The Water Buffalo or Asian buffalo is often called the largest member of the Bovini tribe. That tribe includes yak, bison, African buffalo and species of wild cattle. They stand 5-6 feet tall at the shoulder and have gray-black coats. Males carry enormous horns close to 5 feet long with deep ridges on their surfaces. Females are smaller with horns that are smaller too. Water buffalo spend a lot of the day in muddy waters in Asia and subtropical forests. Their hoofed feet prevent them from sinking into the mud and allow them to move around in the swamps. The swamps provide good cover and rich aquatic plants to forage on and water buffalo prefer to feed on grass and herbs.
The females usually produce calves every other year. Young bulls remain with the herd for three years then they go on to form small male only herds. Water buffalo have been domesticated for over 5,000 years. They have helped with humanities survival with their meat, horns, hides, milk, butterfat and ploughing and transporting abilities. Wild buffalo are endangered and live in small numbers in protected areas stretching across India, Nepal and Bhutan and Thailand. The Latin name for them Bison bison and they are an American icon. In Europe they is a closely related species called the Bison bonasus. This species called the winet are endangered and confined to zoos.
There is a buffalo in Africa that is not only a different species but a separate genus called Syncerus Caffer. In the South there is a species called the Cape buffalo. The African buffalo has upturned horns which makes them very dangerous to humans. These buffalo can reach the speed of a horse at around 30mph! In Asia there is the water buffalo-bubalus bubalis. These are docile buffalo and can be farmed and eaten for their meat. Their milk and hide can also be used. Buffalo are important to Native American tribes. Bison is a curious word in that the plural is the same as the singular. Most dictionaries accept Buffalos or Buffalo as the plural! The old American 5 cent piece is called the “Buffalo Nickel.”
The locals in Hampshire, UK have been told not to approach six missing water buffalo because they can spray dung across large distances! They have been increasingly used in the UK for specialty cheeses, milk and yogurts.
Animal Fun Facts
Most seals live in the arctics and survive because they have a layer of thick fat called blubber. Seals and sea lions live their lives in the water but come on land to bask in the sun. They come up during the breeding season and like the deep sea water. It provides those fish and keeps them alive and healthy. Seals live in places where any disturbances are minimal. They like islands and rocky shores close to food sources. They also like sandbars. They can feed in the cold open waters so that they have a variety of fish. Harbour seals belong to the order of Pinnipedia which includes seals, sea lions and walruses. Seals are different then sea lions in a number of ways including having shorter, stouter flippers and no visible ear flaps.
Seal pups are born in spring and summer and enter the water immediately! Sexual maturity in seals happens at 3-6 for females and 3-7 for males. The name Phoca Vitulina is the scientific name for the harbour seal and means, “sea calf” or “sea dog.” It is because they resemble a dog when their heads pop up above the water. A group of seals is called a herd or pod. Seals have torpedo shaped bodies and short paddle like limbs and thick layers of blubber that insulates their organs. Harbour seals have larger eyes for good underwater vision. A mucous membrane continually washes their eyes in order to protect them. However, their vision on land is not that great. They do not have color vision. However, there have been mothers and pups found that were blind and they had adapted just fine. Seals rely on their whiskers to locate food in deep dark waters. Mothers identify the pups the same way.
Seals can dive to depths of 1700 feet! Seals hearing are extremely developed but their taste is not. Their average life span is 20-25 years. Adult seals eat molluscs, squid, herring, flounder, salmon etc. They can consume five to six percent of their body weight. They have threats from fishing nets and packing materials. They sometimes eat plastic materials which can cause starvation and obstructions in their digestive tracts. Seals are one of the best swimmers in the world because of their flippers and fins that make them glide through the water at a fast speed. Seals can swim underwater for 40 minutes or more.
Animal Fun Facts
Lions are not called the “king of the jungle” for nothing. They have existed on earth for 2 million years or longer. Male lions can reach a length of 10 feet and weigh between 300 to 500 pounds or more! Female lions are a little smaller. Lions inhabit a range of open plains and forests. Lions are actually the most social of the feline species. Lions hunt large animals such as zebra and wildebeest. The lifespan of lions is 15 years and up to 25 in captivity. They are Africa’s largest carnivore. Female lions give birth to a litter of cubs every 2 years. The gestation is three and half months. A litter could have 1-5 cubs and they nurse for the first 6 months. A group of lions is called a “pride.”
Male lions will mark their territory with urine as do domestic felines. Female lions actually do most of the hunting. The hyena will compete with the lion for prey. Lions face endangerment and have for many years from hunting and habitat. Only the male lions have the long, shaggy mane. The fuller and darker the mane the healthier the lion. Believe it or not lions are listed as vulnerable on the World Conservation Unions Red List of Threatened Animals. Lion cubs are born with grayish spots that disappear at 3 months. Male lions reach sexual maturity at 5 years of age and females mature at 4 years old. If a lion roars you can hear it 5 miles away. There were white lions in the late 20th century.
Lions don’t hunt during the day. They hunt at night right through till dawn. A female lion needs 11 pounds of meat a day. A male needs 15 pounds or more a day. Lions can’t roar until the age of 2. Lions have a tendency to pick up poisoned meat and then get poisoned themselves. If one lion kills another when joining a pride the defeated lions cubs will be killed. In the lion pride the strongest eat first. The males will eat until they are satisfied then the lioness eats and the cubs are last. The cubs will usually die from starvation. To avoid fatal results in a fight weaker lions will lie on their back signaling defeat. Lions were said to be kept in the tower of London! Lions will fiercely defend their pride from other lions.
Animal Fun Facts