Category Animal World

Which is the fastest animal on land?

No prizes for guessing which is the fastest animal on land. You must have seen images of this iconic creature featured in advertisements of sports bikes and cars. Not surprising, as the cheetah can reach speeds of 112 km/h in just 3 seconds! That’s faster than most sports cars in the world today!

Cheetahs are found in sub-Saharan Africa and much more scantily in Asia and Iran. They are medium-sized spotted cats with slender long legs and a dark stripe on both sides of their faces. They have a long tail, a big chest, a narrow waist and large nostrils for greater oxygen intake while running.

The aerodynamic body of the cheetah is built for speed, not stamina. After catching its prey, it needs half an hour to catch its breath before it can eat. This is because the high energy consumption due to running at such a high speed, heats up its body to dangerously high levels. This makes it crucial for the cheetah to rest and cool down after a high-speed chase.

Did you know that the name cheetah comes from the Hindi Word ‘chita’ which means spotted one? A single cheetah needs a huge range to operate in and due to human encroachment into its territory and excessive hunting, it is greatly threatened. Due to the alarming decrease in its populations in the past few decades, it is listed as ‘Endangered’ in the IUCN Red List. One could say that the cheetah is sprinting fast towards extinction!

In India the cheetah became extinct in 1952, but thankfully there is still hope. Plans are afoot to reintroduce these iconic cats back in the country in the forests of Madhya Pradesh. Fifty cheetahs from Africa will be reintroduced in India over the next five years. Hopefully, this animal superstar will soon roam our country again.

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Why is the eastern gorilla special?

The eastern gorilla is the largest living primate, with the average adult male weighing around 160 kg and standing at 1.7 metres. This gorilla has a large head broad chest and long arms. Its fur is black and adult males have a silvery streak down the back. As the gorilla gets older, the silvery streak turns white; much like a human being turns grey. Older males are called ‘silver backs’ because of this.

The eastern gorilla has two subspecies – the mountain gorilla and the eastern lowland gorilla. Both species are found in the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa but the mountain gorilla is found in Rwanda and Uganda as well. These gorillas eat a lot of foliage in the form of leaves and plants since fruits are not abundantly found in their habitat.

They do most of their foraging in the mornings and late afternoons and prepare nests to sleep in the night. These nests are usually made of leaves laid in a hollow space on the ground. These gorillas live in stable family groups which are led by a dominant male silverback.

Females give birth to young only once in three or four years, as they have to care for the infants for around 3 to 4 years after they are born.

The eastern gorilla is listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ due to large-scale habitat destruction and the introduction of diseases from contact with humans. According to the IUCN, its numbers have reduced by about 70 per cent due to the ongoing political instability in areas that the eastern gorilla lives in and it is difficult for their numbers to pick up once again.

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Which is the largest rodent?

The term rodent conjures up images of tiny rats and mice that scuttle through dark holes and leaky pipes in urban sprawls. But did you know that the largest rodent in the world lives in the grassy wetlands of South America is nearly 1.2 metres tall and can weigh nearly 66 kg?

They are called capybaras. These creatures are semi-aquatic and spend much time in rivers. They have partially webbed feet, which helps them swim and dive. They are fast swimmers and can hold their breath for up to 5 minutes under water! This helps them to evade predators such as jaguars and anacondas by diving into water. If all else fails they can bark like dogs to scare off a predator!

They are usually found in large groups and communicate with each other with the help of grunts and whistles. These cuddly creatures are herbivores and eat mostly grass, but will consume fruits, grain and vegetables whenever possible.

They are raised on farms for meat in some countries and their skin is harvested to make high quality leather. They are related to guinea pigs and look quite cute and furry. They are kept as pets in countries like Japan and the U.S.A.

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Which is the largest amphibian?

The Chinese giant salamander can grow up to 1.8 metres in length and weighs 50 kg on average, making it the biggest amphibian in the world. This lumpy, dark brown ‘living fossil’ has been around for a very long time roughly 170 million years! So long in fact, that it has even seen the dinosaurs come and go!

It is a nocturnal and secretive creature and is very difficult to spot in the wild. It lives underwater and camouflages itself in the rocky beds of streams. It has many loose folds of skin covering its lumpy body; and short stubby limbs. It has no gills and breathes through its skin, which is why it prefers fast flowing mountain streams for better oxygenation.

It preys on fish, frogs and insects. Its eyes are not very effective and it detects prey mainly by vibrations in the water. During the breeding season, the female lays many eggs in an underwater den which is guarded by the male till the young hatch out.

This salamander is sometimes called ‘baby fish’ because its cry sounds like a baby crying. These creatures remained relatively unharmed till the 1970s but rapidly reduced in number after the Chinese started hunting them for meat and medicinal purposes.

Today thousands of salamanders are bred in farms across China to meet the market demand for these products. However, this practice is detrimental to the salamander, as farming introduces new diseases in wild populations. The Chinese salamander, which has survived big extinction events, may finally be wiped off the face of the earth due to human greed. They are currently listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ in the IUCN Red List.

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Why is the ostrich exceptional?

As birds go, the ostrich is an exception. For starters it does not fly; it has a rumpled, ‘un-streamlined’ body with untidy, soft feathers; and two toes on each leg instead of the usual four. It reaches heights of up to 3 metres and weighs around 145 kgs making it the world’s largest bird.

It is native to the continent of Africa and is typically found in Africa’s savannas, woodlands and plains. The ostrich is an omnivore and eats plants as well as small insects when available. These huge birds have three stomachs. Since they do not have teeth, they swallow pebbles and stones to help digest their food. These stones are stored in one of their specialized stomachs called the ventriculus where the food gets broken down to make it easier to digest. So, the average ostrich rattles around with a belly full of stones!

That’s not all. An ostrich egg is the biggest egg in the world weighing about 1.5 kg (that’s 23 times the size of chicken eggs). It has the largest eyes of any land animal. It is also called the ‘camel bird’ because, like a camel, it has a long neck, prominent eyes, sweeping eyelashes and a jolting walk. Additionally, the ostrich can tolerate high temperatures and go without water for long periods of time.

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Which is the largest land animal?

You probably already know that the elephant is the largest land animal found on Earth, but did you know that some species of elephants are bigger than the others? The African bush elephant or African Savannah elephant is larger than its Asian counterpart and has the distinction of being the largest (and heaviest) land animal on Earth. Adult males reach a height of 4 metres and weigh up to 6000 kg!

African bush elephants prefer open savannah or grasslands and are found in southern and eastern African countries like Botswana, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Kenya, Namibia, Zambia and South Africa. They are easily distinguishable from Asian elephants by their larger, fan-shaped ears and front legs.

Picture Credit : Google