’t sit with toys for a long time, so I immediately wanted to start a new topic))
Jungle
In Africa there are not only deserts and savannas, there are also tropical rain forests. Why rain? Certainly! Because it rains there very often! There is another name for such forests - jungle, which means "impenetrable thickets."
We know that the largest jungle exists in the Amazon River Basin (Amazon Rainforest) in South America. We remembered where there is still a jungle:
I hope we will talk about all the jungles of the planet, but for now we have examined the African ones in more detail.
Text from our book:
The heart of Africa is not black at all, it is green. And this is the jungle...
These forests are not at all like ours, where in the summer the ground is shaded by leaves and in the winter there is snow. Tropical forests are always hot, humid and dark. The forest is so dense that it is impossible to see anything in the distance; everything is blocked by bushes, vines climbing trees, fallen tree trunks overgrown with ferns and moss. Shrubs and small trees rise above these rubble, from which individual tree giants eventually grow. The branches of the lower plant tier are intertwined so densely that the crowns of the tall trees of the upper tier are not visible through them. And these trees are huge, they are crowned with lush crowns, and their trunk-columns rest below on board-shaped outgrowths on the roots, a kind of supports. Each such trunk rises 40 m or more. And there, at a 40-meter altitude, there is a completely different world. Here is the engine of all jungle life. The leaves absorb the energy of the African sun and transform it into plant food. Great apes, gorillas and chimpanzees, as well as numerous monkeys and baboons live here.
The forest canopy is a world of extremes, a world of scorching sun, hot winds, heavy torrential rains. Drought gives way to rain, the seasons differ sharply from each other. The jungle palette is changing. Green foliage gives way to red, yellow, light green and orange. But this is not old, but new foliage. In the jungle, spring dresses up in autumn colors.
The most desired delicacy that the jungle gives in spring is honey. But in order to get it, you need to climb to a height of forty meters, using the branches of vines, and then also withstand the onslaught of bees.
In the spring, getting food in the forest is not an easy task, but later there is abundance.
Figs here bear fruit all year round, making it easier to spot wild animals near these trees.
Okapi is always cautious and very timid, it is very difficult to meet him and at the slightest danger he takes off running.
Not afraid of the thick one tropical vegetation And African elephant. You can also see a leopard on the branches of trees. There are many insects and snakes in the jungle. But most of all, birds love tropical forests, but it is not so easy to see them here. The feathered inhabitants of tropical forests are well camouflaged and, at the slightest danger, immediately hide in the foliage.
We liked this video:
Jungle animals
Prepared
Grigorieva S.A.
The name of this animal translated from Greek means "river horse". It weighs more than three tons.
Water is the natural habitat where the hippopotamus spends most of its time. However, with such a thick figure, it is not easy to swim, so usually hippos do not go far into the water, but stay in shallow water, where they can reach the bottom with their paws.
Feeling in danger, the hippopotamus emits a threatening roar, and opens its huge mouth as wide as possible, showing the enemy its unusually long lower fangs. This threatening posture usually produces the desired result.
He enjoys the respect of all the other animals, who try to avoid meeting him. Newborn rhinoceros weighs about 65 kilograms. It has only one horn, and its body is covered with thick shields of leather. Horn a rhinoceros can reach a length 1.5 meters. Usually it moves slowly, but if necessary it reaches speeds of up to 40 kilometers per hour.
Although in appearance leather it is rough, in fact very sensitive thanks to a coat of short and flexible bristles that respond to even the lightest touch.
Tusks and trunk are two miracle survival tools for elephants. Tusks The elephant protects itself from predators and uses them during periods of drought to dig up the ground in search of water. Very agile trunk he picks leaves and collects water, which he then puts into his mouth. The elephant loves water very much and, at the first opportunity, climbs into a pond to freshen up. He's great floats .
The elephant willingly hides in the shade because its huge body has difficulty cooling down. For this purpose they serve huge ears, which he rhythmically fans himself to cool off.
Most often tapirs are eating leaves, shoots and stems of aquatic plants. They love water very much and are great swim. They always walk along the same familiar paths, which over time turn into well-trodden paths, ending, as a rule, in a “gutter” - a convenient descent to the water.
Body The tapir is squat, has short legs, and has almost no neck. The movable trunk is a very sensitive organ of smell. - with its help, the tapir explores the surface of the earth and surrounding objects. Vision, on the contrary, is very poorly developed
They settle in along the banks of rivers and lakes in areas with warm and hot climates. Crocodiles are much more comfortable and calm in the water than on land. Swimming they use their paws and tail.
Young crocodiles eat mostly fish, but also birds and insects. Only as adults will they be able to cope with larger mammals, which need to be caught, dragged from the shore and held under water for some time.
Teeth The crocodile does not need them to chew food, but only to grab prey and tear off pieces of meat from it.
Chimpanzee great climb, they spend a lot of time on the ground and even travel on foot. But sleeping they are still in the trees, where they feel safer.
These monkeys are practically omnivorous. For example, insects, bananas.
live quite numerous societies.
This is a large monkey that spends most of its time among the branches and only sometimes descends to the ground.
Female orangutans, perhaps more than any other monkey, care about raising their children. Mothers bite their cubs' nails, bathe them in rainwater, and shout at them if they start acting up.
It's big, more two meters the monkey is very friendly in stature; males from the same flock usually do not compete with each other, and in order for the leader to be obeyed, it is enough to widen his eyes and utter an appropriate cry, hitting himself on the chest with his fingers.
Having woken up, the gorillas go in search of food. They devote the remaining time rest and games. After the evening meal, a kind of bedding is arranged on the ground, on which fall asleep .
This monkey owes its name to its huge, ugly nose, which in males sometimes goes down to the chin. The proboscis whale not only climbs trees well, but also swims very well and can stay under water for a long time.
The pointed muzzle and huge eyes that can see in the dark make this prosimian very cute. During the day, the loris hides in the branches, and at night it gets its food.
Sloths so named for the extreme slowness of their movements, reminiscent of movements in slow motion filming. The constantly wet skin of sloths serves as a breeding ground for microscopic algae, which is why the animals' fur acquires a greenish tint, making them almost invisible among the foliage.
Its height is a little less two meters, and the mass is about 250 kilograms.
It is known that live they are in thickets of bushes, and their coloring, although very unusual at first glance, actually makes them completely invisible in their natural habitat. Okapi live solitary lives, and only mothers are not separated from their cubs for a long time.
The giraffe can feed on tree leaves that other herbivores cannot reach: thanks to six meters tall he is taller than all other animals. A giraffe can take food from the ground, as well as drink water, but to do this, it must spread its front legs wide apart in order to bend over. In this position, he is very vulnerable to predators, because he cannot immediately rush to flight.
Giraffes live in herds, divided into two groups: one contains females with cubs, the other contains males.
The black panther is a dark-colored leopard.
She jumps from branch to branch as well as a monkey.
I also call her the fishing cat. In fact, she really likes to live near water and is a good swimmer. In addition to fish and shellfish, it catches small vertebrates on land. The habits of this animal have been little studied.
"Secret weapon"The cheetah is distinguished by its flexible body with a strong spine, curved like the arch of a bridge, and powerful clawed paws that allow it to rest firmly on the ground. It is the fastest-footed animal. No one can imagine an animal running faster than a cheetah. In short moments, it reaches speeds of over 100 kilometers per hour. The cheetah climbs trees and surveys the area from above to detect herds of grazing herbivores that could become its prey.
adapt to a wide variety of climatic conditions; They live in various areas, found in the mountains at an altitude of up to 3000 m and in very cold areas; in the latter case, a thick, more than five centimeters, layer of fat forms under their skin, protecting them from heat loss. Almost all jungle inhabitants are at risk of becoming tiger prey. Contrary to popular belief, the tiger is not a very clever hunter; he's so heavy. That for a successful jump he needs to start his run from a distance of 10 - 15 meters; if the tiger gets closer to its prey, it risks missing.
An animal similar to a leopard, but larger; It is also distinguished by a special pattern on the skin: ring-shaped dark spots, inside of which there are smaller specks. Jaguars hunt alone and mainly on the ground, although they crawl well in trees and swim. Having caught prey, the predator usually hides it somewhere in secret place and then eats it piece by piece.
Leo prefers open spaces where he finds coolness in the shade rare trees. For hunting, it is better to have a wide view in order to notice herds of grazing zebras, buffalos, and antelopes from afar and develop a strategy on how best to approach them unnoticed. Outwardly, it is a lazy beast that dozes and sits around for a long time. Only when the lion is hungry and forced to pursue herds of herbivores or when he must defend his territory does he emerge from his stupor.
A characteristic feature of a lion is the thick mane of males. A lion's claws can reach 7 cm.
The zebra skin is original and easily recognizable. At first glance, all zebras seem the same, but in fact, each animal has its own stripe pattern, like human fingerprints.
Zebras lack horns and other means of defense and flee from predators. Once surrounded, they defend themselves with their teeth and hooves.
A pursued zebra can run at a speed of 80 kilometers per hour, but not for a long time.
The mass of the ostrich exceeds 130 kilograms. A long neck increases the height of an ostrich up to two meters. A flexible neck and excellent vision allow him to notice danger from afar from this height. Long legs give the ostrich the ability to run at speeds of up to 70 kilometers per hour. The ostrich prefers open spaces where it can see everything from afar and there are no obstacles for running.
Ostrich beak short, flat and very durable. It is not specialized for any particular food, but serves to pluck grass and other vegetation and grab insects, small mammals and snakes on which it feeds.
This bird cannot be confused with any other because of the huge motley beak, which toucans sometimes longer than the entire body. Toucans make nests in the recesses of tree posts, but often occupy hollows left by families of woodpeckers.
This tiny bird (size from 5.7 to 21.6 cm; weight from 1.6 to 20 g) with a long curved beak is capable of flapping its wings so often that it manages to hang almost motionless in the air, sucking nectar from a flower. This is the only bird in the world that can fly backwards.