Animals of hot countries - lions and elephants

The fauna of our planet, despite all the efforts of man, still remains very rich. Many species of animals live at all latitudes, starting from the North Pole and ending with Antarctica. And in a hot climate, there are a lot of them. Take at least Africa and its "big five". This was the name of five inhabitants of this continent: a buffalo, a rhinoceros, a leopard, an elephant and, of course, a lion. In our temperate climate, these animals of hot countries are found only in zoos. And Africa is their home for them and you can meet them there in the wild.

Everyone knows the "king of beasts" of a lion. Previously, these predators roamed the expanses of Eurasia, North America and throughout Africa. But people exterminated many representatives of this "royal" kind. And in our time these animals of hot countries are found only south of the Sahara desert and in India, where only a small population of these predators has survived.

The lion, unlike other felines, has pronounced sexual characteristics. The male from the female is distinguished by the presence of a large mane. And the saying that the cat walks by itself, does not apply to these representatives of the cat's world. These animals of hot countries live in pride, that is, original social groups. At the head of the pride is the largest male. As head of the clan, he deals only with the protection of his territory and, of course, with the extension of the clan. This group also includes several females and young offspring.

And on the "shoulders" of females lay down the difficult responsibilities for the production of food and upbringing of the younger generation. The period of the lioness's pregnancy lasts within 100-108 days. And each of them can bring 2-3 kittens. It happens, but rarely, that the lioness leads four or even five cubs. Immediately after lambing, she feeds the kids away from the pride, in some secluded place. But the lioness does not stop communicating with her group. Then, when the kittens get stronger, she leads them to the pride. And thanks to the fact that the lions smell the same as their mother, they are easily admitted to the group.

Growing up, young males begin to "look narrowly" at the pride leader. Each of them wants to take this place. And when the young male is strong enough, he challenges the leader. There is a struggle for the "throne" and the winner gets everything, and the loser leaves the pride.

Feed on these wild animals of hot countries by hoofed inhabitants of the African expanses. These are antelopes, zebras and gazelles. If the case falls out, the lion can also drag the pet. Also these predators can cope with young hippos, rhinoceroses and even elephants. Appetite for lions is very good. For a sitting, he can overcome up to 30 kg of meat, and then almost a day to sleep. But the average daily diet of this predator is about 5 kg of meat.

There are also other animals of hot countries that are quite noticeable on the African continent. These are the largest animals that live on the surface of the earth - elephants. The weight of females of these herbivores is within 2.8 tons. Males weigh about five tons. But there are among them and the record-breaker. The weight of the largest African elephant was 12.2 tons.

But not only by weight can you distinguish the female elephant from the male. The size of the tusks is also significantly different. In some males, they can reach a length of four meters. And this is the curse of the whole "elephant race." Some poachers find a profitable occupation in the hunt for "elephant bone". Animals of hot countries, such as elephants, because of this, were on the verge of extinction. And now they occupy not the last page in the International Red Book.

There are many interesting features that African elephants possess. For example, the huge ears of these animals. And during the African heat these parts of the body replace the elephants with a fan.

The diet of African elephants consists only of plant foods. And three-quarters of their lives they are engaged in that constantly chew. But these giants sleep relatively little. On vacation they have only 15% of the time. And this is two times less than that of people. And they sleep only standing, leaning against each other. Also African elephants have one feature that no one can explain. They feel the approach of their death and go to the "cemetery", which is not very easy to find. There are also many species of animals in Africa that make this continent so colorful and unique.