A Trip to the African Savanna (Virtual Tour) )

1. A Trip to the African Savanna(Virtual Tour)) An Interactive Power Point Quit

2. Mammals in the African Savanna • What is a Savanna? • Elephant • Lion • Zebra • Cheetah • Giraffe • Gazelle • Hippopotamus • Lemur • Rhinoceros • Meerkat • Sengi • Living Together • About the Author • Resources Quit

3. What is a Savanna?? • The African savanna is a rolling grassland dotted with trees. • Africa has a wet season and dry season. • The animals in Africa are well adapted to deal with the changes in wet or dry season. • There are 45 species of mammal in Africa. Quit

4. Elephant • On average elephants are 10 feet tall and the largest land animal by weight!! • They use their trunks to breathe out of and even use it as an arm like we would. • The trunk has two grasping extensions (like fingers) that can grab onto things. The truck can also be used to suck up water to squirt into their mouth. • The adult females usually live together in a small herd where as males usually live alone. • The elephants usually migrate in-between the dry and wet season because they have to move to a place with more vegetation. To view an African Elephant in its habitat click on the picture above. Quit

5. Lion • Lions hunt and live together in groups called prides. • Normally the females do the hunting and work together to take down their pray. • Lions feed on zebras, wildebeest and can even take down giraffes, hippos and young elephants. • They are the biggest predator in Africa. Quit

6. Zebra • Zebras strips are unique to each individual like a human finger print. • They are found to live in small to large herds. • The strips are used as camouflage because most of their strips are vertical and their main predator (the lion) is color blind. • This allows them to hide in the grass. • When chased zebras will run zig-zag from side to side to attempt to escape from predators. Quit

7. Cheetah • The cheetah is the fastest land animalsand can move up to 75 mph in short bursts. • They can reach 43 mph under 2 seconds giving them the ability to catch prey. • When mother cheetahs have young that are about 6 months old they are know to bring home live prey for their young to practice killing techniques. • Cheetahs have a tear mark leading from their eyes to their mouth while leopards do not. Quit

8. Giraffe • Giraffes also live in herds. • They normally only eat in the morning or at dusk from the tops of trees. • Baby giraffes known as calves grow very quick. • Up to an inch a day!! • Giraffes sleep standing up!! • A giraffe has a blue tongue that can stretch out of its mouth more than 40cm. • This makes reaching and eating leaves easier. • Like zebras each giraffe his its own unique markings. Quit

9. Gazelle • Gazelle can run at speeds of 50 miles per hour for extended period of time. • This helps them out run predators. • Before fleeing gazelle exhibit a behavior of slowly running and then jumping high in the air know as stotting. • They do this to show off their strength because predators usually go after the weaker prey. • Like many other animals in Africa they live in herds. Quit

10. Hippopotamus • Hippos wallow in the water often because their skin is very thin and the water keeps them hydrated. • They normally graze at dusk because the temperature is cooler. • They can eat up to 88 pounds of short grass in one day!! • Even though hippos are very large they can gallop at speeds up to 18 mph. • Hippos are territorial in the water where a bull (male leader) presides over a small stretch of river which contains many females. Quit

11. Ring Tailed Lemur • Ring Tailed Lemurs live on the island of Madagascar which is off the coast of Africa. • They are very social and live in groups up to 30 individuals. • Which are dominated by females • As a group activity the lemurs will sometimes sunbath. • At night they will all huddle together which is know as a lemur ball. • They are one of the most vocal primates that use many different calls to communicate messages to one another. • To hear click the lemur. Quit

12. Rhinoceros • Rhinos belong to the same family as horses. • Unlike many of the mammals discussed earlier rhinos mainly live alone. • They can be aggressive if provoked. First they will snort loudly at an intruder and if the intruder does not leave they will charge. • Rhinos have think skin and a horn growing out of the middle of their head however the black rhino, as pictured ,has two. Quit

13. Meerkat • Meerkats live in a group know as a mob, clan, or gang. Most clans have about 20 individuals but some super families can have 50 or more. • Meerkats mostly eat insects but will also eat lizards, snakes, scorpions, etc. • They are partially immune to certain venoms such as scorpion venom. • Meerkats are small burrowing mammals that build a large network of tunnels with many entrances and exits. • They regularly groom each other to strength bonds among their mob. • If a predator is spotted the meerkat will give a warning bark to all the other meerkats to hide. Quit

14. Sengi(Elephant Shrew) • The sengi got its nickname from its long nose that resembles an elephants trunk. • They feed on insects but will also eat seeds. • The eat by using their tongue to flick food into their mouth like an anteater. • They have long legs which they use to move in a hopping motion like a rabbit. • The sengi are very well camouflage and well adept at dashing away from predators. Quit

15. Living Together • Each mammal has its own niche in the African Savanna. • Some mammals are predators to others and some just want to be left alone. • Some eat the leaves from the tops of trees and others graze on the grass below. • All of the mammals of the African Savanna live together and fight their own battles to survive. Quit

16. Resources • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ • http://www.africanfauna.com/ • http://www.taggalaxy.com/ • http://www.flickr.com/photos/ • http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/african_savanna.htm • http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/AfricanSavanna/afsavmeet.cfm • http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAssetId=0773D9E1-7D8A-4B91-9C98-D1A47733BF05&blnFromSearch=1&productcode=US Quit