South Africa- home to many animals both big and small.
From birds to mammals, the country has a an abundance of endemic species that have adapted
to, and can only be found in its unique habitat.
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Now, here are ten unique animals only found in South Africa.
Number 10: Riverine Rabbit The riverine rabbit, also known as the bushman
rabbit or bushman hare, is one of the world's most endangered mammals, with just around
500 adults remaining and 1500 total.
It has a similar overall appearance to most rabbits, but its ears and body are a little
longer.
This unique creature has a black stripe that runs from the corner of its mouth to its jaw,
and a white ring around each eye is common.
It also has a long, club-like hindfoot, cream or greyish-colored fur on its belly and throat,
and a brown woolly tail.
These rabbits weigh around 1.5 kilograms for males and 1.8 kilograms for females.
Depending on the season, these silly creatures will eat grass and sometimes even their own
daytime droppings.
Weirdly enough, this is actually pretty beneficial since their droppings contain vitamins and
minerals provided by bacteria in the hindgut.
Number 9: Cape Grysbok A small nocturnal antelope found only in South
Africa's Western Cape area between Albany and the Cederberg mountains, the Cape, or
southern grysbok, has a rough, reddish sandy coat with white flecks.
Their shoulder height is just a mere 21", that's 45–55 cm, and, overall, this creature
only weighs slightly more than 20 pounds.
The inside of their ears, eye-rings, mouth area, throat, and underside are white, while
the head, neck, and legs are less flecked and yellowish.
These unique animals are quite voracious eaters and prefer to eat plain grass, but will also
eat young shoots and fruit.
They're known to be able to survive for long periods without drinking water, mostly relying
on their diet for hydration.
You can find these unique creatures in dense shrubland, more specifically in the Cape Floristic
Area, or "fynbos biome".
But, if you're lucky, they're actually known to wander around the edges of urban areas
like in vineyards or orchards.
Number 8: Cape Elephant Shrew Although a relatively common species, the
Cape elephant shrew, also known as the Cape rock elephant-shrew or Cape rock sengi can
only be found in South Africa.
It belongs to the Macroscelididae genus of elephant shrews and has a long, pointed head,
a trunk-like nose, big ears and eyes, long hind legs, and a long, scaly tail.
This unique animal is also known as the "jumping shrew," as it can leap up to 3 feet in the
air, much like a rabbit.The elephant shrew feeds during the day on leaf litter insects
such as ants, termites, beetles, spiders, millipedes, and earthworms.
They are not particularly social animals, but many of them live in monogamous pairs
that share and defend their home territory, which they mark with scent glands.
Number 7: Cape Horseshoe-Bat The Cape horseshoe bat, formally known as
Rhinolophus capensis, belongs to the Rhinolophidae family of bats.
It is monotypic, which means it has no further subspecies, and belongs to the Rhinolophus
capensis species group.
With a head-to-body length of around 2 and a half inches and a tail length of an inch,
the tiny Cape horseshoe bat is actually a standard size member of its genus and can
weight up to 16 grams.
The majority of its body is covered in dark or pale brown fur, with paler, fawn-grey underparts,
and it has wide, rouned that have the ability to move independently.
This bat's wings have a low wing loading and a high aspect ratio, which basically means
that it flies slowly, but is extremely maneuverable in the air.
This enables it to efficiently forage in dense vegetation.
Cape horseshoe bats are only found in South Africa's Cape Province, where they live in
shrubby coastal habitats.
It's probably safe to say that most of us won't be seeing these unique creatures anytime
soon.
Number 6: Cape Gerbil Belonging to the Muridae family, the next
on our list is the Cape Gerbil, or formally known as the Gerbilliscus afra.
This rodent species has a tail that's around 15cm long and have an overall body length
of 30cm.
That's right, its tail makes up half its length.
Males weigh approximately 100g, while females weigh only around 90g.
Their color varies from reddish-orange to pale buffy with dark brown splotches.
They have big ears and woolly hair that's long and super fluffy.
They have back legs that are much stronger than the front legs and they feed on grass,
bulbs, roots, and seeds.
Just like most rodents, they are primarily active at night.
Adding to it's uniqueness, these animals are only found in the south-western Cape sub-region,
from Nieuwoudtville in the Northern Cape southwards to the fynbos biome in the Western Cape and
eastwards to Herold's Bay.
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Number 5: Spectacled African Dormouse Coming in at number five is the spectacled
dormouse, also known as the namtap or Graphiurus ocularis.
It is another rodent species belonging to the Gliridae family and one of four that's
endemic to South Africa.
The Spectacled Dormouse is grey to silver-grey in color, with soft fur and a bushy tail,
and is often mistaken for a small squirrel.
They have small rounded ear, short muzzles, and wide eyes.
As its name implies, this unique animal has distinctive dark rings that circle the eye,
or ‘spectacles.'
Spectacled dormice are pretty territorial and mostly active at night.
They can be found living in crevices between rocks on and around koppies, as well as in
trees rising around rocky outcrops.
Insects are their primary food, but they also eat other invertebrates and plant material
such as seeds.
Geckos are also believed to be hunted and eaten by them.
They can be found in the frier environments of Northern Cape, Eastern Cape, and Western
Cape, with the exception of the south-western Cape and the North-West Province, where it
has a patchy distribution.
Number 4: Bontebok This medium sized antelope has a tall stature
and stands up to 39 inches tall at the shoulder and have a head and body length of up to 83
inches.
They can weigh up to a whopping 342 pounds and are usually chocolate brown in color with
a white underside and a white line running from the top of their head to the tip of their
nose.
The bontebok has a distinctive white patch around its tail and has horns that are shaped
like a lyre.
Although they are poor jumpers, bontebok's are excellent at crawling under obstacles.
Mature males are usually territorial and are seen cometing with other males for territory.
These unique animals spends the majority of their time grazing in the morning and afternoon,
resting in the midday and evening.
They are quite sociable animals, but seldom travel in groups greater than ten.
Since they were considered pests, bontboks were hunted nearly to extinction.
It was estimated at one point that just 17 remained in the wild, thankfully the species
has since recovered.
Number 3: Cape Blue Duiker The blue duiker lives in western, southern,
and eastern Africa's thickest coastal forests.
It is actually the smallest antelope species in South Africa, with males weighing in at
a mere 4 kg and the larger females at 4.7.
They usually have a body length of up to 70 centimeteres and a height of up to 40 centimeters.
Their sharp horns, also quite small, measures approximately 5 cm long and, for females,
are concealed under a short tuft of hair.
They have a glandular slit under their eyes and a light eye-brow ridge that curves up
to the base of the horns.
What makes these creatures so unique is their blue-grey coat and their almost non-existent
tail.
And adding to that is their ability to use jumping and quadrupedal locomotion.
They are most active between the hours of dawn and dusk and often eat leaves, fruits,
berries, flowers, forest litter, and roots.
Unlike the other animals on our list, the blue duiker can be found in a variety of forested
and wooded environments, such as gallery forests, dry forest areas, coastal scrub, and farmlands.
Number 2: Cape Klipspringer The largest of the Klipspringer subspecies,
the next antelope on our list has especially short horns.
They have short, whitish ears with a thick black line running on the surface.
Their tail is quite short, kind of resembling a stump.
Males' have wide-set horns and grow vertically as spikes; they are ringed at the base and
are shorter than those of other subspecies.
These unique animals can be found living in altitudes as high as 15 000 feet and are known
to bask themselves in the morning sunshine for warmth.
They are a sociable species that displays monogamy to a far greater degree than other
antelopes.
Opposite sexes form pairs that can last until one dies.
Tending to stick close together, the mates remain within 16 feet of each other and are
known to take turns keeping an eye out for predators while the other feeds, choosing
to face any danger together.
Looks like we found the Bonnie and Clyde of antelopes.
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Number 1: Cape Kudu Widely regarded as South Africa's most coveted
trophy, we have, yet again, another antelope on our list.
Large and elegant, Cape Kudu's have brownish-grey to reddish-brown coats and four to twelve
white vertical stripes running down its flanks.
Males have magnificent, long spiraling horns and can reach a shoulder height of up to 160cm
and weigh between 190 and 270 kilograms.
Like many other antelope species, these creatures form family groups of up to 12 animals, often
consisting of females and calves.
Capable of living in dry environments, they are, however, often located near ponds because
they drink on a daily basis.
They are Herbivores, eating a wide range of leaves, vegetables, fruits, vines, bulbs,
and grass, among other green things.
Due to overhunting and rapid habitat destruction, the kudu population in the northern part of
its range has unfortunately declined.
Let's hope that this unique animal doesn't disappear anytime soon.
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