www.wezmat.org JUNIOR WILDLIFE MAGAZINE VOLUME 13 2017 Hi everyone, Hope you are all well and enjoying school. I would like to thank the teacher from Emhlangeni Primary School, and Patson Mpofu from Matopos Conservation Club for their messages. It is good to hear from you. Also a big thank you to Thabo Masuku of Matopo High School who sent me answers to the DO YOU KNOW??? Quiz from Volume 12 of Bushbeat. Well done Thabo! Come on the rest of you, we would like to know what school you go to and if you enjoy receiving Bushbeat. We would love to hear from you. Please text (SMS) us on phone number 077 732 7921 (Sorry, we do not take phone calls, SMS only) DO YOU KNOW??? (Taken from the WEZ SCHOOLS QUIZ 2015 MATABELELAND BRANCH) Answers to questions in Volume 12 are 1c, 2b, 3a, 4a, and 5 a. Now let s see how well you know your Mammals. Question 1. Name the largest African carnivore? Answer: a) Lion, b) Leopard, c) Cheetah Question 2. Female Elephants live in herds of related individuals. What name is given to the cow? Answer: a) Patriarch b) Matriarch c) Aunty Question 3. Old male Buffalo have a nickname. Is it? Answer: a) Cheeky Boys b) Cow boys c) Dagga Boys Question 4. Some antelope are TRAGELAPHINES. What does this mean? Answer: a) Solitary b) Straight horns c) Spiral-horned Question 5. In Steenbok for instance they have a gland called the PEDAL gland. Where is it found on the body? Answer: a) In front of the eyes. b) Under the tail c) Between the hooves. Why don t you send your answers to Bushbeat by SMS???
BANDED MONGOOSE AND DWARF MONGOOSE Best habitat: Open grassland, especially where there are termite mounds. These animals spend most of their day looking for food. At nigh they retire to holes in the ground. Habits: These are sociable animals and help each other with defense and food gathering. Food: Snakes, lizards, birds eggs, small birds and insects. Number of Young: Two to Four SECRETARY BIRD Perhaps the strangest looking of all Birds of prey the Secretary Bird has much longer legs. The main reason for this is that the bird spends most of its waking hours striding about the open veldt in search of food. Once prey is found, be it snake, lizard, tortoise, mouse or insect it is quickly trampled to death by the long legs and stubby feet. If you follow a Secretary Bird it will run for safety rather than fly, but if really pressed it will fly and often soar to a great height very gracefully. Page 2
Some Birds There have been over 400 species of birds recorded in Hwange National Park and many of them such as the parrots, rollers, waxbills, bee-eaters, widow-birds and seed-eaters are very colourful. BATELEUR (Terathopius ecaudatus) Local name: chapungu A handsome colourful eagle. GROUND HORNBILL (Bucorvus leadbeateri) A large black bird often seen walking along the ground. It has white wings BRADFIELD'S HORNBILL TAWNY EAGLE (Aquila rapax) Local name: gondo A common eagle in the park. Local name: hoto Like other hornbills, this hornbill nests in holes in trees which it seals up in the breeding season. It is endemic to north west Zimbabwe. Page 3
Is wildlife important to wildlife? All plants and animals depend on other plants or animals for they are pollinated by bees or other creatures. Sometimes these relationships between species are very important and the extinction of one animal or plant can mean that other animals and plants will also die out. This is one of the reasons why it is so important for us to try to protect all our wildlife species from extinction - even the ones we don t like or the ones that don t seem to be important. PINCUSHION Which tree nearly died out with the dodo? The tambalacoque. This tree is only found exterminated about 300 years ago. By 1973 only 13 tambalacoques still existed in Mauritius, all of them over 300 years old. Although they produced very large, apparently healthy seed, none would germinate. As some seeds only germinate after passing through the digestive systems of birds and other animals, a clever scientist thought that maybe the seed-eating dodo was the key to the solution. He fed its fruits to a turkey, which is about the same size as a dodo, collected the seeds from the droppings and, luckily, they germinated and the tambalacoque was saved. ANTS CARRYING SEEDS Can seeds walk? Yes - sort of - but the legs belong to ants! A few years ago, scientists found that certain ant species in the Cape s fynbos vegetation collect the seeds of some plants and carry them to their underground nests. When they looked closely at the seeds, they found that the ants were eating a sweet, oily substance sticking to the hard seed-cases. The seeds themselves were not harmed and were able to germinate underground, safe nately the Argentine ant which came from South America in 1900, is causing our native ants to disappear. As it doesn t bury seeds, it is feared that many of the DODO Page 4
SPOTTED HYAENA How do hyaena jaws help vulture chicks? By crunching up bones. Recently more and more of the chicks of the rare Cape vulture have died because they have weak leg and wing bones -a sure Do you know? Worried scientists have made lists of some of the plant and animal species that are in some danger of extinction in South Africa. these vultures were in farming areas where hyaenas no longer occurand it was soon realised that the hyaena was the missing link. Hyaenas like nothing better than to crunch up an antelope bone with their powerful jaws. Being messy feeders, they leave bits and pieces of bone lying around which the vultures feed to their chicks to give them strong, healthy legs and wings. Nowadays conservationists break up bones with hammers and leave them at vulture restaurants. Reptiles and Plants - 1 844 out of amphibians - 93 out of 386 20 300 Why is the aardvark so important? Because it is one of Nature s great homebuilders. Aadvarks dig long, deep burrows and when they abandon them, they are soon occupied by other animals which don t like digging their own holes. These include warthogs, hyaenas, jackals, foxes, aardwolves, wild dogs and at least one bird, the ant-eating chat. This bird usually makes its nesting-holes in the roof of an aadvark burrow. Even a wild cucumber is dependent on the aadvark, which digs up its juicy, underground fruit to obtain water. The seeds pass through its body unharmed and because the aardvark covers its droppings, they soon germinate to start the cycle again! AARDVARK Page 5
Grassland wildlife CAPE VULTURE Immature When the hardy pioneers of the Great Trek reached the highveld plateau of the Orange Free State, Transvaal and Natal over 500 years ago, they found an unspoiled landscape of rolling grasslands. Today these areas and many of its wildlife species have given way to some of South Africa s biggest cities, industries and the rich farmlands known as the maize triangle. Which rare bird eats out at restaurants? Adult The Cape vulture. Although it was once very common all over southern Africa, in both grassland and bushveld, this beautiful vulture is now on the danger list. One of the main reasons for its there simply aren t enough dead animals lying around the veld any more. Conservationists then thought of setting up vulture restaurants. These are places where carcasses of dead animals are placed regularly. The vultures soon become accustomed to feeding in these safe areas and visit them often. VULTURE RESTAURANT SUNGAZER How did the sungazer get its name? These large armour-plated lizards are often seen during the day, sitting on top of a termite-mound and gazing directly at the sun. Sungazers (also called giant girdled lizards) live in burrows in grassland in certain parts of the Transvaal, natal and Orage Free State. Much of their habit has been destroyed by farming and many specimens are illegally collected for the pet trade. This beautiful lizard is now fully protected by law. Page 6
A to Z CHIT CHAT J = JAGLUIPERD (CHEETAH) Cheetahs are diurnal; they are usually seen in pairs, or as female and young. Cheetahs may associate in groups when hunting large prey, their usual feed being medium-sized to small bovid or the young of the larger. They are the fastest mammals over short distances, but tend to tackle herd stragglers and are also not averse to carrion (rotten meat). Litters number up to five but more usually three, are born in the shelter of underbrush or tall grass at any time of the year. They chirrup when excited and have a bird-like call that carries long distances. K KINGFISHER The kingfisher gets its name from diving into the water to catch fish, but many kingfishers eat insects. They are rather thick set birds with straight pointed beaks. As many are very noisy they draw attention to themselves. L = LEMNISCOMYS ROSASLIA (Single-Striped Mouse) This nocturnal mouse varies in colour greatly; from pale buff in the drier areas to reddish orange in the higher rainfall areas, but this mouse is everywhere characterized by the clearly marked dark stripe down the mid-back. The under parts are rusty white, the tail dark or rusty coloured longitudinal stripe on the top and white underneath. Page 7
WHY MONGOOSE AND SECRETARY BIRDS KILL SNAKES Mongoose and Secretary bird were great friends. One day they were walking together through the bush when they came upon a very large Snake. Snake asked Mongoose to go with him as he had found something special and wished to show it to Mongoose. Secretary Bird said I am very hot so I am going to knew that the nest belonged to Secretary Bird, but he did not tell Mongoose this. Have you ever tasted eggs? Snake asked Mongoose. No, Snake, I have never eaten an egg Replied Mongoose. Why don t you try one they are very good suggested Snake as he broke open the shell of one of the eggs. Both Mongoose and Snake started to eat the eggs. Mongoose agreed that he had never eaten anything that tasted as good. He had just gulped down the last egg when he saw Secretary Bird approaching. The devious Snake called out, Mongoose has eaten all your precious eggs! Secretary Bird was very angry and very sad that her friend Mongoose had done this to her. Then she saw egg on the Snakes face. Not only Mongoose but you Snake have also eaten my eggs said Secretary bird almost in tears. I did not know the eggs were yours, Snake tricked me, and told me to eat the eggs I am so very sorry I did not know they were your eggs, please forgive me. Cried Mongoose. Then both Secretary Bird and Mongoose set upon the deceitful Snake and killed him. From now on, we will both watch for snakes and kill them, said Mongoose to Secretary Bird and they both have done so to this day. Page 8 Printed by DP Printmedia Bulawayo. 09 78831