Africa Animals; Amazing variety, a Feast to the Viewer

Nature in her lavish prodigality has peopled each nook and corner of the earth, a rich array of animal wealth that is a wonder to the onlooker. The geographic and climatic variation has resulted in this colorful feast. Africa till recently have been virgin nature where man and beast co-existed in perfect harmony for many thousands of years. A survey of the most common animals of the so called Dark Continent is in itself a rewarding exercise that gives us insight to the amazing Africa Animals.
A quick glance of this amazing variety puts Black Rhinoceros, White Rhinoceros, Cheetah, Giraffe, Leopard, Lion and the Hippopotamus as the most common of the African animals. If a second list is to be drawn then you have animals like Aardvark, Buffalo, Eland, Impala, Hyena and Hedgehog. Indeed, they are not an exhaustive list because there are many animals in Africa which are less known.
African animals some times are listed also as the most dangerous animals. This is due to their fierce nature as part of their genetically coded skill in survival. The African lion has the pre-eminent position in this. This is closely followed by the Leopard, Cheetah and the African Buffalo.
Some African animals are endowed with a mind-boggling speed. In this category of speed, the Cheetah tops the list. It can run at a speed of 113 km per hour and rated as the fastest animal on earth. The wildebeest can run at 80 km per hour. The lion too is a fast animal which can run at a speed of 80 km per hour. The same speed is achieved by Thomson’s gazelle. In the world of animals the brute force is the main stay of animals when it comes to survival. However, man with his superior skill in using technology as a tool has outwitted all animals in speed.
When we consider the common African animals the African Rhinoceros has a predominant place. It is a fairly large animal with body that is as good as armor and a horn. It is interesting to know that the rhinoceros belongs to the family of horses. The black rhino is the smallest of the entire 5 species of rhinos and have an intimidating horn and a whopping weight of 1.5 tones.
The white rhino is endowed with two horns. The name white is a misnomer as they are grey in color. The white rhino is the second largest animal on land. They range in groups of ten and feed on leaves and grass. They are highly endangered. Poaching this animal and trading their horns are illegal everywhere. They are fun loving creatures and like to wallow in muddy water. The huge size of the animal, its armor like body and intimidating look coupled with speed has made the animal somewhat safe and is free from predators in the wild. However, man with his sophisticated tools is the real predator.
The animal cheetah is a fantastic African animal. The various attractive traits of this animal have made it famous the world over. Their habitat is the south of Sahara and hunt in packs. Its body is covered with spots and hence the name cheetah, which in Hindi means spotted. The weight of this ferocious animal is around 50 kilos. Compared to their body they have a small head and comparatively long tale.
Cheetah is a flesh eating animal and small animals are their prey. They have a great capacity for stealth operations and they cleverly camouflage in grass or climb on trees and from that vantage point watch the animals with their keen eyes. Once the animal is spotted the Cheetah relies on its amazing speed; it can acquire 70 km within two seconds. This strength of its speed can not be outwitted by most of the animals. It mauls to death small animals. The larger ones are caught on the neck with powerful grip and the wind pipe is blocked which take the life of the animal. They belong to the cat family and can growl and purr.
The cheetah like other cats is somewhat fast breeding. They have a gestation period of 90 days and two to four cubs are born. They are ready to move with the pack after 6 weeks. However, the mother and the cubs stay together for one year so that the young ones are adept in the tricks of the hunt and other survival maneuvers.
Giraffe is another interesting African animal. It is the tallest of all living land animals and can reach an incredible height of 6 meters. Giraffes range in the African Savannah. They eat leaves and fruit and usually choose dusk and dawn as their eating times. It can gallop at the speed of 55 km an hour. They are considered very quite animals, however, when cornered can use their front legs to kick the foe or charge the enemy with their heavily boned heads. Giraffes do not have many predators. However, the young ones are vulnerable to the attacks of a Hyena.
The Leopards range the length and breadth of the African wild except in the Sahara Desert. Like the Cheetah they are clever hunters and feast on a wide variety of preys which include insects, rodents and large animals. They hunt alone and are clever in climbing trees. Endowed with rich coat of yellow with dark spots, they are very pretty to see. The average weight of the Leopard is 150 pounds and grows six to seven feet in length.
In sheer ferocity there is nothing like the African Lion. However, this image has been recently mellowed by the famous film, The Lion King. They are pretty large animals, the male reaching an impressive height of 1.2 meters and the female 90 cm. The male lion weighs around 190 kilos and the female 130. Apart from this size difference you can tell a male lion by the delightful manes around its neck. They hunt in groups known as the pride and bring down the prey in a cooperative venture. Though the female take the lead in the hunt the male takes the lion share of the price; what is left over goes to the females and the cubs.
The Africa Animals are colorful, interesting and fascinating and much of Africa bound tourism includes a visit to the preserved reserves to have a look at the beautiful people that fill the primordial jungles of Africa. Many of these animals today are threatened by extinction due to the past and present operations of man and man has a duty to explore the ways and means to salvage them from their sad predicament.





The list of extinct animals in Africa features the animals that have become extinct on the African continent and its islands, like Madagascar, Mauritius, Rodrigues, Réunion, Seychelles, St. Helena, Cape Verde, etc.
Global Holocene Extinctions
Extinctions in the wild