The Zebra Duiker

The Zebra Duiker ( Cephalopoda zebra) is a small antelope mostly found in Liberia, it is also found in the Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and sometimes in Guinea. They are sometimes referred to as the banded Duiker as well as the striped-back duiker. The zebra duiker lives about 11 to 13 years in captivity. They weigh about 15 to 23 kilograms (33 to 50 pounds.) Their IUCN status is currently vulnerable. They are similar to the Tasmanian tiger and the thylacine. It's main hunters are leopards. The zebra duiker's diet consists of mainly fruits, seeds, leaves and sometimes animals. The zebra duiker is very dependent on mature rainforest, thus it is one of the first species to disappear with logging. Recent studies suggest that only 15,000 zebra duiker's may survive in the wild. Zebra duiker's breed all year round, mothers hide their children in the first 2 to 3 weeks after birth, leaving the babies tucked away in vegetation and visiting the baby about 4 times average every day to nurse. Young zebra duikers have a blueish cast to their coat and the stripes are very close, at two months of age, the coat begins to reach a more golden shade, adult colouration is reached by 7 to 9 months. !

The Fossa

The Fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox) Is the largest carnivorous mammal living on the island of Madagascar, their home.  They can be up to 6 feet long because of their long tails. They look like a cross between a cat, a dog and a mongoose. Fossa's are the number 1 hunting animals on Madagascar. They are very agile climbers their tails help provide balance and its semi retractable claws and flexible ankles help the Fossa climb up trees head first. Fossa's have a very unusual mating system, the females climb up a tree, while the males congregate below about their mating rights, the females are given the next week to decide who to choose, Fossa's mate around September and October. Currently Fossa's are endangered due to habitat loss due to logging and slash-and-burn agriculture, only about 8% of Madagascar's original cover remains, this is believed to have happened over the past 50 years. Fossa's are increasingly being driven into human settlements and sometimes prey on domestic poultry which causes farmers to kill them in order to protect their livestock.  Fossa's mainly feast on lemurs, there are over 30 species of lemur on the island of Madagascar. Explorers first arrived on this island approximately 2000 years ago, at that time scientists believed that the Fossa would be met by a bizarre assemblage of now extinct beasts, including lemurs the size of gorillas and 10 feet tall flightless birds. Females give birth annually to a litter of 2 to 4 young, adulthood is reached after 3 years of life. They weigh about 7-12 kg. The Fossa is usually active during both day and night. The population of the Fossa is less than 2500, it is listed as an endangered animal by the IUCN.

The Angora Rabbit.

Angora rabbits are adorable, fluffy little animals. They are often kept as pets as they are fun, curious and friendly animals. There are four main breeds of angora rabbits, English, French, Satin and Giant, those four breeds are recognized by the American Rabbit Breeders Association (ARBA) Another common breed is the German Angora Rabbit. If you have a well mannered cat, you should consider getting an Angora rabbit, but you should have a good amount of time on your hands as they need regular grooming otherwise their fur will get matted. The breed that needs the least amount of grooming is the French Angora rabbit as they do not have a woolly face or woolly feet. Angora rabbits live to be about 7 years old if they are treated well, but sadly in China they are abusing these poor helpless animals for their fur which is amazingly softer than cashmere. In China they are ripping their fur out from their sensitive skinand even worse, these rabbits go through this torture every 3 months for 2- to 5 years and then if the poor things haven't died by then they hang them and slit their throats. A person has created a website about this cruelty to learn more click this link. Angora rabbits need to eat a lot of hay to help them digest the fur that they swallow while groomed themselves, otherwise it will get stuck in their digestive systems. If you still haven't noticed, Angora rabbits are REALLY furry their fur can grow over 6 feet in diameter! Since Angora rabbits don't shed, their fur needs to be trimmed regularly if they aren't they won't be able to see where they are going. I hope you enjoyed reading about the amazing species of Angora rabbits. Thanks for reading!