Animals of the savannas - They're EVERYWHERE!
The savannas are home to vast varieties of animals from zebras to termites, and even to the meerkat adjacent to this text. However, different savannas house different animals. For example, kangaroos are distictive to Australian savannas while giraffes only live in the savannas of Africa. Under this introductory text is a short description of three animals that live in savannas.
Those who live in savannas world-wide
The termite family is an important animal on the savanna biome. They are a major food source to many animals and their mounds can be used in many different ways, such as hideouts, homes, straching posts, or even a place to lay eggs.
However, I will be talking mostly about a specific type of termite named the Alates Termite (shown in picture). These termites have wings and they breed in the air during a specific time of the year. After breeding they fly back down to the land to lay their eggs, and this is where the 'feeding' takes place. Birds called the Black Kite eat them whilst in the air. Foxes, cats, and mongoose pounce on them as they land. And the lucky one that have reached the ground are usually licked up and eaten by aardvarks and anteaters.
FUN FACT: the tallest non-human structures of the world are built by macro-termites of the savanna. The structures they build are about the size of a 180 story building about 2,000 feet high. (You can find a picture of one on the homepage)
However, I will be talking mostly about a specific type of termite named the Alates Termite (shown in picture). These termites have wings and they breed in the air during a specific time of the year. After breeding they fly back down to the land to lay their eggs, and this is where the 'feeding' takes place. Birds called the Black Kite eat them whilst in the air. Foxes, cats, and mongoose pounce on them as they land. And the lucky one that have reached the ground are usually licked up and eaten by aardvarks and anteaters.
FUN FACT: the tallest non-human structures of the world are built by macro-termites of the savanna. The structures they build are about the size of a 180 story building about 2,000 feet high. (You can find a picture of one on the homepage)
King of the Australian Savanna
These animals originate from Australia and are marsupials, just like most of the animals that live on the Australian savanna. Yes, it is the red kangaroo.
This marsupial (an animal that has a pouch on its belly to hold its baby) can jump as far as 9m in one jump. It's long feet and tail help it balance and the average roo can travel at 797kph. It feeds its baby in its pouch and they live up to 6 years in the wild and 20 years in captivity.
They feed on grass, roots, and leaves and they do not need a lot of water to survive, but when they do need water, they dig up their own water wells.
A male kangaroo is called a buck/boomer/jack, a female is called a doe/flyer/jill, and the babies are called joeys.
The average red kangaroo grows up to about 6ft tall. They weigh up to 300pounds.
FUN FACT: A baby kangaroo only stays in its mother's pouch for about a month (when its basic limbs are kind of developed) and then he or she has to travel the distance between the mother's uterus and her pouch, where the mother's teats are. At this point, the baby is about the size of a lima bean.
This marsupial (an animal that has a pouch on its belly to hold its baby) can jump as far as 9m in one jump. It's long feet and tail help it balance and the average roo can travel at 797kph. It feeds its baby in its pouch and they live up to 6 years in the wild and 20 years in captivity.
They feed on grass, roots, and leaves and they do not need a lot of water to survive, but when they do need water, they dig up their own water wells.
A male kangaroo is called a buck/boomer/jack, a female is called a doe/flyer/jill, and the babies are called joeys.
The average red kangaroo grows up to about 6ft tall. They weigh up to 300pounds.
FUN FACT: A baby kangaroo only stays in its mother's pouch for about a month (when its basic limbs are kind of developed) and then he or she has to travel the distance between the mother's uterus and her pouch, where the mother's teats are. At this point, the baby is about the size of a lima bean.
The tallest land animal
The giraffe, an animal which only lives on the African savannas, is the tallest land animal on Earth and can grow up to 6m. It feeds on mostly acacia trees and its long tongue helps it avoid the thorns. They live in herds and they can spot predators from a long distance due to their tall height and can sprint short distances at up to 56kph. Their fur is a cream/tan background with brown spots on it. This is to help them camouflage amongst the red oat grass and the acacia trees. Males have rounded and hairless horns while the famles have thin, tufted horns.
FUN FACT: Even though a giraffe has an extremely long neck, it only consists of seven neck vertebrae (the somewhat cylindrical bone structures that make up your neck) which is similar to the average amount of neck vertebrae a person has.
FUN FACT: Even though a giraffe has an extremely long neck, it only consists of seven neck vertebrae (the somewhat cylindrical bone structures that make up your neck) which is similar to the average amount of neck vertebrae a person has.
