THE STORY OF THE WORLD’S MOST LETHAL PREDATORS

Inside a
great white
shark Lethal
serpents

How killer
Killer whales
arachnids hunt
and insects

TM
Earth’s
most
venomous
spiders

BOOK OF

Deadly
dragons

Nocturnal
hunters

Modern- How
day cheetahs
dinosaurs attack

Fearsome
big cats

Vicious
raptors
Earth’s
deadliest fish

LAND PREDATORS OCEAN HUNTERS DEADLY REPTILES & BIRDS

 Welcome to
TM

BOOK OF

The threat of predation looms large for every creature

on Earth, whatever its position on the food chain. From
the lethal aggression of hunting lions to the creeping
stealth of the Brazilian wandering spider, predators
come in all shapes and sizes. But big or small, each of
these creatures is uniquely adapted to preying on other
animals and defending itself against competitors. This
bookazine is the story of the most fascinating predators
on Earth. Learn how a cheetah stalks and takes down
its prey; discover the deadly pack-hunting behaviour of
the killer whale; and find out how the orb-weaver spider
paralyses and devours its quarry. The World of Animals
Book of Predators provides a fascinating insight into the
most deadly animals on the planet.
 TM

BOOK OF

Imagine Publishing Ltd

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World of Animals Book of Predators Volume 1

© 2014 Imagine Publishing Ltd

ISBN 978-1910155134

Part of the

bookazine series
Contents
Land
predators
10 Lions
Africa’s most notorious predator
22 Cheetahs
The fastest animal on land
32 Leopards
All about these stealthy big cats
42 Hyenas
One of nature’s most intelligent hunters
50 Bears: meet the family
Six of the most interesting species
52 Bears: amazing facts
There’s more to bears than fur and claws
54 Polar bears
All about the fearless Arctic beast
62 Polar bears: evolution
Trace the ancestry of the polar bear
64 Snow leopards
The rare, graceful and athletic predator
70 Siberian tigers
The Asian big cat under threat from poaching
72 Pied tamarin monkeys
Nature’s most territorial primate
Deadly
reptiles
78 Saltwater crocodiles
The world’s most aggressive crocodile
90 Nile crocodiles: evolution
How this reptile has evolved over 250 million years
92 Snakes: meet the family
Discover nature’s most fascinating serpents
94 Yellow rat snakes
All about this constricting killer
95 Rock pythons
How Africa’s largest snake kills and devours its prey
96 Modern-day dinosaurs
The prehistoric creatures still walking the Earth
104 Komodo dragons
The story of the deadly giant lizard

insects
Ocean
hunters
114 Great white sharks
The life of this ocean leviathan
124 Galápagos sea lions
Why this ocean carnivore is threatened
126 Whales
Six incredible ocean giants explored
128 Killer whales
All about these intelligent ocean predators
136 Killer whales: how they hunt
The hunting methods of the deadly orca
137 Moray eels
How this voracious eater catches its prey
Birds &
140 Bald eagles
The truth about these iconic birds
152 Eagles: meet the family
Discover six fascinating types of eagle
154 Spiders: meet the family
Some of nature’s most notorious arachnids
156 Tarantulas
The secrets of this infamous spider
157 Bulldog ant
One of Earth’s most aggressive insects
158 Orb-weaver spider
An arachnid that takes no prisoners
159 Praying mantis
A stealthy and ravenous predator
160 Birds of prey
The most adept aerial assassins
164 Peregrine falcons
© Thinkstock; Alamy
How Earth’s fastest animal hunts
166 Penguins
The carnivorous bird with a taste for fish
7
Land
predators Earth is home to a vast range of land animals
adapted for the purpose of hunting and killing.
Discover some of the fastest and most aggressive

10 Lions 62 Polar bears: evolution

Africa’s most notorious predator Trace the ancestry of the polar bear
22 Cheetahs 64 Snow leopards
The fastest animal on land The rare, graceful and athletic predator
32 Leopards 70 Siberian tigers
All about these stealthy big cats The Asian big cat under threat from poaching
42 Hyenas 72 Pied tamarin monkeys
One of nature’s most intelligent hunters Nature’s most territorial primate
50 Bears: meet the family
Six of the most interesting species
52 Bears: amazing facts
There’s more to bears than fur and claws
54 Polar bears
All about the fearless Arctic beast

10 32 42

8
 22 “Cheetahs are
frequent hunters
with an average kill
rate of 50 per cent”

© Thinkstock
54 64 50

9
 Land predators

10
 Lions

All about
The African Lion
With claws like switchblades, a vice-like jaw
and a larynx adapted to produce a fearsome
roar, the lion is Africa’s most notorious predator

© Richard Du Toit/Minden Pictures/FLPA

11
 Land predators
Trachea
Inside a lion A lion’s larynx is positioned
low in the trachea and can be
pulled towards the ribcage,
Lions are specialised killing machines. producing a deep roar.
They have free-floating shoulder
blades, switchblade-like claws that can
be unsheathed from their paws and
huge jaw muscles that allow them to
clamp their prey and suffocate it

LION
Panthera leo
Class Mammalia
Sight
Lions’ eyesight is
similar to humans’
in daylight, but Spine
Territory Sub-Saharan Africa
and western India vastly superior in
Diet Carnivore the dark.
Lifespan 10-14 years
Adult weight 120-250kg /
265-550lbs Eye socket
Conservation Status
Skull

VULNERABLE

Canine
Mandible

Teeth and jaw

A lion has huge canines
for grabbing prey during
a hunt and scissor-
like carnassials to slice
Claw
Carnassial through meat. The jaw is
slightly offset, preventing
the teeth from bashing Lung
together as it bites.

Retraction Lungs
When the
tendons are
Heart
relaxed, the lion’s Protraction
claws are hidden To expose their
from view inside claws, the tendons
the paws. above and below Forelimb
each digit are both The underlying bone
pulled taut. structure of a lion’s
forelimb is the same as
our own, but adapted
to form paws with
retractable claws.

Pivot point Elastic ligament

INFANCY JUVENILE MATURITY

Birth 0 months
Most lion cubs are born blind,
weigh around 1-2kg (2.2-
4.4lbs) and are covered with
spotted fur for camouflage.
Open eyes 2-3 weeks
The lion cubs open their eyes
aer approximately two weeks
and their milk teeth begin to
come through.
Meeting dad 6 weeks
When the cubs have become
slightly larger and stronger, the
lioness will introduce them to the
rest of the pride.
Weaning 2-3 months
Before weaning, lion cubs will
suckle from any lactating female
in the pride. Two-month-olds
begin to share meat aer a kill.
Learning to hunt 1 year
Young lions practice hunting
on any moving target, oen
chasing each other in order to
perfect their technique.
Adulthood 3 years
Infant mortality is high in
lion populations, where
only around one in eight
cubs reaches adulthood.

12

Digestive system
Meat is an easy-to-digest,
energy-rich food source,
so, like other carnivores,
lions have a relatively short
digestive system, capable of
extracting around 70 per cent
of the energy from their food.
Spleen
Liver
Folded skin
The skin on the underside
of an Asiatic lion’s abdomen
is folded. As it eats, the fold
stretches out, allowing its
stomach to distend, enabling
it to eat huge quantities of
meat in one sitting.
Bachelors 3 years Taking over a pride
When males reach 3+ years
maturity, they are driven Brotherhoods of young males challenge
from the pride by the existing dominant lions for the right to their
dominant lion. pride and their territory.
Lions
Mane
Tawny fur Females are attracted
The distinctive colouring to the males with
of a lion resembles the biggest, darkest
the dry grass of the manes. A sign of high
savannah, enabling testosterone, this
lionesses to approach indicates the lion can
their prey without defend his pride.
being seen.
Paws
At rest, a lion’s paws
are soft and silent,
Testicle but when hunting or
Kidney fighting, they extend
their claws, like a
switchblade, to grapple
prey to the ground.
Scent marking
Lions urinate backwards,
allowing them to mark trees
and bushes as a warning to
rival males.
Notch
“As they approach their
prey, they run, pounce
and grab it around the
Bladder
neck with their jaws”
Tail
Closest family
Closely related to the lion are…
Hind
Paw
Leopard Jaguar Tiger
The smallest of the The jaguar is the The largest cat
big cats, but what the only member of the species, the tiger can
leopard lacks in size, Panthera genus found be found in territories
Reproduction it makes up in speed in the Americas. Black in Siberia, India and
4+ years and agility. Leopards jaguars as well as Southeast Asia. Their
Females usually have their first litter of can reach 58km/h black leopards are stripes are like our
cubs by the age of 4, remaining fertile (36mph) and have commonly known as fingerprints, unique to
for the majority of their life strong jaw muscles. ‘black panthers’. each individual.
13
 Land predators

Cub care
It’s hard out there for a young lion
Male lions are unpredictable, rough and sometimes
aggressive, so for the first six to eight weeks, a lioness
cares for her new cubs on her own. She often chooses
to give birth to her vulnerable, blind young under the
shelter of a rock, or in thick undergrowth. After about
two months, the cubs are ready to meet the rest of the
pride. Lionesses share parental duties, and all lactating
females in the group will assist with feeding until the
infants are weaned. If a mother is killed, her sisters will
often take over and raise her orphaned young.
Play is incredibly important in cub development,
allowing them to practice the skills required to become
competent adult hunters. The cubs watch the females
hunt and will attempt to chase anything that moves,
from ants to birds and even baboons. They quickly
learn which of the local wildlife is worth stalking, so by
the time they reach adulthood will rarely waste time
attempting to hunt animals that are too large, too
dangerous, or too quick to escape. Sometimes the
females will bring small prey back for the cubs to
practice on, re-releasing it to allow them to hone
their hunting skills.
Males are aggressive, but will tolerate their own
cubs, even allowing them close enough to feed.
Their most important parental role is protecting
their offspring from rival males, who will kill any
existing young cubs if they succeed in taking over
the pride. When the lionesses are hunting, the
males stay behind to protect their offspring.
When threatened, females will corral the pride’s
cubs, picking them up by the scruff of the neck
and moving them to safety. By the time they are a
year old, they are able to be left alone and at this
point will begin attempting to catch their own food
in earnest. Initial attempts are often clumsy
and unsuccessful, so until they have become
competent hunters the pride will share food with
the young lions.

“If a mother dies, her sisters

often take over and raise
her orphaned young”
14
 Lions

Mating and
reproduction
A lioness’s choice of mate can
determine the lifespan of her young
When a rival male takes over a pride he will kill all of the
pride’s cubs so that resources can be diverted to raising
his own offspring. Due to this, it is of vital importance
to a lioness that she chooses a strong mate, capable of
defending her cubs until they are fully grown. Lionesses
prefer lions with thick, dark manes – a sign of high
testosterone, and an indicator that the lion is strong
enough to protect his pride.
Females are in heat several times a year, and cubs
are born year-round. When a lioness is fertile, she seeks
out male attention, and will mate every 25 minutes for a
period of three or four days to maximise the chance of
conceiving. Despite the female initiating mating, she can
be aggressive, so the male holds her by the scruff of her
neck to protect himself. Lion gestation lasts for 110 days,
and lionesses give birth alone, in secluded dens, to protect
their newborn cubs from danger. Litters vary in size from
one to four cubs, or as many as nine in rare cases, but
it is unlikely that the whole litter will survive in such
instances because a female lion can only feed
four cubs at a time.
The fierce competition between male
lions means that most are driven from the
pride when they reach adulthood. These
lions often form small brotherhoods that
co-operate to take over a pride of their
own. Female lions reach sexual maturity RIGHT
and have their first litter by the age of Lioness
mothers do
four. They usually stay within their home whatever they
pride and by the time they are mature can to make
an unrelated dominant lion will be in sure their
cubs reach
charge, ensuring genetic diversity. adulthood

Born blind Suckling Single parent

The first few Lion cubs are extremely
vulnerable for the first few
A female lion can only feed
four cubs at a time. Cubs
To protect her cubs, the
lioness raises them alone for

weeks of life weeks. They are blind and

cannot walk, so they must be
kept hidden in a secluded den.
born into litters larger than
this frequently succumb to
starvation and die.
the first few weeks, keeping
them hidden from the pride
and other predators.
Lion cubs are born blind and are unable to walk
until they are three weeks old, so they remain in
the safety of their den. The lioness cannot leave
her cubs for long periods, so she withdraws from
the pride, hunting in the local area to maintain her
strength so she can produce enough milk. She
frequently moves the cubs to a new den to prevent
the smell from attracting predators like hyenas and
snakes, waiting until the cubs are big enough to fend
for themselves before bringing them out
into the open to meet the pride.

“She frequently
moves the cubs to a
Camouflage
new den to prevent the Lion cubs are born with fur and have dappled
spotted markings, helping them hide from
smell from attracting predators” predators in the savannah grass.

15
 Land predators

16
 Lions

How the lion hunts A guide to hunting like a true apex predator
© Pete Oxford/Minden Pictures/FLPA

1. Stalking the prey 2. The attack begins 3. Locked in 4. Takedown complete

Lionesses hunt in teams. They When close enough, they will They grab the prey around Their jaw strength will break the
have limited stamina, so they pounce, joining together to take the neck with their immensely prey’s spine or crush the trachea
flank their target, remaining down an unsuspecting member strong jaws, preventing it from in a vice-like grip that can be
hidden while inching closer. of the herd. biting or kicking back. held for up to ten minutes.

17
 Land predators
“Female lions are responsible
for hunting and raising cubs”
Big cat behaviour
Cats, domestic and wild, are usually solitary
creatures. However, lions inhabit an expansive
environment, and their prey travel in large
groups, so in order to survive they have evolved
a co-operative social system. Lions live in prides
consisting of several lionesses, usually sisters, and
one or more outsider males. The males defend the
territory, while the females work together to hunt
and raise the cubs.
They do exhibit many behavioural similarities to
domestic cats, including eating grass to help with
regurgitation of fur balls, and resting for around
20 hours a day, hiding from the scorching African
sun in the shade of rocks and trees. However,
lions have evolved their own particular set of
behavioural adaptations.
The defining feature of the Panthera genus
of big cats is their ability to roar. Lions have a
large larynx, with vocal folds similar to those of
a domestic cat; as air moves through the folds
they vibrate, generating a sound. The difference
between lions and cats is that their larynx is
much lower in the throat, extending the distance
from the voice box to the mouth and nose. Strap
muscles attached to the ribcage can be used
to pull the larynx further downwards, extending
the windpipe like the slide on a trombone, and
producing a deeper sound, giving the threatening
18
ABOVE Two lionesses nuzzling
each other affectionately
Lions are unusual felines and live in large social groups
illusion that the lion is much larger than it is. This
sound carries over long distances, warning other
Diet and feeding
The lion is an apex predator, at the
males in the area to stay away.
very top of the food chain.
Roaring is not the only way that lions defend
their territories; the males in the pride patrol the An average male
area every day, spraying a combination of urine lion can eat over
and pheromones on bushes, trees and rocks to 30kg/66lbs
scent-mark the boundaries of their home and in one sitting.
hunting grounds.
That’s over
Female lions are responsible for hunting and
raising cubs. Male lions are hampered by their 25% of
its body
large manes and stocky stature, while the smaller,
weight.
lighter, more agile bodies of the lionesses allow
them to move silently as they stalk their prey.
Lions have relatively small hearts for their body
size, and cannot run for long distances, so they Around
use a combination of stealth and teamwork to 90%
take down their prey. During hunting, groups of their diet
of females flank their prey, working together to consists
surround their target. They slowly inch closer, of large Occasionally
walking on the soft pads at the bottom of their mammals, they
paws to avoid alerting their target. including supplement
The social interactions between members of zebra and their diet with
a lion pride help to ensure that the individuals buffalo. scavenged
function as a team. Lions use peaceful and carrion, killed
affectionate rubbing and licking to bond with by other
one another and will call for lost members of the animals.
group, ensuring the pride remains together.
 Lions

Life in the lion pride Lions live in co-operative social groups, working together
to hunt, fight, survive and raise their young

After a hunt or a Father and cubs Feline sisterhood Passing the time
fight, females will Male lions are tolerant of their young Each pride has several lionesses, Lions spend the majority of the day
keep their distance
from males to cubs, allowing them to steal small usually sisters, who work together to resting in the shade, avoiding the intense
avoid conflict. mouthfuls of food. However, as they hunt and raise their cubs. The males African sun. Young cubs remain close to
mature the males become increasingly are almost always unrelated outsiders the lionesses. Older cubs are often left
aggressive, eventually driving any who have fought with other males to unattended, spending their time honing
upcoming males out of the pride. take over the territory. hunting techniques and playing.

Lionesses are
constantly on the
lookout for danger
lurking in the
undergrowth.

Cubs spend
much of their
time playing, but
are more careful
around the volatile
adult males.

Ruling the pride

Raising cubs The dominant male often has the darkest
At about 6 weeks old, cubs are mane. He provides protection, patrolling their
introduced to the pride and begin territory and using a combination of roaring
learning the skills required to hunt. and scent-marking to maintain the perimeter.

BELOW The females of the pride bear the responsibility

of hunting for the male and his cubs

ABOVE The
roar of a
lion can be
heard from
a distance of
8km (5mi)

19
 Land predators

Ruling the savannah

Safe lion habitats are shrinking due to farming, hunting and poaching
The vast majority of the remaining lion population is found
in eastern and southern Africa, but numbers are estimated
to have dropped from as much as 400,000 in 1950 to
between 16,500 and 47,000 today. Numbers in Asia are
smaller still, with Asiatic lions driven close to extinction.
In other regions, farming, hunting and poaching have
driven populations away. Steady conversion of their
habitat into farmland reduces available grazing for prey
animals, forcing lions to attack domestic livestock. This
results in retaliation by farmers, and is having a significant
impact on population numbers. Living in close proximity
to humans, and our animals, has also introduced disease
into the lion populations, including distemper (from
domestic dogs), and tuberculosis (from cattle
and buffalo).
Lion habitat varies from grassy plains to forests and
thick brush. The most successful lion prides live around
river confluences, where water is plentiful. An abundance
of water attracts prey animals providing a year-round
food supply. Acacia trees provide shade, and the lion’s
tawny fur enables them to hide in the dry savannah grass.
The territory of one pride can range from 20-200
square kilometres (52-520 square miles), and a pride
may move up to 9.5 kilometres (six miles) each day. This
vast range is difficult to defend alone, and led to the
development of the unique social structure of these big
cats. There are over 1,000 African lions and nearly 100 of
their Asiatic cousins in zoos across the globe. Breeding
programs are underway to preserve threatened lion
subspecies, and reintroduce them into the wild.

Sharing parenting duties

Groups of females work
together to protect cubs from
danger in their environment.

Conserving energy
Lions rest for up to 20
hours a day to avoid
overheating in the sun.

Environmental threats
The biggest environmental threat to the lion populations is humanity
Poaching Crops
Africa supplies lion bones to Laos, As the agricultural industry develops
Vietnam and China, where they in Africa, lion territory is being
are ground into a paste and used in fragmented and destroyed as it is
traditional herbal medicine, along
with the bones of other big cats.
turned over to become farmland for
growing crops.
“The most successful lion
Cattle
Prey animals eaten by the lion are
Inbreeding
Fragmentation of lion populations
prides live around river
herbivores, and they compete for
space with farm animals. Where
due to habitat erosion leads to
isolation. Small populations
confluences, where water
there is competition for land, cattle
farmers poison, trap or shoot lions.
gradually become inbred,
threatening future generations. is plentiful”
20

Nearest
neighbours
Lions may be a top predator,
but they share their home with
dangerous creatures
Spitting cobra
Several species of cobra in Africa are
able to spit venom from holes in the
tips of their fangs. If the venom gets
into the eyes of a lion it can cause
permanent blindness, an injury that
can prove fatal in the long run.
African honeybee
African honeybees are more
aggressive than their European
counterparts, and threatened hives
will swarm more readily, sending
out drones and chasing their targets,
including lions, for great distances.
Baboon
Baboons are ground-dwelling primates
and are sometimes hunted by lions.
But the lions are poor climbers, so once
the baboons reach the trees they are
usually safe and will throw sticks and
foliage at their grounded attackers.
African elephant
Lions share their home with the
largest land-dwelling animal, the
African elephant. These herbivorous
giants are much too large to be
threatened by the cats and will
trample cubs if they get in the way.
Lions
Lions and
humans
Big cats have been kept as pets, exhibits and
curiosities for centuries. The ancient Egyptian
temple at Taremu housed live lions as a tribute to
Maahes, the lion prince, and the animals were even
kept at the Tower of London. They have been hugely
popular in zoos since the 18th century, and there
are over 1,000 lions currently in captivity around the
world in various wildlife establishments.
Historically, humans have treated the fearsome
predators very poorly, keeping them captive in
cramped conditions and using them for brutal
entertainment. Lion-baiting pitted the cats against
other carnivores in combat – a practice that,
shockingly, continued in England until as late as
1825. Circuses also frequently used lions as part
of their act, and some still do to this day. Captive
lions in modern zoos are much better cared for, and
many are oen involved in breeding programs that
are designed to protect threatened subspecies.
Lions do not usually hunt humans, but there have
been some recorded instances of man-eating by the
big cats in history. In Tanzania, it is estimated that
lions kill up to 70 people a year. It is thought that
sick or injured animals prey on humans because we
pose less of a challenge than their usual prey.
© Alamy; Corbis; Getty; Naturepl.com; Peter Scott/The Art Agency; Thinkstock ; Sol90 images
In our culture
The lion is an iconic animal figure in human culture
The Lion King
Disney’s 1994 film The Lion King
centres around a conflict between
three male lions, Scar, Mufasa and
Simba, as they fight for dominance
and territory at Pride Rock.
Aslan
In C S Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia,
Aslan is the powerful King of Beasts
and acts as a mentor and guide to the
children aer they step through their
famously magical wardrobe.
Elsa
The 1966 film Born Free (based on the
book of the same name) follows Elsa,
an orphaned lion cub, as she is raised
by humans and released into the
Kenyan wilderness.
21
 Land predators

22
 Cheetahs

All About
Cheetahs
A marvel of natural engineering, this
predator races across the African plains
at up to 70 miles per hour, pursuing and
catching nearly anything in its sights

23
 Land predators

Inside a cheetah CHEETAH

Acinonyx jubatus
Class Mammalia

Cheetahs are built for short bursts of speed. When pursuing Flexible skeleton
prey, the cats can go from standing still to 64 kilometres (40 The spine is long and
flexible, while the pelvis
miles) per hour in just three strides, reaching a top speed of 97 Territory Africa and the enables an extended range
kilometres (60 miles) per hour in three seconds Middle East
Diet Carnivore
of motion, meaning the
Lifespan 10-12 years cheetah can spring forward
Adult weight 35-65kg / as it runs.
Free-floating shoulders 77-143lbs
Streamlined shape The shoulder blades aren’t Conservation status
The cheetah trades jaw strength for fixed to the rest of the skeleton
aerodynamics and has a small, flat and instead float freely,
head with a relatively weak bite force. extending the range of motion VULNERABLE
of its front legs.

Large heart
The heart is enlarged and the arteries
thickened, providing maximum blood flow
during a chase.

Staying Withstanding
balanced the force
The combination A cheetah has thick limb
of a flexible spine bones, enabling it to
and a rudder- withstand the
like tail enables intense high-
cheetahs to speed forces.
balance while
turning corners.
Deep chest
The chest is deep and narrow,
maximising lung capacity
without compromising the
cat’s aerodynamic shape.
Phalanges

Effective gravity
Maintaining traction Gravity and Exposed claws
The footpads of a cheetah are centripetal force Unlike other cats, the cheetah’s
hard and their claws act like affect a cheetah as it claws don’t fully retract and are
crampons to grip the ground. turns, increasing its permanently exposed. They provide
effective weight by grip when turning, but are blunted
up to 66 per cent. by constant friction on the ground.
TURN RADIUS
Radii
required 93km/h turn radius = 52m
for a
180-degree
turn at
58km/h:
INFANCY JUVENILE
different
speeds Turn radius = 20m
Newborn cubs 1 day Eyes open 1 week Teething 3 weeks Starting to explore 6 weeks
14km/h: Turn Cheetah cubs are born in For the first week cubs are Teeth begin to appear aer three Aer six weeks the cubs are ready
radius = 1m litters of two to five and weigh blind and rely entirely on weeks, but the cubs remain vulnerable, to leave the safety of the den –
between 150 and 300 grams their mother to keep them with the mother moving them to new they watch and play while their
(5 and 11 ounces). hidden in the long grass. den sites. mother hunts.

24
 Cheetahs
Long tail Tears
Imperative for balance, their tails consist of around 18-20
The black markings that
bones (caudal vertebrae) and are an extension of their spine.
run from the corners
The tail helps cheetahs when running, as they use them to
of a cheetah’s eyes to
help steer and change direction, like the rudder of a boat.
its mouth absorb light.
They’re thought to block
the glare from the Sun,
aiding in daytime hunting.

Vocalisation
Unlike the big cats of the
Panthera genus, including
lions and tigers, the
cheetah cannot roar. It
does, however, purr like a
domestic cat.

Pelvis

Femur
Camouflage
Fibula A cheetah has between 2,000
and 3,000 solid black oval or
round spots, which break up its
silhouette in the grass.

Tibia Breathing in step

Ferocious sprinters, cheetahs can
only breath in step with their stride.
Tarsels To help with speed, their deep chest
and large nostrils, heart and lungs
help them breathe in more oxygen
during intense chases.
Closest family
Closely related to the cheetah are…
Metatarsels

Breathing out
when legs are in

Puma Jaguarundi Bobcat

Like the cheetah, With a flattened head, Far more distantly
the puma uses its rounded ears and a related to the cheetah
incredible agility to tail just like an otter’s, is the bobcat. It too is
pursue and catch prey. this small South- an ambush predator,
This adaptable cat can American wildcat preferring to use short
Breathing in be found throughout seems more likely to bursts of speed rather
when leaping the Americas, but be related to a weasel than extended levels
despite its size it’s not than a cheetah. of stamina. This cat is
classed alongside However, jaguarundi far stockier, however,
lions and tigers as a are actually one of and favours smaller
big cat, because it isn’t the cheetah’s closest prey such as rabbits
able to roar. living relatives. and hares.

Learning to hunt 7 months
The female catches and releases
her prey, enabling her cubs to hone
their hunting skills before they
enter maturity.
Leaving home 18 months
Female cubs sometimes leave
their mother before they’re sexually
mature, remaining together in a
sibling group.
MATURITY
Sexual maturity 2 years
When female cheetahs eventually mature,
they leave their sibling groups. They will
now begin a solitary life raising a family of
cubs of their own.
Coalition life 2 years
Male cheetahs spend most
of their adult lives within co-
operative groups, most oen
travelling as pairs of brothers.
The next generation 3 years
Female cheetahs will mate all year
round, providing there is adequate food,
and produce a litter around once every
18 months.

25
 Land predators
How a cheetah hunts
Formidable sprinters and epic predators, the
cheetahs are at the top of their hunting game
Cheetahs are frequent hunters and with an average kill
rate of 50 per cent, they are rivalled only by wild dogs as
Africa’s most successful predators. Their preferred prey
animals are medium-sized antelope, ideally weighing less
than 40 kilograms (88 pounds), equivalent to a large
domestic dog.
Unlike other hunters, cheetahs don’t selectively prey
on weaker animals and the majority of their prey are
healthy animals. Their hunting tactics focus on isolated
members of a group, avoiding the danger of targeting
an entire herd. Cheetahs use stealth to hunt their prey,
approaching from behind to avoid detection and often
remaining hidden in grass or brush.
Cheetahs are incredibly quick, but tire rapidly and can
only sustain a sprint for around 300 metres (984 feet)
before their bodies begin to overheat. When a cheetah
runs, its heart rate climbs from 60 to 150 beats per
minute and after a chase it takes 30 minutes to recover.
The chase is intense and usually over in just 20
seconds. The cats’ streamlined heads only contain small
jaws and their bite force is low, so in order to immobilise
the prey they must get underneath the throat to
compress the trachea. When the cheetah catches up with
its target, it swipes at the hindquarters, sometimes using
its sharp dewclaw as a grappling hook, knocking the
animal off balance before pinning it to the floor.
Catching a meal is only half of the battle and although
a cheetah can hold its own against small scavengers like
jackals and vultures, over half of all kills are stolen by
packs of hyena and prides of lions. As a result cheetahs
eat quickly and a team of four males can devour an
antelope in under 15 minutes.

01 Stalk 02 Chase
The cheetah approaches It selects an isolated victim,
from behind, using cover away from the danger
to remain hidden until it’s of the main herd, and
just 30m (98ft) from its suddenly begins the assault.
target. The animal’s spots It accelerates to a top
break up the its silhouette, speed of 113km/h (70mph),
concealing its looming chasing down its target over
presence from the prey. hundreds of metres.

26
 Cheetahs
“With an average kill rate of 50 per cent,
they are rivalled only by wild dogs as
Africa’s most successful predators”

03 Takedown
When the cheetah catches
up with its victim, it uses
a front paw to swipe at
the back legs, knocking
the animal to the floor. At
such high speeds, even the
slightest contact can spell
disaster for the prey.
04 Feast
Once the target is
grounded, the cheetah
uses a stranglehold to
suffocate it. Because the
cheetah has a weak bite, it
twists beneath the prey’s
throat and clamps down
on its windpipe.

27
 Land predators
Life in cheetah society
Males can form fearless clans while females fight alone
Unique to cats, the social structure of cheetahs varies
between the sexes and revolves around diet and
feeding habits. While females prefer a solitary life,
males can form social groups, known as coalitions. This
will often be a group of brothers from the same litter
and the bond will be for life. If there was only one male
in the litter, several solitary males may form their own
group, or individuals will join existing ones.
With strength in numbers, cheetah coalitions are
several times more likely to dominate a territory than
a solitary creature. Fiercely territorial, males will mark
their patch by urinating on trees, logs, termite mounds
and will fight to the death to maintain their stronghold.
Having control over their territory makes for a greater
chance of breeding with the females that roam within
this territory.
“With strength in numbers, cheetah coalitions
are several times more likely to dominate a
territory than a solitary creature”
Diet and feeding
Cheetahs are prolific, agile hunters with
a preference for antelope
80% of their
diet consists
of ungulates
(including gazelle,
impala, antelope)
28
Funnily, there’s little evidence of a hierarchy within
these coalitions. Instead, males within the group
seem to have adopted co-operative relationships
with little aggression between one another, except
when harmless squabbles occur at feeding time, and
occasionally when mating is involved.
Females can drift further afield than a designated
territory, meaning their home ranges are larger and
practically impossible to defend. A home range
depends on the prey available and the benefits
of solitary living, including the ability to follow the
migratory pattern of their prey.
Females’ ranges can often overlap with others
belonging to their sisters, mothers or daughters. They
will hunt, eat and live alone unless accompanied by
cubs and they’d sooner avoid confrontation than fight.
Occasionally they
supplement their
diet with birds That’s over
and hares 6% of its
overall body
weight
An average male cheetah
eats 4kg/8.8lbs of
food per day

How a mother protects
Female cheetahs are fertile periodically
throughout the year and cubs are born during
all seasons. In the days leading up to oestrous,
when female cheetahs are receptive to mating,
the chemical make-up of their urine changes
and scent markers alert nearby males of the
opportunity to mate. Males track these females,
paying careful attention to their scent trail, as well
as to visual signals before making a move. If the
female doesn’t fall pregnant, the cycle repeats
again in around ten days.
The likelihood of success is greatly increased
when prey animals are abundant, so cheetah birth
rates often follow the breeding patterns of local
populations of antelope. If mating is successful,
the female will give birth to a litter of between
two and five cubs after three months. The cubs
are born blind and are unable to walk for the first
three weeks, so the female chooses a secluded
location, often in grass, beneath rocks, or even in
abandoned turtle burrows.
Cubs are entirely reliant on their mother for
nutrition and protection, so she must make a
Cheetahs
successful kill every day in order to
sustain them. Nursing females prefer
to hunt smaller, easier animals such
as fawns and hares, ensuring a
consistent supply of milk.
Cheetah cubs aren’t well
camouflaged when they’re born and
can be seen from a great distance,
so the mother goes to great lengths
to conceal them, periodically moving
the den site to minimise scent
tracking. She uses vantage points,
such as termite mounds, to scan the
environment for predators, as well as
to keep an eye out for an easy meal.
Despite the efforts of the mother, as
many as nine out of ten cheetah cubs
don’t reach adulthood. They’re not good
at identifying danger and have a tendency
to scatter when threatened, making it difficult
for the mother to defend them all at once.
Large pack hunters, such as hyenas and lions,
pose a major threat to cheetah cubs. ABOVE Cheetah cubs
are oen vulnerable,
so need protection

Trained to hunt
from their mothers

Cub development takes around 15 months, during which

time the young cheetahs must learn to hunt. They spend
Maternal guidance
a large amount of time at play, practising techniques like
Before the cubs join in the hunt,
stalking, pouncing, swatting and wrestling.
the female cheetah provides
Cubs begin their training at four months, when the
them with small or weakened
female starts to bring live prey back to practise on,
prey to practise on.
allowing the cubs time to play before completing the kill
herself. She also allows the cubs to join the chase, slowing
down to let them overtake and have a chance at tackling
the target. After ten months, cubs are killing around half of
their own food, mostly birds and hares, and by 15 months
they are competent enough to survive on their own.

Stranglehold
This death-grip is a vital part of the Small prey
cheetah hunting strategy and cubs begin Cheetah cubs are
to practise early, starting out by biting inexperienced and begin by
one another’s necks. hunting small animals like
birds, hares and fawns.

29
 Land predators
“Despite the decline in
The habitat of cheetah numbers, they are
the cheetah a surprisingly adaptable
How this graceful cat’s diminished species, and can be found
range threatens its survival
The historical range of the cheetah once
in a range of habitats”
extended across Africa, through the Middle
East and central Asia, all the way across
to India. In 1900 an estimated 100,000 of
these agile predators roamed across these
regions. Cheetahs were once sought after for
their hunting prowess, used by royalty and
nobility in place of greyhounds. Extensive
poaching of wild populations also drove the
cats’ numbers down.
In central Asia the cheetah is now extinct
and in the Middle East just 100 individuals
remain in Iran. The remaining population of
around 7,500 is scattered across Africa.
Despite the decline in cheetah numbers,
they’re surprisingly adaptable and can be
found in a range of habitats. They require
a balance of cover and visibility in order to
hunt, so avoid thick undergrowth, dense
forest and tall grass.
Human expansion across Africa has
limited the range of the remaining cheetah
population and in many areas cheetahs clash
with human settlements. Protected areas,
such as national parks and nature reserves,
provide some protection from poaching
and human conflict, but tend to have higher
numbers of dangerous predators such as On lookout
lions, who not only compete for food, but Termite mounds and banks
are ideal spots for surveying
also put cheetah cubs at risk.
the landscape for dangers.
There is still a relatively high demand for
cheetahs as pets and cubs are regularly
taken from the wild. Smuggled exotic
animals are often transported in poor
conditions and only one in six stolen cubs
survives the journey.

Environmental factors
Cheetahs are threatened by both natural and man-
made environmental pressures
Habitat loss
Human expansion across Africa and
the Middle East has fragmented the
cheetah habitat, limiting the supply
of prey animals and driving cheetahs
into smaller and smaller areas.

Human conflict
Local farmers see cheetahs as a
danger and a nuisance. The cats are
blamed for devastation of livestock,
despite the fact that other predators
are more oen responsible.

Inbreeding
The population was severely dented in
a mass extinction event 12,000 years
ago. Only a few individuals survived,
so the current population is very
inbred, resulting in genetic disease.

Predation and competition

Cheetahs may be fast, but they aren’t
strong and many cubs are lost to
attacks by lions and hyenas. Those
that do survive face fierce competition
for food from the same animals.

30
 Cheetahs
Cheetahs and humans Nearest
neighbours
Humans and cheetahs have a relationship dating back thousands
of years. The earliest known images of the cats can be seen in Cheetahs might be powerful
the Air Mountains in Niger, which are over 7,000 years old. It’s hunters, but they are vulnerable
thought early humans were interacting with the animals much to other predators
earlier, maybe even stealing their food.
Cheetahs have been kept in captivity for at least 5,000 years,
and were sought after as pets of the Ancient Egyptians. More
recently they have also been used in place of dogs for hunting.
Like greyhounds, cheetahs are fast and rely on sight – as opposed
to scent – to track their prey. They can also be used in a form of
sport hunting known as coursing. Cheetahs don’t breed well in
captivity, so the hunting animals were regularly taken from the
wild, before being tamed and taught to course.
The practise of hunting with cheetahs was popular in north
Africa, the Middle East and central Asia. A cheetah was even Lion
presented to King George III, but disappointed the monarch when The second largest living cat is a
it failed to bring down a 100-kilogram (220-pound) red stag. formidable enemy. When faced with
a lion, there’s little that a cheetah can
do. Lionesses are powerful hunters,
and work as a team to take down
their prey.

Keeping cool
Cheetahs spend most of
their time resting in order to
avoid overheating.

Spotted hyena
Hyenas are related to cats, but behave
more like dogs, using their teeth
rather than their claws to tackle prey.
Opportunists and scavengers, they’ll
not only steal prey from cheetahs, but
are also a threat to their cubs.

Leopard
Leopards may look similar to
cheetahs, but these stockier big cats
are more closely related to lions and
tigers. Leopard spots aren’t solid,
like a cheetah’s, instead forming

© Corbis, DK images, Alamy, Thinkstock, Andy Bytheway, Greg Willis, Nevit Dilman
distinctive rosettes.

In our culture
The speed and hunting prowess of the cheetah
has inspired many fictional characters
Cheetara
Just like a cheetah, female
ThunderCat Cheetara can run at high
speeds, but tires quickly. She also has
a sixth sense, enabling her to detect
nearby dangers.
Barbara Ann Minerva
DC villain, the Cheetah, is the result
of a failed tribal ritual, when British
archaeologist Dr Barbara Ann
Minerva attempted to obtain the
powers of an African cheetah.
Chester Cheetah
The Cheetos brand mascot is one of
the best-known cheetahs in popular
culture. He was introduced in the
1980s and replaced the less well-
remembered Cheetos mouse.
Black-backed jackal
Duma Relatives of the wolf, these
This 2005 film depicts the story of an opportunistic animals are omnivores
orphaned cheetah cub, Duma, and and live mainly on a diet of small prey
a bullied schoolboy, Xan, who runs and scavenged carcasses. They are
away into the mountains of South aggressive, feisty and will oen tackle
Africa with the cat. much larger animals.

31
 Land predators

32
 Leopards

All About
Leopards
Solitary and reclusive, these adaptable
cats are some of nature’s most agile
climbers and are right at home in the trees

33
 Land predators

Inside a leopard Strong shoulders

With well-developed
muscles in their shoulders
and forelimbs, adults can
Leopards might be the smallest of the big cats, drag large carcasses over six
but they’re some of the most adaptable. With metres (20 feet) into the trees.
short legs, large paws and long tails, they are
agile climbers and able to tackle prey several
times their own body weight

LEOPARD Night vision

Panthera pardus Leopards are nocturnal, so their eyes
Class Mammalia have a reflective membrane called
the tapetum lucidum to maximise the
amount of light captured by the eye.

Territory Africa and Asia

Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 12-15 years
Adult weight 60kg / 130lbs
Conservation status

NEAR THREATENED

Large skull
Their skulls are broad,
and they can tackle
animals up to ten times
their own body weight,
snapping their necks
with powerful jaws.

Canine
Four thick, strong canines
enable the leopard to grip
its prey firmly.

Premolar
Molar

Carnassial
These teeth are sharp and
bladed – ideal for slicing
through meat when eating.

Black panther
The colour of a leopard’s coat
varies according to its environment,
with darker colours seen more
frequently on mountain- or
forest-dwelling cats. Occasionally a
leopard will inherit two faulty copies
of the gene coding for coat colour
and they are born with almost
completely black fur.
Heart
Big paws
In comparison with their
body size, leopards have
very large paws, providing
the additional grip required
for life in the trees.

INFANCY JUVENILE
Newborn cub 1 day Staying hidden 0-2 weeks Starting to explore 2 weeks Leaving the den 6-8 weeks Eating meat 3 months Hunting independently 20 months
Leopard cubs are The mother moves the cubs Aer about a week the cubs By the time they are two months The female leopard will The cubs practise hunting small prey
born totally blind and frequently, changing the den begin to open their eyes and by old, the cubs are ready to leave continually bring food back to like insects and reptiles, and by the time
oen weigh less than site every few days in order to two weeks of age they are able the den to begin practising their the den, sharing up to a third they’re 20 months old they are no longer
a bag of sugar. elude predators. to walk around. hunting and climbing skills. with her hungry cubs. reliant on their mother for food.

34
 Leopards
Eye protection
Just like the black paint worn
Long, flexible spine by baseball players, the black
An elongated frame enables colouring around the eyes of a
leopards to stretch and recoil leopard reduces the harsh glare
like a spring, leaping forward from the Sun.
several metres at a time.

Kidney

Counter-shading
Leopards are white on the
underside and tawny brown on top,
counteracting natural shadows cast
by the Sun and helping to keep
them hidden from view.
Rosettes
The markings of a leopard
are characteristic of
a species that lives in
Stomach the shade of the trees.
Their fur is covered in
a distinctive pattern of
Short digestive system
round or square rosettes,
Like other carnivores,
breaking up their outline in
leopards have a short,
the dappled shade.
efficient digestive system.

Closest family
Closely related to the leopard are…

Snow leopard Tiger Jaguar

Snow leopards are Tigers are the largest Jaguars are oen
adapted to a cold of the big cats and share confused with
environment, with many similarities leopards, but their
MATURITY stocky bodies, thick fur,
and wide paws suited
with leopards. They
live a solitary lifestyle,
markings are quite
different. Leopards
to walking on snow. preferring to ambush, have distinctive, small,
Establishing a territory 2 years Finding a mate 2 years Raising young 3 -12 years Despite similarities in rather than chase their rosette-shaped spots.
Competition for food is fierce, so adult Female leopards seek out the Male leopards play no role in appearance, they’re prey. They are strong Jaguars also have
leopards use a combination of scent-marking, attention of males, signalling raising their cubs, so the female more closely related to swimmers, spending rosettes, but they’re
vocalisations and fighting to defend their their fertility with scent markers works alone to feed and protect tigers than leopards. lots of time in the water. larger and thicker.
hunting grounds. in their urine. them until they grow bigger.

35
 Land predators
Ambush antics
The hunting strategies of a cat born to climb
Leopards might not be the strongest of the
big cats, or the fastest, but what they lack in
power, they make up for in agility. They are
nimble ambush predators capable of jumping
six metres (20 feet) in a single bound.
Unlike cheetahs, leopards aren’t suited for
pursuit, so rely on a quick, powerful strike to
disable prey. With a hunting strategy similar
to that of domestic cats, they remain close to
the ground, inching forward until their target is
barely more than a few metres away. Then they
pounce, pinning the animal to the floor.
Competition for food is fierce, so after a
hunt leopards are vulnerable. Lions and hyenas
scavenge in groups, intimidating solitary
36
predators to steal their kills. Alone, the cats
stand no chance against these aggressive
teams of carnivores and if confronted their
only option is to retreat. After a kill, leopards
use their jaws to haul the carcass into the high
branches, often lifting more than their own
body weight. They have relatively short legs
and their centre of gravity is low, so using their
sharp claws as crampons, along with their thick
tails for balance, they can reach tree branches
well beyond ground-based hunters. From the
safety of the treetops there’s little threat and
the cats often store their kills in the branches.
Not only do leopards have to worry about
treats from other carnivores, competition
among their own species is also fierce. As
solitary hunters, they require large territories
to catch enough prey, so defend these areas
fiercely. With a combination of scent-marking,
low-pitched saw-like calls and fighting, leopards
ensure that they have exclusive access to the
prey animals in their local area.
There’s not always time to drag a large
carcass to safety, so the cats are often forced
to abandon their kills to stronger animals. Pack
hunters such as hyenas are chaotic eaters,
spending almost as much time fighting among
themselves as eating, so it’s sometimes possible
for the leopard to retrieve at least part of their
kill amid the chaos.
 Leopards

Aerial assault
Leopards don’t just hunt on the ground and will
sometimes pounce straight from the trees
In the shelter of the sometimes leafy branches,
leopards become almost invisible to animals below.
They lie in wait, watching as prey move about on the
floor. If an unfortunate animal comes within range,
they strike, leaping down from the branches.

Vantage point
The ability to climb
gives leopards a huge
advantage over ground-
based prey animals,
enabling them to watch
and wait, unseen, in the
safety of the branches.

Lethal strike
They will pounce
several metres from
the trees to the
ground, using their
powerful front legs
to grapple their prey
to the floor, before
inflicting a deadly bite.

A big cat diet 19% of their

“With a hunting strategy
similar to that of domestic
Leopards are skilled hunters and diet consists
eat a wide variety of food 29% of their diet of zebra. 14% of their
An average male leopard eats
consists of impala. diet consists
of wildebeest.
3.5kg / 7.7lbs of food per day

cats, they remain close

to the ground, inching
forward until their target 13% of their
diet consists
Occasionally
is barely more than a few they supplement
their diet with
of warthog.
13% of their diet
metres away” insects, such as
dung beetles.
consists of porcupine.

That’s 5% of its body weight

37
 Land predators
Protective instincts
Leopard mothers work alone to feed and protect their cubs
Leopards are solitary animals, but breeding
males and females remain together for days at a
time, sharing each other’s food and company.
When a female is in heat, she attracts male
attention with pheromones in her urine. Over
the following days the couple mate frequently,
sometimes up to 100 times in a 24-hour period,
ensuring that they have the best chance of
producing cubs.
Gestation lasts for around 100 days, but the
male leopard doesn’t remain to see the birth
of his offspring. The new mother is forced to
continue hunting while her cubs develop, leaving
the den unattended for periods of up to 36
hours at a time.
Left alone, the cubs are vulnerable. Lions, for
example, are aggressive opponents, deliberately
The first few weeks
of leopard life
Leopard mothers give birth to an average
of two or three cubs in a litter. For the first
few weeks their eyes are closed and they
are unable to walk, making them entirely
dependent on their parent for care.
The cubs aren’t born with their adult
markings, so instead have a mottled
greyish coat, which provides some
camouflage in the rocky areas where
leopards make their dens. However, until
they are able to climb, they are entirely
defenceless and the female devotes
significant time to moving the den site,
keeping them hidden from view.
38
eliminating the competition in order to secure
access to the best food. This means finding a
safe location for the den is crucial and pregnant
females take advantage of their agility to find a
den unreachable by less-nimble predators.
As the cubs grow, they begin to venture
outside, but it takes almost two years for them
to reach independence. Climbing is mastered
quickly and provides a small degree of
protection when their mother is away, enabling
the cubs to scramble into the trees if threatened.
Male leopards are aggressive and territorial,
so when hunting boundaries change hands any
cubs in the area become targets. Rather than
allow the females to waste resources on cubs
belonging to rivals, males will kill them, forcing
the females to become fertile again.
Early blindness
Leopard cubs are
born blind and do
not open their eyes
Unsteady
until they are ten
The cubs are unable to walk for
days old.
the first two weeks, so instead
their mother must carry them in
her mouth.
Juvenile camouflage
The cubs’ rosette markings are
blurred and their juvenile fur
is silvery grey, helping them to
blend in with the surroundings.

Guarding
their young
Leopards have a lethal bite, but
are still able to carry delicate
cubs in their mouths
Female leopards raise their cubs
alone and are responsible not only
for protecting them, but also for
providing food. Their maternal
instincts mean they’ll support their
young as long as is needed, and
will keep a watchful eye over them
whenever they can.
In order to hunt, mothers must
leave their dens unattended and
vulnerable. When alone, the cubs
must fend for themselves and many
succumb to predation.
Leopards
On the move
Mothers move their cubs to
a new den every few days to
mask their scent.
Gentle grip
Leopard jaws are powerful, but their
canines aren’t razor sharp, so with
a gentle hold no damage is done to
the cub’s delicate skin.
By the scruff
The loose skin at the nape of the
neck has very few nerve endings,
enabling the female to grip her
cubs without hurting them.
Going floppy
When they are being carried, the cubs
hang limply and do not struggle.

The leopard’s den

Choosing the right den location is crucial if
the young cubs are to survive

Staying hidden
The best survival strategy for leopard
cubs is to remain hidden. The
markings on their coats are blurred,
and their silvery-brown colouring
provides camouflage, but the main
Climbing trees
problem is the smell. Predators have
Leopards spend their adult lives in
keen noses, so in order to mask the
scent of the cubs the mother must
Inaccessible location the trees and begin climbing at a
Leopards hide their cubs in young age. While their mother is
find a new den every few days.
rocky crevices, hollow tree away from the den, the ability to
trunks, dense undergrowth climb is one of the only defences
and caves. cubs have against predators.

Learning to hunt
When the cubs are a few months old, they
begin to venture out of the den, practising
their hunting skills on anything that moves.

39
 Land predators

Life in the savannah

Leopards are at their best in the dappled shade
of grassy savannah or forest, where prey animals
are abundant and there are lots of places to hide.
However, these adaptable cats can survive almost
anywhere, from the tropical Congo rainforest to
the deserts of Namibia, to the snowy mountains of
China and Russia.
Leopards are the most widespread of the big
cat species, vastly outnumbering lions and tigers
in the wild. Their range extends across Africa, into
central Asia, up towards Russia and even down into
Indonesia and Malaysia.
In general these adaptable cats are able to
resist minor disturbances in their environment and
are quickly able to change their hunting range
or strategy to cope with new problems, but the
level of habitat destruction has decimated many
populations. In northern Africa the remaining
leopards are struggling to survive and in many
parts of Asia numbers are dangerously low. As an
example of the problem, Javan leopards have less
than 3,000 square kilometres (1,300 square miles)
of habitat left.
Five out of the nine subspecies of leopard
are categorised as Endangered or Critically
Endangered, and the Amur leopards are close to
extinction. They live in the snowy mountains on the
border between Russia and China and have been
so aggressively hunted for their valuable pelts that
the number of adults in the wild is now less than
30. In 1999 Amur leopard skins were selling for up
to $1,000 in local villages – despite conservation
efforts, the animals are still being killed by
poachers, with four additional casualties in the last
seven years.
In comparison, the leopards of sub-Saharan
Africa are thriving, but they face environmental
threats of their own. With such high numbers of
animals, contact with humans is inevitable, so there
is growing tension between leopards and human
populations. Hunters strip the environment of prey
animals, capturing wild meat for sale at markets
and depriving the cats of their natural prey. The
resourceful animals then turn to domestic livestock
for food and farmers retaliate with guns or poisons.
Many African countries limit the exporting of
leopard skins in an attempt to control poaching
and national legislation protects them in their
natural habitat, enabling legal action to be taken
against hunters. Despite this, outside of protected
areas the cats are vulnerable and the future of
some is uncertain.

“Outside of protected areas the

cats are vulnerable and the
future of some is uncertain”

Environmental factors
Several sub-species of leopard are now in a critical
position and face constant environmental threats
Hunting
Leopards are one of the big five game
animals in Africa – the species most
prized by hunters. Their elusive nature
makes them hard to track, attracting
trophy hunters from across the globe.

Human conflict
The big cats are highly efficient
predators and will prey upon domestic
livestock if the opportunity arises.
Farmers oen retaliate with lethal
force, killing the offending leopard.
Illegal poaching
Leopard fur is highly prized, so
poaching remains a problem in Africa
and Asia. Between 2002 and 2003, six
Amur leopard skins were seized and
only 35 adults remain in the wild.

Habitat destruction
Logging is decimating leopard
habitats across Asia and prey animals
such as deer and rabbits are hunted
for meat and skins, reducing the food
available for the remaining cats.

40
 Leopards
Nearest
neighbours
Leopards inhabit a variety of
environments and share their
homes with a large range of
other spotted cats

Cheetah
In Africa leopards live alongside
the fastest living land animals.
Cheetahs are similar in size to
leopards, but are much more
slender, with long legs and
powerful bodies, built for short
bursts of intense speed.

Clouded leopard
In the foothills of the Himalayas,
leopards and clouded leopards
share the terrain. Despite sharing
a name, and a home, the two
species are actually not that
closely related.

Serval
These small cats are native to
Africa. With their tawny fur, round
ears and black spots, they are
oen mistaken for leopards from
a distance, but their legs are much
longer, enabling them to run at
high speed through the grass. © Rex Features, Corbis, Thinkstock, NPL, John Palmer,
The Art Agency; Peter Scott

Leopard cat
These wild cats have similar
colouration to leopards, but are
much smaller, at around the size
of a domestic cat. They inhabit a
wide area, extending across south
and east Asia.

41
 Land predators

42

Hyenas
Wildlife’s
REBEL
The unlikely intelligence, steely determination and
steadfast loyalty of spotted hyenas
Lions might be Africa’s largest predator, but hyenas are
more sociable, intelligent and are built to survive. It’s
a battle of strength versus numbers, ambush versus
endurance and brawn versus brains.
Spotted hyenas have a reputation as callous, laughing
scavengers, but they are far from being the “slobbering,
mangy, stupid poachers” described in The Lion King. These
formidable hunters live in large social groups, displaying
aspects of intelligence equivalent to some primates. They
are among Africa’s most successful predators and if it
weren’t for lions, they truly would rule the savannah.
Hyenas owe their success to a complex social structure.
Like wolves, they live in large hierarchical societies, known
as clans, ranging in size from just three members in desert
regions, to up to 90 in the rich savannahs. Each clan works
together to hunt, defend territory and raise young. There’s
safety in numbers and as Africa’s second-largest predator,
a group of spotted hyenas is a fearsome sight.
Hyenas
The clan is dominated by females and has a strict
pecking order. Dominant animals get preferential access
to food, attacking those less important than themselves
in order to obtain the best parts of a carcass. When new
cubs are born, they automatically inherit their mother’s
rank and one of their first tasks is to learn their place in the
group. As an adult, initiating attacks on a more-dominant
member of the clan could still be life-threatening, however.
Spotted hyenas live in a fission-fusion society, with the
clan regularly splitting up into smaller units to hunt and
forage. Despite their less than complimentary reputation as
mangy scavengers, hyenas eat more than just carrion and
in some parts of Africa kill up to 95 per cent of their own
food. Many choose to hunt alone and are easily capable
of tackling a medium-sized antelope, but each additional
member of the hunting party increases the chance of
making a kill by 20 per cent. In even larger groups, hyenas
are able take down prey like wildebeest and even buffalo.
43
 Land predators
Unlike lions, who have a
maximum chase distance SPOTTED HYENA
of around 300 metres (984 Crocuta crocuta
Class Mammalia
feet), hyenas are adapted for
endurance and can maintain
pursuit for over 20 kilometres
(12 miles). These persistent
Territory Sub-Saharan Africa
hunters don’t use stealth or
Diet Omnivore
ambush, preferring to tackle Lifespan Up to 25 years
their prey head-on, running Adult weight 50-86kg /
110-190lbs
directly into the target herd
Conservation status
at speeds of around seven
kilometres (six miles) per
hour. As the animals begin to LEAST CONCERN
move, the hyenas watch for
signs of weakness or injury.
They continue their pursuit, moving through the herd in
order to select a target, and when they are close enough
they take to the chase, reaching speeds of up to 60
kilometres (37 miles) per hour.
The threat of attack after a hunt is high, so hyenas must
deal with their prize quickly; other hyenas, wild dogs, or suffocation, buying the team precious time before the ABOVE
The female restores hierarchical
lions could approach at any time. Unlike cats, hyenas don’t arrival of the competition. order amongst fighting cubs,
directly kill their prey, but instead behave much more like At three to four times the size of a spotted hyena, and establishing the importance of rank
dogs, running their target to exhaustion before tackling with canine teeth around six centimetres (2.4 inches) long, and respect early on
it to the ground. They kill by disembowelling and while the African lion is a formidable threat to the hyena and in
this strategy might seem brutal, it’s much faster than some areas of Africa around 50 per cent of a lion’s diet is
made up of stolen kills. If a hyena spots an approaching
lion, it emits an alert rumble, prompting all feeding hyenas
at the carcass to scatter and prepare for an imminent
lion attack.
If the aggressor is a male, the group rarely puts up a “If a hyena
fight, acknowledging that the power difference is just too
great, but when approached by lionesses spotted hyenas spots an
stand a much greater chance. In equal numbers, the
strength of the lionesses far outweighs that of the hyenas approaching
and they are easily chased away from their prize, but when
they outnumber lionesses four to one, the tables turn. lion, it alerts
Using a rallying call known as a whoop, which travels for
several kilometres, the hyenas can signal to other members the team and
of the clan; the whoops are sent in bursts and the quicker
they are, the more urgent the call. Using this long-distance prepares for
communication, splinter groups can quickly reassemble,
mounting a rapid defence of the meal. defence”

Vital communication signals

Imperative to a working team, communication signals are key to the success of the hyena clan

Threat display Signalling excitement Defence posture

Hyenas preparing to attack stiffen their posture,
raising their tails and ears while bristling their
hair. Sometimes two or more individuals will
walk together, shoulder to shoulder, to increase
the impact of the threat.
When excited, the hair on a hyena’s neck stands
on end and its tail points up and forwards. This
could be in reaction to a recent kill, the presence
of a potential mate, or some boisterous play
between siblings.
If a hyena is attacked, it flattens its ears,
lowers its hindquarters and tucks its tail under,
shielding itself from further damage. If it’s able
to flee, the hyena will keep its ears back, its tail
clamped and its hair flattened.

44
 Hyenas
Built to Powerful neck and jaw muscles
For its body size, the hyena has one of

survive
the strongest bite forces in the animal
kingdom. Its jaw can crunch through
the thick leg bones of a giraffe.

Being so small compared

with its rivals, how is the
hyena so successful?

Sharp eyesight
Hyenas rely on sight, sound and
smell to locate their prey and
have good low-light vision.

Big heart
Specialist teeth The hyena is built for
A combination of flesh-ripping endurance and, with a
carnassials and bone-crushing heart twice the size of a
premolars enable the hyena to lion’s, it can run for long
consume its prey entirely. periods of time as it
closes in on its prey.

Scent glands
Using glands located under
their tails and between their
toes, hyenas are able to mark
and defend their territory.

Low hindquarters
The back legs are shorter than
the front and the hindquarters are
rounded, preventing attackers from
gripping a hyena from behind.

Strong hunters in their own right, these

social mammals can also out-wit lions for
food, by working closely as a team

45
 Land predators
Life in the pack
Every member of the hyena
clan has a role to play, and
each is as vital as the next
The importance of the den
Hyena cubs’ survival rate doubles that of lions,
largely because of well-built dens in which
cubs and parents are more secure. They use
the abandoned dens of other smaller species,
then fiercely guard it as their territory base.
Sharing the kill
Hyenas share the kill respective of
each member’s hierarchal ranking. If a
dominant hyena is sick or injured, it’s
still entitled to its share of the carcass
and allies will fight and ensure it has it.
“Hyenas have strong family ties; after a fight, they’ll attack
the relatives of their opponent in a form of retaliation”
This strategy isn’t always effective, however, so hyenas
are frequently deprived of their meal following a hunt.
Undeterred, these resourceful animals have several
other strategies for obtaining food. Their reputation as
scavengers isn’t entirely unfounded and the creatures will
eat carrion when they can. In one-on-one confrontations,
a spotted hyena can outmatch a jackal, a cheetah, or
even a leopard and in large groups they are even capable
of mounting an attack on a group of lionesses. When
preparing to attack, the hyenas adopt an aggressive
stance – tails and ears held high, hair on end. They walk
shoulder-to-shoulder, using a combination of vocalisations
and postures to frighten their enemy.
Once a carcass has been secured, whether by hunting
or scavenging, hyenas are quick to devour it. Their
powerful jaws are capable of snapping through bone and
they eat every last scrap. The carcass is divided among
each member according to rank and in order to gain
access to the best parts of the animal, dominant hyenas
will attack their subordinates, pulling them away. During
46
On the lookout
Essential team members guard the den, watching out
for threats and trespassers. Watchers will alert the pack
should threats approach and fight if and when necessary.
Teamwork to survive
Hyenas kill by disembowelling, a
seemingly brutal but actually necessary
tactic faster than suffocation. This buys
the team precious time before the arrival
of the main competition, lions, and allows
a feed for each member back at the den.
feeding, hyenas at a carcass are covered in blood and
are difficult to identify, but using a combination of
visual, vocal and scent cues, they rarely make the
mistake of attacking a higher-ranked individual.
Dominance in hyena society isn’t based on
physical prowess, but on social politics and allies.
Hyenas form strong bonds with other members
of the group, most often direct family, but also
with unrelated individuals. These relationships
are based on power and subordinate hyenas
benefit from making allegiances with more-
dominant animals – it offers them some
protection against aggression within the group
and allows them better access to food and
other resources. In return, they provide support
to the dominant hyenas, helping on hunts, in
defence of a carcass, or during a fight.
If a dominant hyena is sick or injured, it’s still
entitled to its share of the carcass and although
it might not be able to win a fight on its own
 Hyenas

BELOW Not one to

miss an opportunity,
hyenas will use their
speed and agility to
catch fl amingos

47
 Land predators
during a confrontation, allies will join in to ensure that
the outcome respects the hierarchy of the clan. Spotted
hyenas also understand family relationships and, after a
fight, they are much more likely to attack the relatives of
their opponent in a form of retaliation. This ability to keep
track of their own relationships, as well as between other
hyenas, is a trait thought to be unique to primates.
However, this hierarchy isn’t always observed and
subordinate animals have been seen using what looks
like deception to gain access to food. In the wild some
subordinate hyenas have been seen using their alarm
rumble, usually signalling the presence of lions, to frighten
higher-ranking members of the clan away from the carcass
– they will simply sound the alarm and then run straight in
to feed on the catch.
The preferred prey of spotted hyenas are migratory
herbivores, such as antelope and buffalo, which move
with the seasons as they follow food and water. The
range of hyena clans can measure anything from 40 to
1,000 square kilometres, and they are known to travel for
distances of up to 80 kilometres (50 miles) in search of
food. In areas where food is scarce, hyenas make regular
trips away to hunt, visiting the migratory herds for periods
of ten days at a time before returning home.
48
The boundaries of the territory are defended using
a combination of scent-marking, vocalisations and
patrols. Lions aren’t the only threat to these territories,
and neighbouring hyena clans compete ferociously for
food. They have scent glands under their tails and mark
the stems of long grasses to signal their presence. They
also claw along the ground, distributing chemical signals
from glands between their toes. Scattered throughout
the territory are also communal latrines, which not only
provide concentrated areas of scent-marking, but due to
the high bone content of their diet, the white droppings
also help to provide a visual mark of territory boundaries.
Hyena cubs have a remarkable survival rate and 60
per cent reach the age of two, compared with around
30 per cent of lion cubs. The secret to this success is the
den. Hyena territories revolve around the defence and
maintenance of a communal space. Instead of digging
this themselves, the creatures use the abandoned dens
of other smaller species, such as warthogs, aardvarks and
bat-eared foxes. Adult hyenas can’t fit inside the den, but
neither can other large predators, helping to shield the
cubs from harm, even when their mother is away hunting.
Females often give birth to two cubs at a time, but can’t
produce enough milk for both to survive their first year.
 Hyenas
Also, unlike many other carnivores, hyenas don’t bring
carrion back to the den for their cubs to eat and neither Four myths
do they regurgitate any meat, so cubs rely entirely on
milk for sustenance. When the female returns to the den,
she calls for her cubs at the entrance, waiting for them to
about hyenas
emerge to feed. These intelligent rogues are some of
In order to obtain enough food to supply her cubs Africa’s most misunderstood animals
with milk, a lactating mother hyena travels to and
from the migratory herds in order to hunt for food.
Her trips are shorter than those of the other adult
members of the clan and last for around three days,
but she makes the journey around 50 times a year,
travelling an estimated 2,880 to 3,690 kilometres
(or 1,789 to 2,292 miles) – which is over three
times the distance travelled by the migratory
herds themselves.
For the first few months the uninitiated cubs will
fight among themselves, regardless of rank, but
the female hyena ensures that her offspring learn Hyenas are closely related to dogs
only to attack individuals of a lower social status. Hyenas might look a bit like dogs, but they are actually
After around 18 months they are fully integrated feliforms – cat-like carnivores – and their closest
relatives are mongooses, civets and cats. Feliforms
into hyena society. Female hyenas remain with their generally have fewer teeth and shorter snouts than
family clan, but when male cubs reach maturity they dog-like carnivores. Their hunting tactics also differ.
voluntarily leave the group to join a new clan at the
very bottom of the social structure. Males don’t generally
fight to rise through the ranks, so instead form an
orderly queue.
In areas where medium-sized herbivores are scarce,
hyenas supplement their diet with other prey. They aren’t
fussy eaters and have been recorded eating almost all
mammals, birds and reptiles within their range. Hunting
tactics vary depending on the type of target, but spotted
hyenas will chase flamingos through shallow lakes, as well
as ambush larger animals, such as wildebeest, as they
rest. They have also been known to break into farms to
Hyenas are purely scavengers
hunt livestock such as chickens, cows, cats and camels.
“These social In extreme circumstances, hyenas will resort to eating
Spotted hyenas are competent endurance hunters and
kill up to 95 per cent of the food they eat. A single animal
rubbish, dung, and bare skeletons. can tackle an antelope three times its body weight and
mammals can Hyenas might have a reputation for being dirty a group can take down an African Cape buffalo.
scavengers, but in reality they are resourceful survivors.
outnumber and Strong hunters in their own right, these social mammals
can outnumber and out-wit lions for food in many parts
out-wit lions for of Africa. The ongoing tense relationship between the
two species represents a battle that has been raging for
food in many parts” thousands of years.

How strong is the bite?

Despite hyenas being smaller than other Hyenas laugh because they’re happy
predators, their bite is far more powerful The giggle emitted by a spotted hyena is far from an
expression of joy. In fact, it means ‘go away’ and is
oen used by subordinate animals as they try to keep
hold of their share of the food.

9,000
© Ardea; NaturePL.com; Thinkstock; Photoshot

4,000
1,400
Spotted hyenas are hermaphrodites
Though the female’s genitals do closely resemble
the male’s, they aren’t identical. Behaviour also
Spotted hyena Lion Grey wolf distinguishes the sexes; males tend to act nervous
when interacting with potential mates, pawing the
9,000 Newtons 4,000 Newtons 1,400 Newtons ground near a sleepy female, bowing before her.

49
 Land predators

Meet the family

Bears
Discover six of the most diverse and
Useful tongues
The long and narrow tongues
of sun bears enable them to
extract honey and insects
from hives and difficult
crevices respectively.
interesting species of bear in the world
Polar bear
The largest bear of all
Of all the species of bear, polar bears are the largest. They
reside in colder Arctic regions including Alaska, Canada
and Russia, and are regarded as marine mammals SUN BEAR
as they can swim up to 95 kilometres (60 miles) Helarctos malayanus
Class Mammalia
without resting. They spend most of their time
on ice floes and are known to be nomadic
rather than territorial creatures.
Polar bears feed almost entirely on meat
(seals being their preferred diet) and they Territory South-east asia
can grow to a huge size with the largest
on record measured 3.6 metres (12
Sun bear Diet Omnivore
Lifespan 25 years
Adult weight 50kg / 110lbs
feet) in length and weighed 1,000 A small and very Conservation Status
POLAR BEAR kilograms (2,210 pounds). They’re
Ursus maritimus known for their thick white
rare species
Class Mammalia If you don’t recognise the VUNERABLE
coats, with a layer of
sun bear, don’t be surprised;
blubber providing
their scarcity among the
both insulation as
jungles they inhabit in south-east Asia, including India and
well as added
Vietnam, is such that they are the least studied of all bears.
buoyancy.
At half the size of an American black bear, sun bears
Territory In and around the
Natural insulation
are also relatively small and characterised by a yellow
Arctic region
Diet Carnivore A polar bear’s skin is actually crescent on their chests, small rounded ears, long narrow
Lifespan 15-20 years black to provide additional tongues and sharp claws. The latter makes them excellent
Adult weight 450kg / 990lbs insulation in the cold at climbing trees.
Conservation Status environments they inhabit.
Despite their size, however, sun bears are incredibly
aggressive and although they prefer a more herbivorous
VUNERABLE diet, they will feast on other animals and often attack even
if unprovoked. As such, this is an incredibly dangerous
animal to come across in the jungle.
Great strength
Despite the differences in

Brown bear
various subspecies of brown
bear, all are characterised by
a mass of muscle between
their shoulders.
Among the most
fearsome in the world
The various subspecies of brown bear
around the world have decreased in
numbers recently, although they remain
the most widely distributed bear of all.
BROWN BEAR While the different subspecies – found
Ursus arctos mostly in remote forests or mountainous
Class Mammalia areas – have fur ranging from beige to
black, they are all characterised by a hump
between their shoulders that gives them
considerable upper-body strength.
Upright they can measure up to a
Territory Europe, Asia and
parts of North America towering 2.7 metres (around nine feet)
Diet Omnivore and they can weigh up to 770 kilograms
Lifespan 20-25 years (1,700 pounds). Most brown bears feed
Adult weight 400kg / 880lbs
Conservation Status predominantly on plants, despite their
ability to kill large prey, and they mostly live
lives of solitude except for during mating
LEAST CONCERN season. They have little reason to form
packs owing to their defensive capabilities.

50

Keen senses
The pupils of a giant panda’s
eyes provide great night
vision, complementing a keen
sense of smell and hearing.
Bears
Giant panda bear
The most endangered species of
bear in the world
The giant panda is a bear that, at one time, was native
to large portions of Asia including China and Vietnam.
However, their numbers have drastically reduced
due to hunting, climatic changes and more, so
GIANT PANDA BEAR
Ailuropoda melanoleuca they mostly now reside in six mountain ranges
Class Mammalia in south-central China.
Their noticeable black-and-white fur
protects them from the cool climates they
inhabit, while they are also famous for their
Territory South-central China black ears and eyes. Their strong molar
Diet Omnivore teeth make it easy for them to feast on their
Lifespan 15-20 years diet of bamboo. As they don’t hibernate
Adult weight 100kg / 225lbs
Conservation Status they need to feast all year round, generally
moving to lower, more comfortable
altitudes in the winter. They are slow-moving
creatures and live solitary lives, with their sharp
ENDANGERED
claws enabling them to climb trees when in danger.

American
black bear Not a bear…
Koala bear Phascolarctos cinereus
A mainstay of North America A koala bear is not a bear
This versatile species of bear can be found across As cuddly as they might be, koala bears are
North America, where its ancestors are believed to not bears at all. They share a resemblance in
have arrived 500,000 years ago. From Alaska to as name only and in fact they belong to the group
far south as Mexico, the American black bear can be of mammals known as marsupials. Their
found in a wide range of environments. small size, roughly as long as your arm, and
Known for their black fur and lighter brown herbivorous diet mean they differ from actual
muzzle, black bears feast on a diet of both animals species of bears in more ways than one.
and plant life. Adult bears can take down full-grown
elks, although they usually opt for easier prey such as
fish and small mammals.

AMERICAN BLACK BEAR 3

Ursus americanus 2
Class Mammalia

1 4

Territory North America

Unique pattern
The jet-black fur
of Asiatic black
bears is broken by
Diet Omnivore
Lifespan 15-20 years 1. Rarest 3. Most
Adult weight 150kg / 330lbs Sun bear herbivorous
Conservation Status Recognisable features You’ll struggle to Giant panda bear
The American black bear
can be easily identified by its
find a sun bear Despite having a
small eyes, rounded ears and as they are found digestive system
LEAST CONCERN
light-brown muzzle. in the rainforests intended for
of south-east carnivores, giant
Asia, thanks to pandas have a
Asiatic black bear its rugged terrain
and the scarcity
diet that consists
almost entirely of
An aggressive inhabitant of of humans. bamboo shoots.
ASIATIC BLACK BEAR
Ursus thibetanus southern Asia
Class Mammalia Found across the southern parts of Asia, the Asiatic 2. Biggest 4. Most
black bear resides in mountainous or tropical Polar bear common
forests. As nocturnal creatures, they spend their The polar bear is American
days camped out in hollowed-out trees or caves, by far the biggest black bear
Territory Asia before coming out at night to forage for food. bear of all, with The American
Diet Omnivore Asiatic black bears usually maintain a territory the largest on black bear has
Lifespan 25-30 years
Adult weight 150kg / 330lbs
of less than two square kilometres (0.8 square record measuring a population
miles). Although considered to be a medium-sized nearly twice the estimated to be
Conservation Status
bear, with an adult male weighing on average 150 height of the more than twice
© Thinkstock

the yellow-white kilograms (330 pounds) and measuring 1.5 metres average human that of all other
V-shape across VUNERABLE (5 feet) in length, they are still dangerous and have male in length. species of bear.
their chest. been known to attack and kill humans.

51
 16
Amazing
facts
Bears
Whether you want to
hug a panda or run from
a grizzly, there’s more to
bears than fur and claws

Polar bears are the largest

land carnivore
The polar bear might spend most of its life
at sea, but it’s still the largest land carnivore,
beating off competition from the Kodiak bear
(a sub-species of the brown bear), who isn’t far
behind. Weighing up to 680 kilograms (1,500
pounds) and reaching up to three metres (ten
feet) when standing, the polar bear wins by far.

Polar bears have black skin, Polar bears can swim

for more than 200 miles
but colourless fur. Each hair is a without having a break.
pigment-free tube that scatters A bear’s age can be counted
and reflects visible light, giving in the rings in the cross-
section of its tooth root.
the fur its white appearance. Some black bears are
actually white, as well as
blue-grey, blue-black and
light brown.
They can remember the faces
of other bears they haven’t
seen in over a decade.
The panda is the smallest
newborn mammal,
measuring 15 to 18
centimetres (six to seven
inches) and weighing about
112 grams (four ounces).
Bears can sniff out food from
over 20 miles away. Their
sense of smell is seven times
better than a bloodhound’s
and 100 times better than
Bear mothers can give birth in
Sun bears have a human’s. Its sniffing
capacity is so sharp, it can their sleep
tiger-sized teeth detect food, cubs, a mate If a grizzly bear is pregnant when she goes into
Despite being the smallest of the species, the or predators from 20 miles hibernation, her cubs will be delivered while she is
Sun bear has relatively the largest canines of away. This means it has the sleeping. She will not wake up at all during the labour and
all bears. At up to 12 centimetres (five inches) best sense of smell of any the cubs will then nurse their mother until the bear does
long, they’re also much flatter. terrestrial mammal. eventually wake up.

52
 Bears
Sloth bears suck up
Fatter bears are their food
more likely to As a sloth bear develops, its two middle-
reproduce upper incisors don’t and the gap proves
useful when eating. As its snout extends
When a bear first becomes pregnant,
to form a vacuum-like nozzle, the gap
development of the embryo pauses
enables it to suck up insects. They seal
for several months in order to time the
their nostrils to aid suction, creating a
birth favourably. In this time, the bear
noise that can be heard for miles.
must gain sufficient weight for the
pregnancy to proceed and the embryo
to develop. If she doesn’t, her body
sadly rejects the embryo.

They can smell a trap

Bears are so intelligent, they have been
known to outsmart bear traps. One bear
was recorded eating food from the edge
of a trap but leaving the food on the trip
lever. Others have been known to roll
rocks into traps to set them off, so they
can safely enjoy the bait.

The panda has eyes like a cat, A polar bear’s liver

not a bear is poisonous
The panda is the only bear to have vertical slit pupils, If eaten by a human, the liver
which is how it got its ‘giant cat bear’ name. Although of a polar bear can be fatal.
they have great eyesight and night vision, they’re short- This is because it contains
sighted and likely have limited colour vision. so much retinol – one of
the animal forms of vitamin
A. Initial side effects include
peeling skin, haemorrhaging,
liver damage and falling into
a coma, before ultimately
resulting in death.

They can recycle their faeces

Traditionally, it was believed that
bears prepare for hibernation by
eating indigestible plant material
to form a fecal plug. However,
recent research suggests they
are astonishingly able to recycle
body waste into protein during
hibernation. This process is a bit
of a mystery that scientists are
still investigating further.
© FLPA, Thinkstock, Getty

53
 Land predators

54
 Polar bears

The diary of this fearless Arctic wanderer

is anything but predictable

A polar bear mother is getting ready to take her first

steps outside of the den in over six months. Spring has
come to the Arctic and the Sun will now remain in the sky
for 24 hours a day, putting an end to the perpetual night
of winter. This is a prime time for hunting, as the bear is
not the only one to become a mother. The scent of seal
pup is in the air and it’s making her hyper-sensitive nose
quiver. She hasn’t eaten the entire time she has been
nursing her twin cubs (common in polar bears) and needs
to feed fast if she has any hope of keeping them alive. If
she can raise just one of them to maturity it will be a great
achievement in the face of the many dangers that await
them in this frozen world.

55
 Land predators
Hungry wolves, cannibalistic male bears and starvation
are just some of the obstacles this one-parent family is
up against, but growing cold is not one of them. Layers
are key to wrapping up warm, so a polar bear’s fur has an
insulating undercoat, followed by guard hairs that aren’t
actually white, but transparent and reflect the visible
light. Underneath, the bear’s skin is black to absorb the
heat from the Sun and beneath that is a thick layer of
fat that can be 11.5 centimetres (4.5 inches) deep. All this
protection against temperatures as low as -37 degrees
Celcius (-35 degrees Fahrenheit) can cause a polar bear to
overheat, so they move slowly and rest often.
The polar bear is the largest carnivorous land animal – a
male can reach a length of over three metres (ten feet)
and weigh half a ton. It’s little wonder they require plenty
of naps as well as eight hours sleep, but no one tells
them when to go to bed.
POLAR BEAR “The normal daily patterns
Ursus maritimus we see in temperate and
Class Mammalia tropical species don’t hold
for polar bears,” says Dr
Andrew Derocher, one of
the world’s leading experts
on the animal. “The bears
tend to be a bit more
Territory In and around the
active in the morning and
Arctic region
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 20-30 years
evenings but this isn’t for “The bears live in a world that is 24
long. Remember, the bears
Adult weight 450kg / 990lbs
Conservation Status live in a world that is 24 hours of darkness for the winter
hours of darkness for the
winter months and then 24 months and then 24 hours of
hours of daylight for the
daylight for the summer”
VULNERABLE
summer.” While females and Dr Andrew Derocher

BELOW If a bear
sub-adults will be cautious about where they rest their
becomes stranded head, it’s a different story for fully grown males. “They
on land during sleep anywhere, wanting and fearing little or nothing,” Dr.
winter, it has to
wait for the ice to
Derocher continues.
return before it These Arctic dwellers are the polar opposite of their
can hunt brown and black cousins that hibernate. Instead, they can
slow their metabolic rate to conserve energy and survive
when food is scarce, which is crucial in the summer when
the ice melts away. Some bears swim for hundreds of
miles to stay with their prey, living up to their Latin name
meaning maritime bear. Others become stranded on land
and must wait for the sea ice to return, going without food
for long periods of time since it’s much harder to hunt in
BELOW Mothers will fiercely protect their cubs from
predators, which include hungry male polar bears

56
 Polar bears
LEFT A fully
grown polar Polar bear diet What do polar bears eat?
bear will sleep
whenever and
wherever it
chooses to

Ringed seals Bearded seals Beluga whales Birds’ eggs and vegetation
Seals make up most of a polar bear’s Unlike the much smaller ringed seal, These creatures are tricky to capture, Polar bears have been photographed
diet since there are millions residing the bearded variety is almost as measuring four metres and weighing scaling near-vertical cliffs to feast on
Insulation in the Arctic. They are full of caloric big as a polar bear. It’s believed that one ton, so they’re a huge prize for any thick-billed murre chicks and eggs.
Polar bears blubber that mature bears need, while only a mature male is a match for bear. However, bears stand a good Researchers suggest that bears are
are so well- younger bears feast on the protein- this blubbery beast, but the payoff in chance if a beluga whale becomes probably looking for alternative food
insulated that rich red meat. Juveniles that haven’t nutrition is equally huge. Walruses trapped in the ice, as it can only hold sources when the sea ice melts in the
they easily mastered hunting will scavenge on can also be on the menu, but their its breath for 20 minutes. The bears summer months. They are easy prey
overheat when carcasses for vital sustenance. tusks deter most bears. simply wait for the whale to surface. and provide a high-calorie snack.
running. This is
why they tend
to remain still
when hunting. “Male polar bears will clash
over mating rights in spring”
open water. This means there is no such thing as set meal
times – it’s simply a case of eating whatever and whenever
they can. “I have a list of over 80 species that polar bears
have been known to eat, but it’s ringed and bearded seals
that keep them moving,” says Dr. Derocher. “The bears
Fur will eat walrus, other seals, beluga whales, narwhal, birds,
Contrary to
popular belief,
eggs, fish, berries, seaweed, snowmachine seats, garbage
a polar bear’s and any carrion. They were observed in Svalbard eating a
fur isn’t white; whale carcass that was thawing out of a glacier and the
it’s transparent age of the whale was several hundred years old!”
and reflects the
Though they don’t hunt in groups, polar bears have
light, much like
snow that oen been known to dine together so long as the guests know
surrounds it. how to show good manners to their host – the one who
was there first. Any newcomers must stay low to the
ground to show submission and walk slowly around the
food. Finally it touches noses with the bear who owns the
carcass, who is more likely to offer him a seat now that
proper etiquette has been shown. However, this sight is
rare in the summer when food is limited. To warn off any
advancing competition, the bear
will emit a deep growl.
Attacking polar

57
 Land predators
bears charge, ears flat against their head and
jaws open ready to bite their opponent. Aside
from food, male polar bears will clash over mating
rights in spring and, less intensely, in the run-up
to the mating season when they are trying to
establish the social hierarchy. They’ll rear up on
their hind legs to reveal their full, intimidating
height and trade blows with their paws. You will
often see veterans bearing the scars and missing
teeth of past mating seasons.
However, this isn’t to say females are afraid of
getting their paws dirty. They may be half the size
of their male counterparts, but they will resolutely
stand their ground to protect their cubs if they
should run into a hungry bear. Polar bears are
attentive, nurturing mothers who rarely get a
moment’s peace, as Dr Derocher explains: “The
cubs spend a lot of time playing. It seems that
mothers with older cubs are pulled along by the
curiosity of their offspring. Yearlings and two-year-
old cubs (offspring normally stay with the mother
for 2.5 years) are very adventurous and much less
wary than adults.” She’ll scold them with a low
growl if they are drawing too much attention to
themselves, which can scare off potential food.
The main prey for polar bears is the ringed seal,
which provides them with the calories they need.
“You can think of a polar bear as akin to being
a blubber sponge,” he says. “They hunt seals for
their blubber and a bear can eat up to 20 per
cent of its body mass in a single meal. Most of
this meal would be fat and of this, well over 90
per cent will be deposited directly into the fat Birthing
cells of the bear. They are predisposed to being Females will carry two or three cubs by December. These
big – there’s no polar bear that ever looked at its newborns are 30 to 35 centimetres long (12 to 14 inches)
but their mother’s milk enables them to grow quickly so
reflection in the water and thought ‘I’m too fat’.” that by April they can leave the den. The female will then
The chances of catching a seal are much greater enjoy her first meal in four to eight months. Her young will
on land, where bears can sniff out their flippered be dependent on her for 2.5 years.

The life of a polar bear

01 Hunting
Spring is the time of year to relentlessly
hunt ringed seals, a polar bear’s favourite
meal. There are no set meal times, but
the first course is always the skin and
blubber, which provides the bear with
energy-rich fat content. This is followed
by the meat, but sometimes the bears
leave the remainder of the carcass to be
picked over by birds, Arctic foxes and
other bears.
02 Grooming
Polar bears prefer to look their best at
all times, spending a great deal of time
grooming throughout the day. After
snoozing, a bear will usually rub its large
body over the snow to get rid of any dirt
and it always washes its blood-stained fur
coat in the water after eating. The ice then
acts as a natural towel to dry their wet fur.
This ensures their fur can carry on doing
its job of keeping them warm in extremely
cold temperatures.

“Real fights break out in the

mating season, where bears
are often left with broken
teeth and scars”

Communicating
If a polar bear wants to ask a question, such as whether he
can share some food, he will gently touch noses with the
other bear. Any hissing, growling or snorting noises mean
that a bear is angry, but chuffing (similar to a noisy puffing
sound) shows that the bear is distressed. Mothers oen
make this sound when they are concerned for their cubs.
03 Walking
During mating season in the spring, males will follow the
tracks of a breeding female for 100 kilometres (60 miles).
Polar bears don’t move particularly quickly either, due to
their cumbersome frame, plodding along at a rate of five
to six kilometres (three to four miles) per hour. In general,
bears avoid running, as this can burn up precious energy.
Short bursts of speed are only reserved for catching prey.

58
 Swimming
Polar bears
Polar bears’ Latin name translates
to maritime bear, as they’re such
06 Mating strong swimmers. Their large
front paws propel them through
In April and May female bears over four years
the water and they can swim at
of age will start courting a male who has speeds of ten kilometres (six miles)
gallantly fought with other males for the right per hour. A thick layer of fat keeps
to mate with her. Partners will stay together for the bear warm while swimming in
a week and the mother will then take on food sub-zero temperatures and their
nostrils close when underwater.
before making a den in the autumn. Her heart They prefer to catch their prey on
rate will start to slow from 46 to 27 beats per land, but have been known to make
minute. This is like hibernation, but the bear shallow dives when stalking prey.
isn’t sleeping all the time.

Playing
Cubs and adolescent bears spar
for fun, rolling around in the snow
and nipping at each other. When
they grow older, the males among
them will continue this tradition in
preparation for mating season. This
helps them figure out their place
in the polar bear hierarchy and
teaches them how to fight for their
mating rights. A play fight can be
initiated by wagging their head and
by standing on their hind legs with
their paws by their sides.

05 Fighting
We may think of them as ferocious beasts,
but polar bears tend to avoid confrontation
where possible. They are not territorial like
their grizzly cousins and they have been
known to share their food with others.
However, real fights break out in the mating
season, where bears are often left with
broken teeth and scars. Mothers will also
clash with male bears since they pose a
threat to their young.

04 Sleeping
Expectant mothers will dig dens
in snow banks, while other bears
curl up in pits they’ve dug in the
snow. With their backs to the
wind and a paw for a pillow, they
fall asleep for about eight hours,
taking plenty of naps in between.
This conserves their energy,
which is very important in the
Arctic environment where food is
not always readily available.

59
 Land predators
Bears and humans
The polar bear has long been hunted by native
people of the north for the sake of tradition, food
and trophy-hunting. Guns and snowmobiles
have only made it easier to kill this creature
and now man has created another threat to its
survival. The bear has made headlines as the
first animal to become endangered due to global
warming and its conservation rating is Vulnerable.
Habitat loss means they are being driven onto land
for the long summer months without access to their
primary prey, seals. In their search for food, bears have been
spotted in northern coastal communities and encounters
with humans have increased, ending badly for both bears and
humans. Churchill, Manitoba, has become known as the polar
bear capital of the world, but attitudes are changing as tourism
grows, supporting the town’s industry.

On the hunt
How polar bears catch their staple food

Going fishing
The polar bear uses its
powerful sense of smell to
locate a seal’s breathing
hole, then lies in wait for
hours or even days.

To the water
If a seal is spotted hauling
up onto an ice floe, the bear
will take to the water, while
staying out of sight.

60
 Polar bears
The bear facts
40 450
km/h
The top speed a
polar bear can
KILO
42 10 31
cm
Sharp teeth with
canines that
can grow up to
KM/H
Weight of a fully Speed when Wide paws with
reach on land grown male 4cm long swimming five claws

friends from more down to break through. Its aim must be deadly accurate
than one kilometre or the seal stands a good chance of slipping away down
(0.6 miles) away and the nearby exit hole to the water. The creamy white fur
a metre (three feet) camouflages the polar bear, but it’s just a myth that they
under the snow. cover their black noses to hide from prey.
Unrivalled in its Another method of hunting is an aquatic stalk, as Dr.
cunning, the ice bear has Derocher explains: “If a seal hauls out onto the ice, the
a range of hunting tactics in bears will try to get close enough to grab it by swimming
its arsenal, the most popular of to the seal. They seem to be able to map out a route and
which is known as still hunting. While stay very low in the water. Sometimes they’ll also stalk
scoping out a breathing hole (a small hauled-out seals on top of the ice – they use every bump
ABOVE opening in the ice), a bear will wait patiently for in the ice as cover and then charge the last distance,
Several crashes hours or even days on end. The seals, meanwhile, are in hoping to get the seal before it reaches the water.” The
are sometimes the water hunting for their own food, but as air-breathing bears devour as much as they can during spring when
needed to break
through to the mammals, they must always come up to the surface and ringed seals are pupping, then again in the autumn.
birthing lair and polar bears know this. “The bears can look asleep but they Polar bears depend on ice for access to seals and the
if the bear is not are lightning fast when the seal comes up,” Dr Derocher loss of their sea ice habitat due to climate change is the
accurate, the seal
can escape says. “They use their teeth and dive down the hole as far main threat to the Arctic’s iconic animal. “The bears cannot
as they can – seals don’t swim backwards that well, but adapt fast enough to deal with a world without enough
LEFT A bear
slips down a
they are very wary coming up for a breath. They know it sea ice,” Dr. Derocher says. “If there’s no sea ice, there’s no
snow bank to could be their last.” ice bear. The terrestrial niche for an Arctic bear is already
reach the water Another much-used method is stalking, where the bear filled by the barren-ground grizzly (brown bear). At the
on the Svalbard
archipelago in
cleverly pinpoints a ringed seal’s birth lair. These caves are end of the last ice age, polar bears didn’t adapt to a
the Arctic Ocean built under the snow but above the ice, keeping the seal warming climate, they moved northward as a species.
pups safe from predators. The roof is no match for half a They only left their fossilised remains behind in the Baltic
ton of polar bear, rearing on its hind legs and pounding Sea.” It’s a man-made problem and man can fix it, he adds:
“Anything anyone does to reduce their greenhouse gas
“The creamy white fur production will help. Educating oneself about the risks to
the planet and our way of life is the key.”
camouflages the polar
bear, but it’s just a myth Discover more…
DIG DEEPER INTO THE LIFE OF THE
that they cover their black POLAR BEAR
Polar Bears: A Complete Guide to Their Biology and
noses to hide from prey” Behaviour by Dr Andrew Derocher is out now.

The catch
If the bear has approached
with enough caution,
the seal will be taken by
complete surprise.

© naturepl.com; Corbis; Getty; Thinkstock

Sneaky swim
Planning a careful route to
use the ice as cover, the
bear can creep up on the
unsuspecting seal.

61
 Nose
Land predators Polar bears have adapted
a powerful sense of smell
to detect seals up to 32
kilometres (20 miles) away.
Ears
The ears have evolved to
become small and tucked
into the head, to help

Evolution of the prevent heat loss.

Polar bear
The polar bear is the largest land
carnivore, but its earliest ancestor was
actually a small dog-like bear. This furry
sea mammal has evolved to survive cold
climates and new research suggests its
evolutionary history started
even earlier than first thought Teeth
The large, sharp canine
teeth are suitable for
ripping apart a seal’s
tough fatty blubber.

Reasons for
evolution
New diet
To survive the colder climate,
fatty seals became the polar
bear’s primary food source,
building their fat reserves.
Natural insulation
Insulating fur and a thick
layer of fat keep the bear’s Skin
core body temperature and The bear’s black skin
metabolic rate steady in the absorbs the Sun’s heat
cold temperatures. and its oily texture acts
as a water repellent to
keep the animal dry.
Swimming
Streamlined heads, wide
paws and extra body fat
“A new study of nuclear
helped polar bears evolve into
superior swimmers to catch
DNA suggests the
their new food source.
earliest polar bears
Size
The bear’s ancestors diverged from their Fur
gradually grew larger,
enabling them to keep warm, brown bear cousins A thick undercoat of
fur covered by long,
transparent guard hairs
capture prey and conserve
energy when food was scarce. 600,000 years ago” provides ideal insulation
and camouflage.

20 MILLION 10 MILLION 5 MILLION 500 THOUSAND

Ursavus elmensis 20 million years ago
Known as the dawn bear and believed to
be the first true bear species, this primitive
creature had canine features and was the
size of a fox terrier. It hunted in trees and fed
mainly on vegetation and insects.
Protursus simpsoni 10 million years ago
Protursus bridged the gap between early
dog-like ancestors and the Ursus genus of
modern bears. They had muscular limbs and
a short tail. As members of the Ailuridae
family, they are also related to red pandas.
Ursus minimus 5 million years ago
One of the smallest of its genus, Ursus
minimus, also known as the Auvergne
bear, increased in body size as the ice age
approached. It had many similarities to
the modern American black bear.
Ursus arctos 500 thousand years ago to
present day
The most common bear species in the
world, they vary greatly in shape, size and
colour, but all have a distinctive hump.

45-85cm 1-1.2 metres 1.2-2 metres 1-2.8 metres

62
 Polar bears
POLAR BEAR
Ursus maritimus
Class Mammalia

Territory In and around the

Arctic region
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 20–30 years
Adult weight 450kg / 990lbs
Conservation status

VULNERABLE

Paws
Furry paws covered in
small bumps stop the
bears slipping on ice
and are wide to propel
through the water.

Claws
Sturdy claws can easily
catch prey and grip ice,
while deep scoops on the
underside aid digging.

250-100 THOUSAND 150 THOUSAND What is the evidence?

Ursus maritimus tyrannus 250–100
thousand years ago
As glaciation occurred, a number of
Siberian brown bears of various colour, size
and fur thickness became isolated.
Ursus maritimus 150 thousand years ago
to present day
As the largest species of bears, the polar
bear is now perfectly suited to the harsh
trials of the Arctic climate.
Mapping the family tree of the Arctic giant
Scientists have traced the ancestry of
modern bears through teeth fossils,
which have stayed more or less the
same over millions of years and are
shared by all the bears in this lineage.
Using fossil records, scientists have
predicted polar bears split from the
evolutionary path of brown bears
considered a rapid adaptation of a
mammal to a colder climate. However,
a new study of nuclear DNA suggests
the earliest polar bears diverged from
their brown bear cousins 600,000
years ago and another study of
even more-complex deep genome
sequencing suggests that polar bears
©Thinkstock

around 150,000 to 300,000 years ago. may have evolved from the brown
Based on studies of mitochondrial bear to a separate species just four or
3.7 metres 2.4-3 metres DNA, until recently polar bears were five million years ago.

63
 Land predators

A graceful cat with remarkable physical

strength and prowess, it’s a sad fact that the
dwindling numbers of such an incredible
beast have put it on the brink of extinction

64
 Snow leopards

65
© FLPA/Paul Sawer
 Land predators
Roaming the rugged mountains of central Asia, the RIGHT A snow
snow leopard prowls with vigour and grace. A subtle and leopard mother
mysterious inhabitant of some of the harshest terrain on tending to her cubs
the continent, the feline is now regrettably synonymous
with desperate conservation efforts, in yet another
infamous fight against total extinction. A catastrophic
mixture of poaching and habitat loss has whittled the cat’s
numbers down to only 3,500 to 7,000 left in the wild.
Dr. Rodney Jackson has over 30 years of experience
studying and saving the beautiful creature. It hasn’t been
easy, since this has involved working in the mountain
ranges, mostly on foot and for months on end. “They live
above 12,000 feet [3,660 metres],” he says. “The more
cliffs there are, the better the snow leopards will love it,
which brings real problems for me because I really fear
heights.” Despite their name, the big cats don’t actually
live in the snow, but reside in some of the driest and
the coldest areas in the world, from southern Siberia
to Afghanistan, to China and the Himalayas. They are
designed to withstand cold climes, however, with thick
woolly coats and enlarged nasal cavities that heat inhaled
chilly air. Also, while snow leopards may not roar like other
big cats, they are from the
same family as tigers and
SNOW LEOPARD
Panthera uncia other large felines, so they’re
Class Mammalia facing similar threats from
human interference.
“One of the major
problems is that the natural
“Snow leopards animals are kept inside dry stonewalls that these big
cats can easily scale. Snow leopards are superb athletes

Territory Mountains of
central Asia
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 15-18 years
Adult weight 54kg / 120lbs
Conservation status
ENDANGERED
BELOW Rodney Jackson and B.
Munkhtsog with a sedated snow leopard leopards are going to
in Mongolia 2008
prey base for the snow
leopard has been depleted
are superb that are capable of leaping as far as 15 metres (50 feet)
through the air, which is ideal for pouncing on prey at a
or reduced by poaching,
such as the blue sheep or
athletes that distance. Once inside these livestock pens, the goats and
sheep don’t stand a chance. “Livestock have very poor
the ibex that people hunt
for meat,” Jackson explains.
are capable predator-avoidance behaviour,” Jackson continues. “Their
sense of smell isn’t great, they don’t know to run away,
“Humans have displaced
them out of their habitat
of leaping as they don’t know to clump up, so they fall victim to a wolf
or a snow leopard very quickly. These enclosures create
with their livestock, so just
by chance alone the snow
far as 50 feet an artificial situation because the animals can’t run away.
They’re contained in a pen, so a predator’s killing instinct is
encounter livestock.” The
through the air” repeatedly triggered until there’s nothing moving in there.”
This has led local people to wrongly believe snow leopards
are bloodsuckers and that they don’t eat meat at all.
In a place where money is measured in livestock, this
sort of incident can be devastating to a family. People
depend on livestock for food, clothing and transport.
The population, 40 per cent of which lives below the
poverty line, are effectively subsidising one of the most
endangered creatures in the world. Jackson sympathised
with their plight and so set up the Snow Leopard
Conservancy in 2000 to address these human-animal
conflicts. “The general solution, which remains even today,

BELOW If a bear
becomes stranded
on land during
winter, it has to
wait for the ice to
return before it
can hunt

66
 Snow leopards
Threats to survival The greatest dangers the snow leopard faces

Poaching Loss of habitat Retribution killing

No one looks better in a fur coat
than the animal wearing it, but sadly
people in central Asia, eastern Europe
and Russia will pay high prices to have
it made into garments. Not only that,
but the snow leopard’s bones and
other body parts are in demand for
LEFT High rocks traditional Asian medicine. The animal
are perfect for is protected in all its range countries,
ambushing prey
yet the laws are rarely upheld.
People heavily depend on livestock
for their income but the more animals
they keep, the less wild grass there
is for the snow leopard’s natural prey
to eat. This has a knock-on effect,
reducing the numbers of ibex and blue
sheep in the area. The snow leopard
is forced to prey on domestic animals
in a bid for survival, which increases
human-cat conflict.
The snow leopard’s natural prey
includes the ibex or blue sheep, but no
wild animal is going to turn its nose
up at a free meal, especially when it’s
so easy to catch. If domestic livestock
isn’t sufficiently protected, then a
farmer’s livelihood can be wiped out
with a single attack. Few families can
afford this loss, so local people turn to
hunting this creature as a result.

Camouflage coat Impeccable eyesight

The fur’s colour enables A snow leopard’s eyes are

Built to the cat to hide in its natural

environment. Its belly fur
grows up to 12 centimetres
green or grey rather than
golden yellow. They also have
excellent eyesight that’s six-

survive
How this incredible cat is built
(five inches) long. times better than human’s.

to thrive in the high, rugged

mountains

Large nostrils
Snow leopards have unusually
large nasal cavities that
help them breathe at high
altitudes. It also warms the
cold air before entering the
cat’s lungs.

A tail gives balance

The long tail can measure
up to a metre (39 inches)
long and helps the cat keep
its balance in the steep
mountains. It also wraps
the appendage around
itself to keep warm.

Longer hind legs Sturdy paws

A snow leopard’s hind legs These extra-large paws
are longer than its front distribute their weight
limbs. This is so that the evenly, so the animal
big cat can jump up as far doesn’t sink in the snow.
as 15 metres (50 feet) up These effective snow shoes
in the air to manoeuvre or are also covered in fur to
catch prey. keep them warm.

LEFT A mother and is to compensate people for the loss of livestock, but the
cub share a fresh problem is that this isn’t sustainable. It’s something you’ll
kill, with the female
snarling at a rival have to do forever, so where’s the money going to come
from? Our approach is trying to address the root cause
for that loss and to improve people’s livelihoods so they
are better able to sustain some economic loss from a few
animals here and there and not be dependent on external
sources of income, or the government.”
By working with the communities, Jackson identifies the
main causes for livestock depredation. More often than
not it’s down to the pens that aren’t properly predator-
proofed. By helping shepherds to strengthen the walls and
add a wire mesh roof, the risk of any unwanted visitors is
greatly reduced.
Snow leopards don’t pose a threat to humans like they
do animals, Jackson adds: “There are no documented
incidents of a human being killed by a snow leopard, just
a couple of injuries but no actual killing, unlike tigers, lions
or other leopards. The wild ones always run away. In fact,
very few people have ever seen one; even local people
don’t often sight them. Where they’ve been persecuted
they have become very secretive, shy and nocturnal.”

67
 Land predators

ABOVE Thanks to the conservation

efforts of Dr Jackson and his
colleagues, snow leopard numbers
are becoming more stable

68
 Snow leopards
“There were spears sticking
up from the ground so that
any animal coming would
jump and impale itself”
As well as educating herders and improving corrals,
the Snow Leopard Conservancy also works to develop
alternative sources of income. One particularly bright idea
is the Himalayan Homestays, transforming local people’s
lodgings into modest bed & breakfasts where tourists can
stay. “They’re earning far more from that than they ever
have from farming,” he says, citing it as one of their biggest
success stories. “Families can now send their children
to school, as well as improve the village by cleaning it,
planting trees and reducing the grazing pressure on the
habitat, so there’s more for wildlife to forage. It’s win-win.”
The first time Jackson was walking through the
inhospitable terrain of the Langu Gorge in Nepal, he met
some local hunters and there was one in particular who
had set his sights on this rare animal’s highly prized fur. “I
noticed there were spears sticking up from the ground so
that any animal coming would jump and impale itself,” he
recalls. “Sure enough, we travelled further over the cliff
and buried under the rocks I could see the skinned, frozen
carcass of a snow leopard. It was the saddest thing I’d ever
seen and it epitomised the threat these cats are facing.
That was my inspiration.”
These days the snow leopards Jackson comes across
are alive and well. By attaching radio collars and leaving
camera traps to record images of these cats in the wild,
he can already see a difference. “I would sometimes go for
three years without seeing one, but I just got back from
India where I saw five snow leopards in ten days,” he says.
“There’s definitely a positive change, but there are still a
number of threats. There’s Asian demand for the bones,
fur and body parts of wild cats for medicinal and clothing
purposes, but the supply can’t possibly meet the demand.
Snow leopards often become a substitute for tigers and
that’s a big issue.”
This big cat inhabits around 12 different countries and
the Snow Leopard Conservancy is active in six of these,
so Jackson is hoping other organisations will step in, but
one thing’s for certain, he won’t be giving up. He’s been
tracking big cats since his childhood and over 30 years
on he’s not about to stop now. “The public needs to be
aware that many of the world’s endangered animals are
large cats or predators,” he says. “Many live overseas or in
developing countries, so we need to work together to help
protect them.”

See the snow leopard

IN THEIR NATURAL HABITAT
Ladakh Snow Leopard Trek
© Naturepl.com; FLPA; Thinkstock; Snow Leopard Conservancy

February 2015- www.whf.org.uk

The Wildlife Heritage Foundation is running a trek to the Hemis National Park
– a high-altitude national park in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, India. This
incredible setting is the perfect backdrop for an adventurous hiking quest based
around photography and wildlife. The trek is open to anyone who would like the
opportunity to see a snow leopard in the wild, accompanied by two tour guides
from the UK. The Wildlife Heritage Foundation is a member of BIAZA (British &
Irish Association of Zoos & Aquariums).

IN THE UK
Zoos and wildlife parks nationwide
Visit snow leopards at Twycross Zoo – an award-winner of Best Enclosure for its
Himalaya project, a snow leopard enclosure. Other BIAZA members with snow
leopards include Marwell Wildlife, Dublin Zoo, Banham Zoo, Welsh Mountain
Zoo, Dudley Zoo, Paradise Wildlife Park, Lakeland Wildlife Oasis and Linton Zoo.

69
 Land predators

Endangered
Siberian tiger
SIBERIAN TIGER Once one of the most numerous
Panthera tigris altaica
Class Mammalia tigers on the planet, the
magnificent Siberian tiger has
been hunted by humans to the
Territory Russia, China
Diet Deer, wild boar, bears, elk,
brink of extinction, reduced to
rabbits, hares
Lifespan 20-35 years
less than 40 individuals at one
Adult weight 300kg / 660lbs
Conservation status
point. Now, with protection
in law, the population has
ENDANGERED
recovered to around 500, but
this is still under severe threat

“Poaching continues unabated in

large parts of Russia and China,
causing 80 per cent of known
Siberian tiger deaths each year”
Threats to
the species
Poaching
Despite being outlawed, poaching continues unabated
in large parts of Russia and China, causing 80 per
cent of known Siberian tiger deaths each year. The
poachers keep hunting in order to sell the animal’s skin
and organs, which both fetch high prices on the exotic
animal black market.

Habitat loss
Consistent logging – both legal and illegal – as well as
unbridled human development and domestic animal
grazing, has seen the Siberian tiger’s natural habitat
segmented and destroyed. This has led to increased
isolation of the species, with the reclusive animal driven
further and further into what little wilderness remains.

Prey depletion
One of the biggest causes of tiger population decline is
the rapid depletion of its prey base, with humans both
legally and illegally hunting its natural food sources.
The two biggest losses are deer and wild boar, however
everything from rabbit and hare to fish and elk are being
consistently removed at unsustainable rates.

What you can do

WWW.AMUR.ORG.UK
There are numerous charities currently working to safeguard the Siberian
tiger and its natural habitat. The Amur Tiger and Leopard Conservation is
one of the most notable, with its website listing lots of information about the
species and ways to get involved in conservation efforts.

70
 Siberian tigers
Decreasing numbers Quick questions with
Once prolific across the far east of Russia,
Siberian tiger numbers are now measly the Amur Leopard
and Tiger Alliance
Jo Cook, co-ordinator for this vital
conservation organisation, explains how you
can get involved in protecting these vulnerable
big cats
Could you explain your role at ALTA?
I am the ALTA co-ordinator, so I’m
responsible for generating funds from
Russia China 1850 members of the public, businesses and zoos
Estimated number Estimated number Estimated total animal to send to our projects in the Russian far east
of animals left in of animals left in population in the mid- and China.
this country: this country: 19th century: I liaise with our implementing agencies,

380 20 1,000 which are Phoenix Fund, Zoological Society of

London (ZSL), Wildlife Conservation Society
(WCS) and Wildlife Vets International (WVI),
ensuring that they submit appropriate project
proposals to us and that the projects we fund
are making a real difference to Amur tiger
and leopard conservation.
I also keep our Facebook, Twitter pages
and our website up-to-date so people know
what’s happening. Essentially I do everything
that needs to be done to keep ALTA running!

Could you provide an example of an Amur

tiger conservation project ALTA is currently
involved with?
Many of the projects ALTA funds involve
an element of anti-poaching work. This
includes training in specialist soware… and
collecting data from anti-poaching patrols.
[This data could include] distances covered
by foot, 4x4 and snowmobile, where the
patrol was conducted and if any violations
were uncovered. [Other data collected
would include the number of] poachers
apprehended, activity spotted, snares
collected and so on.
This information can then help determine
how future patrols should be carried out,
which areas should be targeted and at what
times. Since these mechanisms have been
in place, more poaching violations have been
recorded and more poachers have been
caught. The anti-poaching work can also
be more low-key, by providing appropriate
clothing for the guards, fuel and spare parts
for the vehicles, or simply employing more
people to carry out the patrols.

How can people best get involved in

protecting Amur tigers?

The decreasing habitat
Historically the Siberian tiger could be
found throughout the entire Russian
far east, the Korean peninsula and
large swathes of north-east China, with
perhaps more than 1,000 individuals
maintaining a healthy population.
Today this traditional range has been
reduced to just small fragmented groups
in the Russian Sikhote-Alin mountain
range and miniscule pockets of China.
Territory in 1800 Rumour has it that some tigers may now
The best way to get involved in Amur tiger
conservation is to raise awareness of
their situation and inspire others to help. If
possible, raise funds for projects protecting
them in the wild and donate them to an
organisation such as ALTA (information can
be found on our website on how to donate).
Also, never purchase something that may
be derived from tigers, such as traditional
Chinese medicine, tiger bone wine and tiger-
skin rugs.
For more on ALTA’s activities and ways you
© Corbis

exist in Korea, however this has never can donate, please visit the organisation’s
Territory in 2014 been independently verified. website at: www.altaconservation.org

71
 Land predators

PIED TAMARIN MONKEYS

TERRITORY
DEFENDERS
Brazil’s pint-sized pied tamarins defy their diminutive
proportions. With a strict hierarchy and unbelievable
rituals, the monkeys earn their title as the most
territorial primate on Earth

72
Pied tamarin monkeys

73
 Land predators
If you follow Brazil’s deep, slow-moving Rio Negro river, urges. Both her mates and male relatives take over with
you’ll reach a region where the tannin-stained waters full responsibility for her twins, returning them to her only
meet the Solimões – or upper Amazon. When your feet when they need milk, until they are weaned.
touch dry land, you’ll find yourself in a beautifully bustling Using her hands, which like other primates in the
harbour, where the confluence of the two mighty rivers Callitrichidae family possess claws, rather than nails, the
has formed a vital port for trade, and birthed the capital dominant female pulls back branches and loose bark,
of the Amazonas region. looking for small insects or budding flowers to eat.
The city of Manaus, made famous Suddenly, something invisible to human
by 2014’s FIFA World Cup football
championship, is currently home to
SCENT senses causes an instant reaction in the
whole group. The dominant female’s
around 1.9 million people. However, in MARKINGS expression changes to a grimace, with
the forest areas that both border and By urinating and rubbing lips curled back and head held high.
punctuate the urban sprawl of the special glands on the trees in This face-pulling reaction – known as
city, you’ll find one of our smallest their home range, a stinky signal the Flehmen response – is an in-built
primate relatives. This is their only is sent out that acts like a warning reflex to the scent mark of another
home and they refuse to move for sign to other groups. Rather than tamarin group hitting the vomeronasal
anything – literally. face an unknown number of organ at the base of her nasal cavity.
Emerging from the dense tree- agitated rivals, wandering After a moment in this pose, she begins
top canopy of leaves and branches, a groups will usually beat a to emit a bird-like alarm call, which brings
cluster of hanging liana vines are acting hasty retreat. the female and the males to her side,
as a mid-level forest highway for a family without the infants in tow.
of these gremlin-like monkeys. Their curious, The four miniature monkeys stare intently at
black-skinned, bare faces – framed by comically the next tree, eyes wide and lips pulled back once
large ears – emerge from a thickly furred white collar, again, but this time to display sharp, needle-like canine
which extends roughly halfway down their tiny bodies and teeth. The white patches of fur on their collars and backs
over each arm. About mid-torso, the colour of their fur stand up straight. This response – known as piloerection –
abruptly changes to a rusty red-brown hue that covers the serves to make the tamarins look bigger to their foes. The
lower limbs and tail. menacing bared canines and display of absolute intent is
The group is led by a female – the matriarch of this all a cleverly evolved way of guarding territorial borders
family. Following her are a sub-adult female and three with bluff and bravado, avoiding physical combat. ABOVE A pied tamarin about to feed
on a parkia seed pod (Parkia pendula)
males. One of the males is carrying a pair of young The enemy could be other pied tamarins or, more likely in Amazonia, Brazil
tamarin twins on his back – the sons or daughters of the in the present day, they could be the related but more-
lead female. Only the matriarch is able to breed, with the adaptable golden-handed tamarin (Saguinus midas). Either
powerful pheromones present in her strong musky odour way, it’s equally important that our family of tamarins
suppressing her younger female siblings’ reproductive defends its home range, which could be as large as 10 to

“The menacing snarl is a

cleverly evolved way of
guarding territorial borders
with bluff and bravado”
BELOW Pied tamarins have very fixed
social hierarchies, with the matriarch
mother at the top of the tree

CHASE
IS ON
If a wandering band of
tamarins invades another group’s
territory, a chase will ensue. While
males will chase both female and
male intruders away, the matriarch
and her daughters will only see
off rival females. This enables
missing or dead males to
be replaced.

74
 Pied tamarin monkeys
The most territorial
animals on Earth
From the fierce attack of the hornet to the
antisocial antics of the hummingbird

Hornets
All wasps of the hornet family Vespa will attack with
absolute intent to kill should any threat be identified.
There isn’t an animal alive that seems immune to full-
scale hornet attack.

AMBUSH
AND RETREAT
Tamarins can cover large areas
in leaps, somersaults and expert
springing. If fights occur, they
usually involve rapid ambush-type
attacks and retreat manoeuvres, Hummingbirds
starting high above their Male hummingbirds are so territorial, they will even
opponent, then fleeing once attack fake dummy birds – including photographs!
100 hectares, Females won’t even allow their mate to fly near the
a bite or scratch has
depending on nest, chasing them off and pulling out their feathers.
been delivered.
the amount of
available food.
BELOW With senses much keener Our group’s own
than a human’s a tamarin will instantly
scent markings demarcate
react to any trace of an animal invader
their range’s boundaries, but the effect that this has goes
much further than a mere statement of ‘get off my land’.
This is chemical warfare that can prevent breeding and, in
some cases, even cause death – slowly and painfully.
If that sounds extreme, it’s worth remembering that
the pheromones that the dominant female produces Hippopotamus
can prevent her younger or less-dominant sibling from Hailed as the most dangerous animal in Africa, bull
becoming ready to mate. The looming chemical threat of hippos preside over a harem of up to ten females within
a 250-metre stretch of river, and will readily attack in
another dominant female wafting into our family’s territory response to all but the most submissive approaches.
could cause the sense of impending danger. Tamarin
mothers are known to eat their young babies in the
presence of such threats, but if this happens to our female,
she won’t become fertile again until the scent is gone.
If they’re unable to move away from others from
outside their group, the pied tamarins release massive
amounts of the stress hormone cortisol. Produced in the
adrenal cortex, cortisol breaks down muscle tissue to
release energy for ‘fight or flight’ responses. It also halts
digestion and even the immune system. In small amounts
Cougar (or mountain lion)
this function is essential to survival, but if prolonged by The home range of male cougars, from Canada to
the inescapable presence of other tamarins it can cause a South America, never overlap. Scratches and pungent
condition known as Wasting Marmoset Syndrome (WMS). urine mark the boundaries of the secretive males, who
WMS was discovered when zoos and rescue centres try to avoid one another altogether.
tried to keep tamarins from different groups together –
they literally stressed one another to death. Thankfully
studies have led to much better awareness of just how
territorial these gangs of petit primates really are.
© Rex Features, NPL, Thinkstock, Guayacanor

If we go back to Manaus, we’ll find another intruder to

the pied tamarins’ habitat – humans. Where city meets
forest, they scent-mark power lines instead of vines, live
on tower-blocks instead of treetops and learn to avoid
automobiles instead of anacondas. Despite all of these
new challenges, pied tamarins refuse to leave their home Chameleons
These lizards display their mood by changing colour,
territory, often hanging around building sites as land is
rather than trying to blend in. In instances where males
converted. For this reason and more, we can truly call the spot one another, their reflection or even their own
pied tamarin nature’s most territorial. shadow, the mood becomes decidedly dark.

75
Deadly
reptiles Learn about the lethally effective predators whose
evolutionary history dates back to when dinosaurs
roamed the Earth

78 Saltwater crocodiles
The world’s most aggressive crocodile
90 Nile crocodiles: evolution
How this reptile has evolved over 250 million years
92 Snakes: meet the family
Discover nature’s most fascinating serpents
94 Yellow rat snakes
All about this constricting killer
95 Rock pythons
How Africa’s largest snake kills and devours its prey
96 Modern-day dinosaurs
The prehistoric creatures still walking the Earth
104 Komodo dragons
The story of the deadly giant lizard

92

76
 “The saltwater crocodile is the
ultimate opportunistic predator”

78
© Thinkstock
96 104

77
 Deadly reptiles

78
 Crocodiles

All About
Saltwater crocodiles
Meet the world’s most aggressive crocodile,
and discover how this huge reptile came to
be such a lethally effective predator

79
 Deadly reptiles

Anatomy of the world’s largest reptile

SALTWATER Saltwater crocodiles are extremely successful Hard palate
CROCODILE
Crocodylus porosus
predators thanks to their bony armour, powerful A flap at the back of
Class Reptilia the hard palate enables
muscularity and an incredible bite force that the crocodile to open Trachea
enables them to overwhelm even large prey its mouth underwater The crocodile’s
without drowning, by windpipe is supported
Territory Indo-Pacific coasts stopping water getting by rigid rings of
Diet Carnivore to the nose and lungs. cartilage, preventing
Lifespan 70-100 years it from being crushed
Adult weight 400-1,000kg /
880-2,200lbs as they swallow large
Conservation status
Snout mouthfuls of meat.

LEAST CONCERN
Radius

Nictitating membrane
Crocodiles have translucent third
eyelids, which move horizontally
across the eyeball, protecting
their eyes underwater while still
enabling them to see. Spine

Nostrils
The nostrils and eye sockets Eye socket
are positioned on the top
of the skull, enabling the
crocodile to breathe and
see even when partially
Horny scales
submerged in the water.
Square, flat scales on the
underside of the crocodile
enable it to move smoothly
across the ground. This
provides the tail with a large
surface area for swimming
and lunging at prey.

Scale disposition Mandible Short limbs

Interlocking Saltwater crocodiles
Transversal Longitudinal teeth have short limbs and
rows rows Collar
when on land tend to
Heart
crawl on their bellies.
The crocodile has a
second aorta, enabling
Webbed it to divert acidic
feet Lungs deoxygenated blood
Crocodiles use their to the stomach and
lungs as a buoyancy helping to produce
aid and swallow more stomach acid.
stones for ballast.
This helps them to
manoeuvre easier
Ventral when underwater.
scales Bottom Lateral
Collar without scales of scales of
scales holes the tail the tail

INFANCY JUVENILE MATURITY

Determining gender
Pre-hatching
The sex of a newly hatched
crocodile is determined by the
temperature of the nest.
Hatching 0 Days
When crocodiles hatch, they cry
to attract the attention of their
mother, who digs up her young
and carries them to the water.
Learning to swim
0-8 months
Young crocodiles stay close to one
another for two to eight months,
until they grow larger.
Separation 8 months
As the young grow they begin
to move farther away, but most
remain within five kilometres (3.1
miles) of the nest site.
Competition for space
1-10 years
Smaller crocs can’t compete
for the best territory, so are
vulnerable to stronger rivals.
Sexual maturity – females
12-14 years
Once they reach maturity,
females will lay an average of
40 to 60 eggs every year.

80
 Crocodiles
Closest family Bite force Dermal pressure
Closely related to the saltwater crocodile are… The saltwater has the receptors
highest bite force of any Sensory pits in the
crocodile, with up 2,410 scales on a crocodile’s
megapascals (350,000 head enable it to detect
pounds per square inch). slight changes in water
pressure. This means
the creature can
even hunt in
Nile crocodile Mugger crocodile American alligator
murky water.
The Nile crocodile is Found in the Indian Crocodiles have a
the second largest subcontinent, the V-shaped snout and
reptile in the world, mugger is a heavily when their mouths
measuring up to armoured crocodile. are closed, both rows
six metres (20 feet) Despite measuring of teeth are visible.
in length. These up to four metres (13 Alligators have shorter
creatures are apex feet), muggers prefer U-shaped snouts with
predators and capable smaller prey to the a huge bite force and
of attacking prey as saltwater, feeding on their upper jaw hides Lingual salt
large as young hippo. fish, turtles and birds. the lower teeth. glands
Reptilian kidneys are
Liver Pancreas less efficient than
mammalian ones, so
crocodiles rely on
glands to pump salt
from their blood.
Ulna

Kidney
Pelvis

The tail is used to

move swiftly in
the water.

Tail

Large intestine

Stomach
The stomach of a Posture
saltwater crocodile The posture is semi-
is ten-times more erect, with knees and
acidic than a elbows slightly bent.
human’s, enabling
it to digest bone
and hooves.
Double caudal crest
Intestine

Simple caudal crest

How the saltwater crocodile gallops

This huge lizard is capable of galloping,
but only when threatened. Over short
distances it can reach speeds of up to 15
kilometres (nine miles) per hour.

“Older crocodiles are

Sexual maturity – males 16 years
Male crocodiles mature later and spend
most of their adult lives competing for
territory, optimal basking locations and of
course female crocodiles.
Reproduction 16+ years
Saltwater crocodiles reproduce
once a year during the wet
season. The female guards the
eggs and then the hatchlings.
Apex predator 20+ years
Older crocodiles reach average lengths
of five metres (16.4 feet) and are
capable of taking down
capable of taking down almost any
animal in their path.
almost any animal”

81
 Deadly reptiles

Honed senses and killer instincts

The saltwater is the largest and most aggressive of all the crocodile species,
using its natural abilities and honed senses to survive
Crocodiles do most of their hunting in the evening and at
night. They are primarily sit-and-wait ambush predators,
so spend their time partially submerged in the water, with
barely more than their eyes and nostrils poking out of the
surface. They are agile swimmers and can dive for long
periods of time without even surfacing to breathe. They
are also able to slow their heart rate to just two or three
beats per minute. When in the water, they use their lungs
as a buoyancy aid and are also known to eat stones, which
act as a ballast, helping to stabilise their large bodies
below the surface.
Saltwater crocodiles also pack a combination of sharp
senses to stalk their prey. They have keen eyesight and the
backs of their eyes are covered in guanine crystals that
reflect the light, enabling them to see more effectively in
the dark. Sensory pits on their heads also enable them to
feel changes in the vibrations within the water.
Smaller crocodiles feed mainly on crustaceans, insects
and mammals, but their diet varies depending on the
location. Saltwater crocodiles use their teeth for impaling
and securing their prey, but they are ineffective when
it comes to chewing. Instead, they swallow their prey
whole, relying on extremely acidic stomachs to dissolve
tough tissues such as bone and horn. For larger prey, the
crocodile thrashes its muscular body, swinging its head to
tear the animal into more-manageable chunks, which can
then be swallowed swiftly.
The aggressive thrashing, lunging and fighting displayed
by the saltwater crocodile is fuelled by anaerobic
respiration. This rapid method of generating energy
without oxygen enables them to ambush their prey at
high speed, using their tails to propel themselves out of
the water and tackling their target to the ground before
dragging it under. However, it results in the build up of
lactic acid in the blood, lowering the pH and building up
an oxygen debt. In order to repay this debt, the crocodile
needs to rest after periods of intense activity and can only
fight or hunt in very short bursts.
A crocodile can survive for extended periods of time
without feeding, so the majority of its life is sedentary. Like
other reptiles, they are cold-blooded and don’t generate
enough body heat to maintain a constant temperature,
instead relying on their environment to heat and cool their
bodies. During the day, saltwater crocodiles spend most of ABOVE A saltwater crocodile lying
the time basking in the Sun. The bony scutes that make up at the shore of a swamp, basking in
the rays of the Sun
the armour plating on their backs are covered in tiny blood
vessels and act like miniature solar panels, absorbing heat
and warming their bodies. If they become too warm, they RIGHT With the nostrils and eye
open their mouths, seek shade or enter the water to cool sockets positioned on the top of its
skull, a crocodile is able to stalk its
themselves down. prey while nearly totally submerged

Saltwater crocodile diet Crocodiles are capable of

sudden bursts of energy
to surprise their prey, but
only for short periods

HATCHLING JUVENILE ADULT

All teeth but no bite
Despite having a full set of teeth,
newly hatched saltwater crocodiles
are small, measuring under 30
centimetres (12 inches) in length.
They cannot really tackle prey any
larger than insects or very small
crustaceans and fish.
Triple the size, triple the threat
Aer a year, the crocodiles have more
than tripled in length and are capable
of hunting a much wider variety of
prey. They catch fish underwater,
lunge at small mammals on land and
leap into the air to capture birds.
A ravenous adult
Mature saltwater crocodiles are apex
predators and their diet is restricted
only by their size. Most of the time
adult crocodiles eat smaller animals,
including crabs, sea turtles, birds, and
wild boar. However, seven-metre (23-
foot) adult males can bring down prey
as large as a water buffalo.

Crocodiles are agile

swimmers and can
spend up to an hour
submerged underwater

“A crocodile can survive

for extended periods of
time without feeding”

82
 Crocodiles
The powerful
reach for prey
Saltwater crocodiles are well known for
their high-speed lunge from the water
to the shore, but they can also perform
this rapid strike in the air. Their tails are
incredibly muscular and they can generate
enough power to propel themselves
vertically out of the water.
This technique is most often used
by juveniles to hunt insects, but adult
saltwater crocodiles are known to jump
to catch birds and even pull animals from
overhanging branches. Some lighter
crocodiles can clear the surface entirely,
becoming airborne as they catch their prey.

2-3 metres
Leaping at speed
Saltwater crocodiles
can leap two to three
metres out of the water
at incredible speeds of
around ten metres per
second (around 22 miles
per hour).

Perfectly formed scales

The scales on the underside
of a crocodile’s abdomen
are regularly shaped and
arranged in a uniform pattern
to minimise friction.

83
 Deadly reptiles

How a predator
takes down its prey
Discover how a saltwater crocodile can
take down prey of all shapes and sizes
Lurking silently beneath the surface of the brackish,
cloudy water, the saltwater crocodile is the ultimate
opportunist predator. The mottled green and brown of
its much-prized hide provides the perfect camouflage,
concealing it from any animal unfortunate enough to take
a drink from a nearby bank.
As an eater with a wide diet, a saltie will devour pretty
much anything it can sink its well-suited, peg-like teeth
into. If it’s small enough, animals such as monkeys and
birds will be swallowed whole, while larger prey such as
wild boars and water buffalo will be dragged under the
water and drowned.

01 Strike
It strikes from the water,
launching forward using its
muscular tail for propulsion.
The prey
02 Neck bite
Water buffalo are a common The crocodile grabs
prey for saltwater crocodiles, its prey by the neck,
who usually stalk and ambush
them from the shallows.
Vice-like grip
With its pointed teeth and
crushing the trachea
bone-crushing bite force, with a bite force stronger
once a saltwater takes hold, than any other animal on
its prey rarely escapes. the planet.

84
 Crocodiles

04 Drowning
Many animals are killed
03 Death roll Breathing
The hard palate of a
by the bite alone, but
Using its immense body weight to roll saltwater extends all the
crocodiles will also repeat
sideways, it generates enough force to way to the back of the the death roll manoeuvre
disable a large animal and also to tear it mouth, so the airway isn’t in an attempt to drown
into bite-sized pieces. squashed as it struggles. their prey.

85
 Deadly reptiles
The courtship of a fearsome beast
Despite their fearsome reputation, saltwater crocodiles have a surprisingly gentle courtship
ritual and the females are nurturing mothers that guard their young fiercely
Saltwater crocodiles mate during the wet season, with
the males competing loudly for females. In a bid to
demonstrate their eligibility, they open their mouths,
expand their chests and emit infrasonic and audible
sounds that shake the nearby water. This often escalates to
fighting, with violent tail-whipping and biting.
BELOW When
male and female Once a male has secured his territory, he’s free to
crocs court, attempt to mate with any female he can find. If the
they oen stay female is receptive to mating, she will raise her head to
near each other,
swimming side signal submission and the courtship ritual can begin.
by side Male saltwater crocodiles are among the most aggressive
animals on the planet, but when pursuing a female they
employ gentler tactics. They have scent glands on
their chins and rub their heads against the female’s
snout to cover her in pheromones. Partners
also swim together, with the male dipping
below the female to blow bubbles on her
and performing infrasonic water dances,
vibrating his flanks to create a low-
pitched sound in the water.
However, even if a male is
successful in courting a female,
another male may attack the pair
during mating and the fighting
often continues in the water.
During the wet season,
saltwater crocodiles move inland to
freshwater swamps and marshes,
Just like for many other
creatures in the world, the
mating season is a tense
time for saltwater crocs
86
preferring to lay their eggs in nests constructed from
vegetation, in sheltered locations away from the tidal
waters of estuaries. The eggs take between 65 and 114
days to hatch while the female defends the nest. She waits
in nearby water channels and is efficient at warding off
would-be predators, but the biggest threat to the nest is
flooding, with around 70 per cent of eggs drowning.
The nest not only provides protection from predators
and prevents the eggs from drying out, it also plays a
vital role in determining the gender of the hatchlings.
The surrounding temperature often dictates the sex of a
newborn reptile, so instead of having the classical X and Y
chromosomes, whether or not a crocodile hatchling is male
or female is defined by how hot or cold the nest is. Eggs
will only develop into male hatchlings if the temperature
is very near to 31.6 degrees Celsius (88.9 degrees
Fahrenheit) – more than a degree or two above or below
this temperature will produce only females.
The first few years of a saltwater crocodile’s life are
incredibly dangerous and the hatchlings are vulnerable to
attack by predators of many different varieties. The female
remains with her offspring for the first few months, as
they huddle together in crèches, calling to one another to
stay together. Within a year they begin to venture further
away, but larger male crocodiles pose a significant threat
and very few hatchlings make it to adulthood. Those
that survive go on to become almost invulnerable to any
predator, other than humans.
“The first few years
of a saltwater
crocodile’s life are
incredibly dangerous
and the hatchlings
are vulnerable to
attack by predators”
 Crocodiles
A crocodile nest
Saltwater crocodiles are mound-nesters, building
a protective shell of mud and vegetation to
keep their developing eggs warm and safe
Egg tooth
Guarding the nest The tough skin
The female crocodile is an
found on the
attentive mother and guards
end of a baby
her nest against predators,
crocodile’s snout
waiting in nearby water
enables it to break
channels in case any animals
through the egg’s
attempt to approach. When
inner membrane.
the eggs begin to hatch, the
female digs the nest open and
sometimes even carries the
hatchlings to the water in
her mouth. Her guard Egg shell
duties continue until Saltwater eggs are
the hatchlings are oval and measure
several months old. about eight
centimetres (3.1
inches) in length,
about the size of a
goose egg.

Hatchling
Newly hatched crocodiles
cry, attracting the attention
of their mother. She
responds by opening the
nest, helping the hatchlings
out of their eggs and into
the water.

Nesting
Crocodile eggs are vulnerable
to changes in temperature and
predation. Females bury them in
the nest to hide them from view
and keep a constant temperature.

First weeks of life Egg tooth lost

The egg teeth that enable
the hatchlings to emerge
Before baby saltwater crocodiles hatch, they take in the remainder
from their eggs are
of the egg yolk to sustain themselves until they are able to feed. The
no longer needed and
hatchlings themselves are large, measuring around 30 centimetres
quickly disappear.
(one foot) from snout to tail and already have a powerful bite.
The hatchlings make repeated vocalisations and use these noises
to remain close together, guarded by the adult females. Even at this
young age, they’re aggressive and quickly establish a hierarchy.
Camouflage
The dappled-brown
colouring of the
scales on the back of
the hatchlings help
to keep them hidden
from predators.

Safe transport
Saltwater mothers will
often carry their hatchlings
to the water inside their
open mouths.

87
 Deadly reptiles

Home of a killer reptile

Where the saltwater crocodile calls home
The saltwater crocodile was once widespread across
south-east Asia, but now is restricted to the shorelines,
from the east coast of India, across south-east Asia, down
into the Northern Territory of Australia and its islands.
Despite their name, saltwater crocodiles don’t live
in the sea and instead inhabit brackish water – where
freshwater meets saltwater. The crocodiles spend most
of their time in tropical estuaries, rivers and swamps, but
vary their exact location according to the seasons. When
it’s dry, they congregate in tidal rivers, estuaries and
mangrove swamps. During the wet season they move up
to 150 kilometres (90 miles) inland to freshwater swamps,
billabongs and river channels to build their nests.
Saltwater crocodiles can venture into the open ocean
and by using a combination of floating, riding currents
and swimming, are capable of travelling thousands of
metres. Unlike most other crocodiles, they have special
glands in their mouths, enabling them to get rid of excess
salt when living away from freshwater. Some spend so
long at sea that they have been spotted with barnacles
attached to their scales. Their remarkable ability to travel
long distances at sea has enabled the species to populate
remote locations such as the Solomon Islands.
The saltwater crocodile is listed as being of Least
Concern on the IUCN Red List and faces relatively few
environmental threats. However, one of the major causes
of saltwater crocodile mortality in Australia is accidental
capture in fishing nets.
Feral water buffalo also pose a threat to the saltwater
crocodile population. Originally introduced into Australia
during the 19th century, the animal causes significant
environmental damage, with herds trampling the
wetlands. They destroy vegetation and increase drainage,
destroying the saltwater crocodile’s habitat.
Nevertheless, the saltwater population in northern
ABOVE
Australia is doing so well that the government has to go A high-angle
to great lengths to keep the crocodiles away from built-up view of Ontong
Java, north of the
areas, capturing and re-releasing the creatures to move
Solomon Islands
them away from towns. Controlled hunting has even been
suggested to keep the population at a manageable level.

Environmental threats
In many areas saltwater crocodiles are thriving, but
they do face some problems in their environment
Problem crocodiles
When crocodiles become a danger,
they are relocated to crocodile farms
to be used as breeding animals.
However, illegal culling also occurs in
some areas.
Agriculture
Outside of Australia, some freshwater
habitats are suffering due to
agriculture. Swampy grounds are rich
and fertile, so some are being turned
over to growing crops.
Using the environment
Fishing These cold-blooded
One of the major causes of crocodile predators use the water
mortality in Australia is fishing nets to regulate their body
accidentally catching the creatures. temperature, as well as to
Measures are in place to protect the stalk and ambush prey.
animals from the fishing industry.

Nearest neighbours Take a look at some of the animals sharing their environment with this aggressive predator

Flat-back sea turtle
In northern Australia, crocodiles
share their estuaries with flat-back
sea turtles. Although they measure
about a metre (3.3 feet) in length, the
turtles have a so shell and can be
vulnerable to crocodile attacks.
Domestic water buffalo
Water buffalo are farmed for meat,
milk, skin, bone and horn. They are
also used to plough paddy fields, as
well as pack animals to move heavy
loads. They are one of the largest
animals preyed on by crocodiles.
Spectacled flying fox
These rainforest-dwelling fruit bats
can weigh up to a kilogram (2.2
pounds). Saltwater crocodiles have
been observed stalking colonies of
flying fox and will occasionally snatch
them from the air.
Green tree python
These non-venomous snakes spend
most of their time in trees, feeding
on small mammals. They adopt a
characteristic position when resting,
looping their bodies over the branches
and resting their head in the middle.

88
 Crocodiles
Saltwater
crocodiles
and humans
Saltwater crocodile skin is extremely valuable, so
the population was badly dented between 1940 and
1970 due to poaching. In the 1970s the Australian
government brought in laws to protect the crocodile
and the species is now doing well.
Saltwater crocodiles are extremely dangerous to
humans and have a reputation for attacking people
and even boats. Smaller crocodiles attack humans
as part of a territorial display, but larger individuals
can attack to kill. Most saltwater crocodiles live
in remote areas, so the opportunity to prey on
humans is rare, but the slightly smaller Nile
crocodile lives close to humanity in several areas
and is responsible for hundreds of deaths each year
in Africa, demonstrating the potential that these
reptiles have as human-killers. In remoter, more-
impoverished and isolated parts within saltwater
crocodile range, it’s likely that several attacks go
unreported each year.
As part of the conservation effort in Australia,
problematic and dangerous individuals are not
always culled, but instead relocated to crocodile
farms to be used as breeding animals. These farms
enable regulated production of meat and skins,
protecting the wild population from poaching and
giving even aggressive individuals a chance.

Brackish water
Saltwater crocodiles
can survive in the
open sea, but spend
most of their time
in slightly less-salty
brackish water. In our culture
© Alamy; FLPA; Peter Scott/The Art Agency; Thinkstock; Ardea; NaturePL.com; Dr.jayan.d;
Crocodiles are aggressive predators, and are

Ian Sutton; Lyndie Malan; Justin Welbergenus; Cherubino; Lyndie Malan; ; Sol90 Images
oen portrayed as villains in popular culture
Tick Tock the crocodile
In Peter Pan, the Disney adaptation of
J.M. Barrie’s creation, Captain Hook is
pursued relentlessly by the fearsome
saltwater crocodile that ate his hand.

Crocodile Dundee
The 1986 film tells the story of Mick
‘Crocodile’ Dundee, inspired by the
life of Rodney Ansell, who spent
seven weeks stranded alone in the
Australian bush.

Jacala
In Rudyard Kipling’s The Second
Jungle Book, Jacala the crocodile
is described as making a bellowing
sound like a bull. However, Jacala is
actually a mugger crocodile.

89
 Deadly reptiles

Evolution of
The Nile crocodile
NILE CROCODILE The Nile crocodile is part of the
Crocodylus niloticus
Class Reptilia Crocodilia family that has existed
largely unchanged for over 65
Territory Africa
Diet Carnivore
million years, but its evolution
Lifespan 45 years
Adult weight 225 to 550kg / goes back further still, to
496 to 1,210lbs
Conservation Status an astonishing 250 million
LEAST CONCERN
years ago

Teeth
A crocodile typically has
over 60 extremely sharp
conical teeth designed to
grasp and tear at prey.

Palatal valve
This prevents water from
entering the crocodile’s
mouth when underwater
so it can capture prey.

Jaw
The jaw of a crocodile is
tremendously powerful,
enabling it to apply high
levels of force to trap prey.

249-200 MILLION 230-200 MILLION 228-150 MILLION 195-136 MILLION

Rauisuchia 249-200 million years ago
These large reptiles were extremely
widespread throughout the world and are
one of the oldest descendents of the crocodile
we now know. They were typified by their big
heads, long back legs and sharp teeth. They
could grow up to six metres (20 feet).
Aetosauria 230-200 million years ago
This group of reptiles originates from
the late Triassic period. These heavily
armoured creatures were close relatives to
the modern crocodile and featured similar
traits. Their name means ‘eagle lizard’ due
to their bird-like skulls.
Sphenosuchia 228-150 million years ago
These agile-looking reptiles were largely
small, sleek and a world away from today’s
modern crocs. Like the rauisuchias, their hind
legs were typically longer than their front,
suggesting they were fast movers. They likely
fed on small vertebrates and insects.
Thalattosuchia 195-136 million years ago
This species was split into the teleosauridae
and metriorhynchidae and were highly
adapted to life in the water. Metriorhynchids
were more evolved, boasting paddle-like
limbs, shark-like tails and even the ability to
drink sea water. They were efficient predators.

13-20ft 3-10ft 3-5ft 8-20ft

90

110-11 MILLION
Notosuchia 110-11 million years ago
It’s here that the resemblance to today’s
crocodile becomes a lot more apparent.
Notosuchias were divided between
omnivores, carnivores and herbivores.
Fossils of the creatures have been found
everywhere from South America to Europe.
3-15ft
Tail
The Nile crocodile’s thick,
powerful tail propels it
quickly through water. It
also doubles as a weapon.
Skin
The skin is tough, flexible
and durable, which helps to
protect it but also makes it
a desirable commodity.
“The closest surviving ancestors of
crocodiles are birds, which evolved from
the same group known as archosaurs”
65 MILLION-PRESENT
Crocodylia 65 million years ago to the
present day
This is the order of reptiles that currently
exist today, consisting of crocodiles,
alligators, gharials and caimans – all
excellent swimmers. Like birds they have
four-chambered hearts and two ventricles.
3-23ft
Legs
While slow on land, the
crocodile’s strong legs can
give it a surprising burst of
speed when needed.
How do we know this?
Fossils found across the world have enabled
us to map out the crocodile’s family tree
Fossils remain the key to discovering
the past evolution of crocodiles and
their ancestors. Through the continued
study of fossils, we know that there
were many different types of crocodile,
from the 33-foot long deinosuchus,
to the saltoposuchus, which spent
most of its time on its back legs. The
use of fossils has revealed important
evolutionary changes, such as the
Nile crocodiles
What aided
the evolution?
Adaptability
The fact that modern crocodiles
have remained largely
unchanged for the past 65
million years is a testament to
their adaptability.
Physical size
Crocodiles would oen grow
to a tremendous size to
escape other predators. The
Sarcosuchus was nearly 40 feet
long, for example.
The extinction event
The crocodile’s ancestors
survived the Triassic-Jurassic
extinction event, enabling them
to fill the ecological niches of
dead species.
Demise of dinosaurs
Crocodiles oen competed
with dinosaurs for food. While
dinosaurs dominated for a long
time, crocodiles eventually
outlived them.
crocodile’s nostrils moving from the top
of their heads to the tips of their snouts,
but has also shown that crocodiles
have remained largely unchanged now
for over 65 million years – unusual
compared with many other animals.
Amazingly, the closest surviving
ancestors of crocodiles are birds, which
© Alamy
evolved from the same group known
as archosaurs.
91
 Deadly reptiles
Meet the family
Snakes
There are nearly 3,000 species
of snake in the world, and almost
400 are venomous. Some are
deadly enough to cause death or
injury to humans. Some snakes
fly and others can even swim;
here we show you the most
diverse and interesting serpents
SIDEWINDER
RATTLESNAKE
Crotalus cerastes
Class Reptilia
Territory Deserts of North
America
Diet Reptiles, kangaroo rats
and other rodents
Lifespan 20-30 years in
captivity
Adult weight 200g / 7oz
Conservation status
LEAST CONCERN
Flexible jaws
The green anaconda can manage
to eat huge meals! It has elastic
ligaments that allow the jaw to
stretch and swallow prey whole.
GREEN ANACONDA
Eunectes murinus
Class Reptilia
Territory : South America
Diet Wild pigs, deer, birds
Lifespan 10 years
Adult weight 227kg / 550lbs
Conservation status
NOT EVALUATED
92
King cobra
One bite from this snake can kill 20 people!
When threatened, king cobras can stand
KING COBRA in a hypnotic display, raising a third of
Ophiophagus hannah their body off the ground and flaring out
Class Reptilia their hoods. Reaching lengths of up to
5.5 metres (18 feet), the king cobra is the
longest of all venomous snakes, preying
mainly on other snakes with a rapid strike.
Territory India, southern Although their venom isn’t as toxic as other
China, south-east Asia
Diet Snakes, lizards, eggs and snakes, enough is produced in one bite to
small mammals take down an elephant!
Lifespan 20 years
Adult weight 9kg / 20lbs
They live mainly in rainforests where they
can move with ease in trees, on land and in
Conservation status
water. They are the only snakes in the world
that build nests
VULNERABLE specially for their
precious eggs.
Iconic hood
The neck features a narrow
hood that extends outwards
when the snake feels
particularly threatened.
Sidewinder rattlesnake
A snake with an unusual method of
movement and horn-like features
These venomous pit vipers are known for their unusual S- or
J-shaped locomotion, leaving distinctive trails in the sand. They
throw their bodies so that only two points are in contact with the
ground at one time, preventing overheating from
touching the hot desert sand. This is
a fast method, which helps them to
catch prey quickly. Distinctive horns
The sidewinder has a broad
The horn-shaped scales that bulge
triangular head and is recognised by above the sidewinder’s eyes are
raised scales above the eyes that look adaptations that protect the eyes
from the desert sand.
like horns! The snake is a pale sand
colour, which helps it to blend in with
the desert habitat. Nocturnal creatures,
sidewinders are found buried in desert
sand or in animal burrows.
Green anaconda
The largest, heaviest and second-longest
known living snake species
Living in swamps and marshes in the tropical rainforests of South
America, the green anaconda is, pound for pound, the largest
snake in the world. Measuring more than 12 inches (30 centimetres)
in diameter, these snakes spend most of their time in water where
they lie in wait for prey nearly completely submerged. This is
thanks to their eyes and nasal openings sitting on their head.
Part of the boa family, the green anaconda is non-venomous
and uses the same killing technique as the boa
constrictor – slowly wrapping its muscular body
around the prey and squeezing tightly until
it suffocates. They can go for weeks or
sometimes months without food after a
particularly big meal!
 Snakes
Unique markings
The adder has a dark pattern along
its back, with a border of spots
on each side and a dark X-, H- or 3
V-shaped mark on its head. 1

COMMON ADDER
Vipera berus
Class Reptilia
Common adder 2
4

The only venomous snake found in the UK

Although non-aggressive and timid, the common adder has one of the
most highly developed venom-injecting mechanisms of all snakes. The 1. Fastest 3. Longest
Territory Europe, Scandinavia, only venomous snake native to Britain, they are widespread, found in Black mamba Reticulated python
Russia, Korea rough, open countryside where they spend time basking in the Sun, but These African Native to south-
Diet Rodents, lizards, frogs close to dense cover, so they can take shelter. snakes can east Asia, this is
Lifespan 10 to 15 years
Adult weight 50-70g / 1.8- The adder has highly developed eyesight, sense of smell and hearing, slither up to 20 the longest snake
2.5oz which all combine to make it a very effective predator. The snake uses kilometres (12.5 species. Medusa,
Conservation status its large hinged fangs to inject venom into its prey, then releases it and miles) per hour. a reticulated
follows the scent trail it leaves behind. Once found, the adder will swallow They are timid python living in
the prey whole, headfirst. and try to escape captivity is, 7.6
LEAST CONCERN
rather than attack metres (25 feet)
when confronted. in length.
Beautiful body
The body is long and slender, with
a pattern of dark-edged yellow 2. Smallest 4. Rarest
scales, sometimes with clusters of Barbados St. Lucia racer
red, yellow or orange scales. threadsnake Only 18 St. Lucia
Discovered only racers remain
in the last six in the world,
years on the living just off the
Caribbean island island of their
of its name, this name. The arrival

Paradise tree snake PARADISE TREE SNAKE

snake is just ten
centimetres (four
inches) long.
of mongooses
resulted in their
rapid decline.
The snake that can fly! Chrysopelea paradisi
Class Reptilia
As its name suggests, the paradise tree snake spends most of its time
among branches and foliage in tropical rainforests. It has the remarkable
ability to fly, or more specifically glide, between trees at distances up to 100 YELLOW-BELLIED SEA
metres (656 feet). SNAKE
Territory South-eastern Asia Pelamis platura
As an adept tree-climber, it uses ridged scales along its belly to climb and, Diet Tree lizards, frogs, bats, Class Reptilia
once ready for flight, will dangle from a branch in a J shape, choosing its small birds
flight path and destination point before thrusting its body upward. It sucks Lifespan Unknown
Adult weight 80g / 3oz
in its stomach and flares out its ribs, creating a parachute shape to nearly Conservation status
double its body width, which helps to slow its descent. It undulates as it
Territory Indian and Pacific
glides, propelling itself through the air and controlling direction. oceans
LEAST CONCERN Diet Fish
Lifespan 20 years
Adult weight 1.4kg / 3lbs
Conservation status

The legless Yellow-bellied LEAST CONCERN

lizard is not Adapted to sea life

a snake
The legless lizard (Ophisaurus apodus) may look
similar to snakes with their long, slender bodies
and scales. They also behave like snakes by laying
eggs, slithering, and having a similar diet, but they
evolved from a different evolutionary line. There
are other differences too – a legless lizard will
detach its tail as a defence mechanism. They also
have ear openings and can’t unhinge their jaws to
swallow their prey whole.
Sea snakes have specialised sea snake
nostrils that prevent water
entering their lung. They
have one elongated lung that
The most widely distributed
extends most of the body. sea snake on Earth
The unique-looking yellow-bellied sea snake has a
black upper body with the underside a contrasting cream
or yellow. Unlike most sea snakes that tend to stay close to
coastlines, the yellow-bellied sea snake lives in open water and is
found across the tropical and subtropical Pacific and Indian oceans.
It has a paddle-like tail that increases swimming ability and it moves
in a sideward ripple close to the surface. It can move fast, but usually
will float along with the ocean current and can dive to depths of up to
© Alamy; Thinkstock, Corbis, FLPA

15 metres (49 feet), staying under the water for up to 3.5 hours. The
yellow-belly also has a salt gland under its tongue to secrete salt taken
in from the sea to avoid dehydration.

93
 Deadly reptiles

“Emitting an odorous musk if

threatened, the yellow rat snake
shakes its tail among dead leaves
to simulate a rattle”

Yellow rat snake: the killer

grip of a constrictor
The yellow rat snake relies on the deadly method
of constriction to take out its prey. A less obvious
assassin than its constrictor counterparts, this
species has a more measured approach to hunting,
prowling underground burrows for rodents. Emitting
an odorous musk if threatened, the yellow rat snake
Modus operandi
Powerful constrictors, rat snakes strike their
prey and wrap around it, coiling their strong, lean
bodies around their victim. While the snake tightens
around its prey, it holds hard enough to prevent it
breathing in any more air. With every breath the
prey takes, the snake’s grip gets tighter, leading
to death by asphyxia. It’s also likely that the sheer
©Ardea

force of the constriction causes a rapid rise in blood

shakes its tail among dead leaves to simulate a rattle. pressure, leading to cardiac arrest.

94
 Yellow rat snakes & rock pythons

© SPL
Rock pythons have a diverse diet
which includes everything from small
antelopes to crocodiles

Rock pythons
Discover how Africa’s largest
snake kills and consumes its prey

Despite being non-venomous, the python remains one

of the world’s most dangerous serpents. The African
rock python, in particular, is a very deadly assassin, also
notorious for being ill-tempered.
Pythons incapacitate their prey by literally squeezing
the life out of them, coiling their long – sometimes seven- ROCK PYTHON
Python sebae
metre (23-foot) – bodies round the victim and tightening
© NASA

Class Reptilia
their grip until the animal, unable to breathe, eventually
suffocates. That done, the python then sets about
consuming their meal… in one go.
Equipped with a set of highly flexible jaws, stretchy skin Tropical rainforest
(equatorial Africa) Tropical Territory Sub-Saharan Africa
and ribs hinged with extra-supple tissue, the African rock savanna Diet Carnivore
python can down its quarry whole. First the python slides Lifespan Up to 25 yrs
Deserts and Adult weight Up to 100kg
its mouth over the head of the prey and then gradually semi-arid (220lb)
moves its body along the length of the animal with the Semi-
regions tropical
Conservation status
help of an expandable throat and abdomen. The animal is
then digested over a matter of hours, or even days if it’s African rock southern
Africa
particularly large. Following such a meal, the python need python range LEAST CONCERN
not eat again for several weeks.

95
 © Frank Stober/Imagebroker/FLPA

96
Deadly reptiles
 Modern-day dinosaurs

Meet the creatures from prehistoric times

still walking the Earth today

+-"#0,̓"7
"
ª ',-1301

97
 Deadly reptiles
For 160 million years they walked the Earth.
Heaving hulks of animal living in the forests of
ferns and conifers. They enjoyed the fresh spoils
Prehistoric creatures alive today
of the supercontinent Pangaea, feasting upon
flowering plants, flourishing trees and, in many
cases, one another. They were the dinosaurs,
the largest land animals of all time.
The Cretaceous period had seen life flourish.

4
Some 200 million years ago, mammals first
evolved. The first birds emerged 50 million

2
years later and the first reptiles some 20
million years later still. By the late-Cretaceous
period, dinosaurs were sharing Earth with
early marsupial mammals, penguins, crocodiles
and bees. The oceans swam with sharks and
sea urchins, yet still dinosaurs continued to
dominate the planet.
Populations evolved to such an extent that
Earth was home to more dinosaurs than at any
other point in time. They were diversifying at a
remarkable rate into highly specialised animals.
From 99 million to 66 million years ago, there
were more than 245 dinosaur genera (or
families) and the creatures were in their prime.
The world had seen the emergence of
horned dinosaurs such as triceratops, which
dominated the northern continents and
chomped away on cycads. The incredible
carnivore tyrannosaurus rex also ruled across
the north, leaving the south free for the
lumbering sauropods, with their long necks,
and allowing the imposingly huge Spinosaurus
their space.
However, the Earth’s crust was still moving,
as it had been for centuries. The continent
was being broken up and the landscape was
changing. Volcanic activity was rife across the
globe and the atmosphere in certain parts of
the world was thick with poisonous sulphurous
gas. Smaller dinosaurs were becoming
consumed and killed off by the low-lying fumes.
Then it hit. A huge meteorite plunged from
the skies 66 million years ago and came to
rest in the seabed near the Yucatan Peninsula
in modern-day Mexico, sending shockwaves
across the globe, exterminating mammals,
plants and insects. It was also the end of the
dinosaurs, who never walked the Earth again.
While approximately 75 per cent of life was
destroyed in the wake of this Earth-changing
moment – called the Cretaceous-Paleogene
extinction event (or K-Pg) – these creatures
were not entirely cut adrift. Dinosaurs were
1

survived by some close relatives and other

creatures that still walk the Earth today in some
3

form or another. Some are referred to as living

fossils, while others have come to be known
and loved by millions of people around the
world, but all are fascinating and hold a link to
the past.
To be clear, though, we’re not talking about
huge creatures that look, sound and act in the
way that we think dinosaurs probably did. For
all of the sightings of monsters in Loch Ness
and creatures residing in remote central African
jungles, there has, to date, been no proof of
lineage that goes

from the brink to

3. Solenodon
and they are the

mass extinction.

during the mass

they came back

them managed
back some 225

lived 76 million

a living dinosaur of that type. In reality, the

features today.
they still retain
years ago and

dinosaurs, but
The ancestors
date back 150
members of a
Tuatara live in

survive today.
Bees suffered
to survive the
1. Tuataras

of this animal
New Zealand

last surviving

million years.

extinction as
Snake fossils

and many of

their ancient
million years

animals that most closely resemble dinosaurs

2. Snakes

are far closer to home.

4. Bees

“Birds are the direct evolutionary

descendants of dinosaurs,” says Dr Paul
Barrett, dinosaur researcher and head of the

98
 Modern-day dinosaurs
“The prehistoric
periods were
populated by more
than just dinosaurs”
Vertebrates and Anthropology Palaeobiology
Division at the Natural History Museum in
2

London. There’s plenty of proof to support

this claim, including an unbroken line of fossils
that tracks the evolution of lineage from the

4
velociraptor or T-rex to birds flying around
today. However, the idea of a relationship
between birds and dinosaurs stems back to the
late 1860s in a theory put forward by English
biologist Thomas Huxley. It has been gathering
more and more ground ever since.
“Birds and dinosaurs share a number of
features that aren’t present in any other animal
groups and they have inherited this through
their shared common ancestry,” Dr Barrett
continues. “So there are very good reasons
for believing in the link between birds and
dinosaurs, one of them being really obvious:
birds have feathers and a number of dinosaurs
had feathers too.”
Huxley’s belief stemmed from the discovery
of a fossil in Germany in 1861. Shown to have
bird-like feathers yet dinosaur-like teeth, claws
and a bony tail, the fossil came to be known as
an example of the Archaeopteryx. They were
the earliest known flying birds and lived around
150 million years ago. Huxley said this was the
evolutionary bridge between dinosaurs and
modern birds.
“There are really nice features that we only
see in those two types of animal and there is
an argument for saying that birds are nothing
more than small flying feathered dinosaurs that
are still alive today,” says Dr Barrett.
Some experts objected to Huxley’s research
3

and believed it to be tainted by his staunch

support of Charles Darwin, whose controversial
1

theory of evolution had been published a few

years earlier. However, in 2005 a perfectly
preserved fossil of Archaeopteryx showed that
it did indeed have features common with birds
and a group of meat-eating dinosaurs known
as theropods.
The feet of Archaeopteryx and the theropods
were anatomically near-identical. What’s more,
fossils found in China show that some of the
dinosaurs grew feathered wings. As if to lend
further weight to Huxley’s theory, a fossil of an
animal that has been named Aurornis xui was
found in a museum in China last year. It has
become a contender for the title of oldest bird
to have lived.
Considered by some as reptiles in the
archosaur group, birds are actually referred to
as avian dinosaurs, which distinguishes them
from non-avian dinosaurs. More intriguing
3. Frilled shark

be entirely extinct.
1. Goblin shark

2. Chambered

the oceans for 95

is that there’s even evidence that non-avian

Having appeared
4.Coelacanth
125 million years,

point thought to
frightening look.

like creature has

gives the goblin

been swimming
changed little in

frilled shark has

ago, this genus

more than 400
that goes back

dinosaurs were hard-wired for flight way before

with extinction
shell, this snail-
distinctive and
the long snout

It’s threatened
With a lineage

today, but the

With a sturdy

million years.
million years.

million years
shark a very

the earliest birds took to the air. Is this, perhaps,

around 400

was at one
nautilus

how birds eventually became able to flap their

wings and take off?
Such is the strong, irrefutable link between
birds and dinosaurs, that Dr Alison Woollard,

99
 Deadly reptiles
The crocodile Head holes
Crocodiles are diapsids. Like
dinosaurs, they have two
holes in each side of their
skull, enabling stronger jaw
muscles to attach.
Body armour
Bony plates within the
skin of a crocodile help
the reptile defend against
attack. The spikes are small
pieces of bone.

Teeth
Crocodiles have
over 60 teeth that
are constantly being
replaced in the same
way both herbivorous
and carnivorous
dinosaurs would
have done in the past.

Scales
The disc-like scales of a
crocodile do not overlap
and similar skin is said
to have existed on many
dinosaur species.
Eggs
It’s likely that
dinosaurs buried
eggs in a similar
way to crocodiles.

an Oxford biochemist, a dinosaur – so it would be very technically challenging [to

said in December
last year that it would,
theoretically at least, be possible
to re-create prehistoric animals via the DNA of birds,
echoing the plot of Jurassic Park.
“Evolution implies that buried deep within the DNA of
today’s birds are switched-off genes that control dinosaur-
like traits,” she told the Daily Telegraph. Yet, somewhat
disappointingly, we are still some way from this result.
“The problem is we don’t know an awful lot about
how genes build bodies in total, so there would be a lot
of genetics work involved,” says Barrett. “There may be
things that birds once had that aren’t in their genes any
more – that they’ve since lost, but were essential to being
account for that].”
Despite dashing our hopes, we can assure ourselves that
the legacy of dinosaurs is all around us and that birds are
not the only creatures living today to have ancestral lines
leading back to prehistoric times. Crocodiles are often Sarcosuchus
cited as being dinosaur-like but they too have history: they The first crocodiles lived
evolved around 200 million years ago and lived side-by- around 240 million years ago
side with dinosaurs. What’s more, they are closely related but they have evolved since.
in terms of their features: both have fierce teeth and claws Sarcosuchus had many of
and their scales match what we expect dinosaurs had. the characteristics of today’s
In the past, experts have also drawn on the cold-blooded crocodiles, but they were up
circulations of crocodiles as another matching feature, to 12 metres in length (39
yet the theory that dinosaurs were cold-blooded was feet) and were actually of the
placed in doubt by scientists in 2012 following a number of Pholidosaurus genus.

100
 Birds and avians Lungs
Birds don’t have diaphragms
so when they breathe, their
lungs don’t move like ours.
It’s thought dinosaurs
had a similar
system.

ABOVE Sea angel

(Clione limacina),
a pelagic pteropod
mollusc from the
Atlantic Ocean
Feathers
The evidence that non-avian
dinosaurs are closely linked to
birds gave rise to the possibility
of feathered dinosaurs. Fossils
of small dinosaurs that may have
had feathers – including the
Anchiornis – were found in
China and could be
the missing link.

Toes
Most birds walk or
run on their toes and
have three toes facing
forwards and another
on the back of
the foot.

Bones
The bones of birds are hollow,
with no marrow and so were those
of dinosaurs. Scientists suggest
dinosaurs could have long necks for
this very same reason.
discoveries in the 1960s. What we do know is that, unlike
the dinosaurs, crocodiles somehow managed to survive
complete extinction.
Whether or not this was because they were better at
adapting, given that their body had remained in much
the same state for more than 200 million years (whereas
dinosaurs diversified into many different forms), or
whether they benefited from their proximity to water and
ability to live an amphibious lifestyle, we will perhaps never
entirely know.
So, where exactly does that leave the modern-day
lizard? “Crocodiles are the next closest living relatives of
dinosaurs and are more akin to the evolutionary uncles or
cousins of dinosaurs,” says Dr Barrett. “They had an earlier
ancestry together with dinosaurs and birds that goes
Eggs
Birds lay
eggs just like
reptiles and the
dinosaurs were
no exception
to this, usually
laying multiple
further back in time and they have a number of their own eggs at a time.
extinct relatives that have now also disappeared.”
While birds are descended directly from a group of
dinosaurs called theropods, crocodiles did not follow a
similar path and are in fact closer to birds than they are
to snakes and reptiles. Experts suggest dinosaurs and
crocodiles have a common ancestor in a group of animals
called the archosauria. Dinosaurs and crocodiles evolved
separately but both they and birds are archosaurs, as are
all of their extinct relatives.
“Crocodiles and dinosaurs have the same common
ancestor, which probably lived about 250 million years ago
and from that common ancestor you get these two big
branches of evolution,” says Dr Barrett. “One big branch
leads off to crocodiles and the other goes in a slightly

101
 Deadly reptiles
“Dinosaurs were survived
by some close relatives
and other creatures that
still walk the Earth today”
different direction, eventually leading to dinosaurs
and birds.”
Ancient crocodiles aren’t exactly the same as those
that live today. They were a different species, but they
were adaptable because they had to be. These fierce
reptiles lived in a world dominated by some incredibly
large creatures. Academic papers note that some happily
adapted to ocean life while others were better able to
run on land. Research showed their jaws evolved for the
different habitats and this helped them to survive. To that
end, they were worlds apart from modern-day crocodiles,
which are much less diverse.
So the prehistoric periods were, as we can see,
populated by more than just dinosaurs. There were many
weird and wonderful reptiles that, while often mistaken
for dinosaurs, were distinct from them. If we could travel
back in time, we’d see the sea swarming with Kronosaurus,
Liopleurodon and Rhomaleosaurus – extinct marine reptile
genuses that were distant cousins of modern lizards and
typically had short necks and elongated heads. They
existed alongside the dolphin-like Ophthalmosaurus and
the Shonisaurus and Temnodontosaurus, which were
giants that survived on Earth during the Mesozoic era.
There were also flying reptiles called pterosaurs, which
weren’t dinosaurs but they would dominate the air and
became the first vertebrates to evolve flight. Like the
dinosaurs, though, they were made extinct around 66
million years ago. There were many different types ranging
from the Quetzalcoatlus to the Anhanguera. These
creatures looked like big birds and had hollow, air-filled
bones like birds, but pterosaurs were not in the same
Dinosauria clade, unlike birds.
There were also reptiles that were mammal-like, which
again weren’t dinosaurs but in fact creatures such as the
Cynognathus, Dimetrodon and the Thrinaxodon genuses.
These beings displayed mammal-like characteristics with
fur, tusks and whiskers not uncommon, making them the
ancestors of modern-day mammals.
© Thinkstock; FLPA; Venegas ; P, Torres-Carvajal O ;Duran V; Queiroz K; Ian Jackson/The ArtAgency
However, while those animals become extinct, there are
creatures that date from prehistoric periods that still exist
in some related form today. Sharks swam in the sea before
the dinosaurs walked on land. For example, species of the
grotesque goblin shark date back 125 million years and
frilled sharks extend a further 25 million. The Coelacanth
genus of fish evolved from lobe-finned fish around 400
million years ago, while sturgeons are relatively young
pups at just 200 million years old, but are in danger due
to the human demand for caviar. Nautilus and tadpole
shrimps are equally endangered despite surviving as a
species for respectively 500 and 250 million years each.
Crocodiles, as we have seen, are also rather special,
having evolved into more than 20 crocodilian species
including alligators and crocodiles, albeit in a smaller form
to those of millions of years ago. Mammals are another
very important example of this.
“Mammals actually appear in the fossil records at
exactly the same time as the first dinosaurs, but for most
of the early history of mammals they were small, very
inconspicuous animals that didn’t get much bigger
than the size of a small cat in general,” says
Dr Barrett. “It was only
after dinosaurs became
extinct 66 million years
102
ago that mammals started to take over and get bigger.
So mammals have a very long evolutionary history, almost T-rex and
exactly the same length as dinosaurs, but it took them a
lot longer to get going.”
the chicken
Tyrannosaurus rex has long
The earliest form of mammal was the monotreme,
emerging in the early Jurassic period, however rather than
been considered the most
lethal of all the dinosaurs.
give birth to live young they laid eggs. Today the only
living monotremes are indigenous to Australia and New
However, when researchers
sequenced proteins from
Guinea. They include the platypus (often known as the
a 68 million-year-old
duck-billed platypus, even though there is only one type)
T-rex, they found many
and echidnas, which are referred to as spiny anteaters.
molecules were similar to
It’s believed that platypuses split from echidnas between
a modern chicken, backing
19 and 48 million years ago. Palaeontologists Professor
up claims that birds can
Pat Vickers-Rich, from Monash University, and Dr Tom
trace a direct evolutionary
Rich, from Museum Victoria, believe they found a fossil
line to dinosaurs. Dr
jaw belonging to a platypus that dates back more than
Mary Schweitzer, a
100 million years. “The early platypuses lived alongside
palaeontologist at North
dinosaurs and so the earliest ones are indeed about 100
Carolina State University,
million-years-old,” confirms Dr Barrett. “They are found in
made her team’s findings
Australia and would have overlapped with the dinosaurs
known in 2007. She said:
for about 35 million years.”
“The data will help us learn
Key to the mammals’ ability to survive even Earth-
more about dinosaurs’
shattering events, such as devastating asteroids, was
evolutionary relationships.”
their size (all larger animals on Earth weighing more than
around four stone (25 kilograms) died. “Lots of different
types of mammals got through and that is probably
because mammals were all uniformly small animals,” says
Dr Barrett. “Small animals tend to survive extinction events
much better than very large animals, because their food
requirements are lower, they don’t need much to eat and
they can hide and escape nasty conditions easier. If
you think about rats and mice, when everything goes
badly, they do fine, because they are able to eat all sorts
of different stuff. This means that they can survive in
small nooks and crannies and stay out of the way of
other things.”
It’s telling that small marine life such as the dreaded
jellyfish (505 million years and counting), snails, lobsters,
urchins, forams, mollusks, clams and shrimps survived the
K-Pg event. The horseshoe crab has actually remained
relatively unchanged for 445 million years. Other tiny land
animals such as snakes and lizards also walked the Earth
in prehistoric times, although a monster snake, thought to
be a distant relative of the anaconda and boa constrictor
dating back 58 million years, was discovered in recent T-rex may
years. It lived in the swampy jungle of South America and be related
it could swallow a crocodile whole. It weighed a ton and to chickens
What is a dinosaur?
The word ‘dinosaur’ means ‘terrible land. No-one knows exactly why
lizard’, however they were actually the dinosaurs became extinct 66
a separate group of reptiles that million years ago, but an asteroid
evolved 230 million years ago. hitting Earth is widely accepted as
Every dinosaur lived during the the cause. The first fossils were
Mesozoic era between 250 million to recognised in the 19th century.
66 million years ago. Split between
carnivores and herbivores, they
were vertebrates and lived on
 Modern-day dinosaurs
“The K-Pg event led to the They look like
decimation of the planet’s
plant and animal species,
dinosaurs -
ending the Cretaceous era” but they’re not!
measured 15 metres (50 feet) in length. Other snake The Komodo dragon
fossils have been found and date as far back as 150
When people think of living dinosaurs, they tend to
million years ago, however, and there is evidence of
mention the Komodo dragon, but Komodo dragons,
amphibians with snake-like features more than 300
for all their looks, are not dinosaurs. Komodo dragons
million years ago.
have ancestry dating back 100 million years and so lived
Lizards and reptiles, of course, have been around for
alongside dinosaurs, but while they share a common
tens of millions of years. From the complete fossil of
ancestor with them, these carnivorous creatures don’t
a 23 million-year-old lizard discovered preserved in a
descend from them.
piece of amber in Mexico last year, to captorhinids that
Instead, they are the largest lizards in the
were around over 250 million years ago, when we see
world, growing up to three metres(9.8 feet)in
lizards and reptiles today we’re glimpsing into the past
length and weighing up to 70 kilograms (154
to a degree. Rhynchocephalia is an order of lizard-like
pounds). They belong to the monitor lizard
reptiles that dates back to the Mesozoic era – precisely
family, Varanidae, which are thought to
the time dinosaurs ruled the Earth. Today, there is one
be the most intelligent lizards. They
living species left: the tuatara.
are found on the Indonesian islands
It’s important to stress that there are almost no
of Komodo (from where they
specific species alive today that were alive when
get their name), as well as
dinosaurs were alive. “Even crocodiles, which look very
Rinca, Flores, Gili Motang
prehistoric, are not the same as the species that were
and Padar, but studies
around when dinosaurs roamed, their relatives were,”
have shown that they
says Dr Barrett. He says there are just one or two very
may have evolved
rare examples in the animal and plant kingdom of
in Australia where
species remaining unchanged. “The ginkgo tree has
fossils were found
essentially remained unchanged since the time that
dating from between
dinosaurs were around, but most other things have
300,000 and four
had at least some change between the time dinosaurs
million years ago.
became extinct and the modern era,” he adds.
The lifetime of a species is generally around three to
four million years. Since it has been around 66 million
years since dinosaurs became extinct, most of those
species would have become extinct in that time. That
goes for insects as much as animals and plants. Bees
lived at the time of the dinosaurs – “the first bees we
know of in the fossil records were about 100 million
years ago”, explains Dr Barrett – but the specific species
of bee around in the Cretaceous period are not the
same as the bees that are alive today. “It’s just the
Big lizard
natural way things go,” Dr Barrett concludes. “Some
Unlike dinosaurs,
species are similar, but none have lived in the same form
which were actually
for that many millions of years.”
Insects are a curious case, though. All of the modern
a group of reptile, Enyalioides binzayedi
the Komodo dragon Discovered as recently as 2010 in a Peruvian forest, the Enyalioides
insect groups around today existed in the form of a
is the largest lizard binzayedi look like small dinosaurs and so many thought, at first
different species either before or during the Mesozoic
on Earth. glance, that they could have been of such ancestry. But as the
era. The Martialis heureka ant was presumed extinct
name suggests, they belong to the genus Enyalioides, a group
but a species emerged in 2000 in the Amazon forest.
that is most commonly found in central and southern Africa. Given
Eusocial bees, as we have seen, were around 100 million
that the discovery of this lizard was only brought to light in 2013,
years ago. Bees followed the emergence of the first
researchers are still trying to find out more about the
flowering plants around 20 million years before. Eusocial
creature. What we do know is that while it looks very
bees live in colonies and create honey as they go from
striking, although under 13 centimetres (five inches)
flower to flower. They subsequently evolved out of
long, it is dark brown with light-green scales and
necessity and have remained ever since.
it has spikes down its upper back.
It shows, more than anything, that life on planet Earth
is resilient. The K-Pg event led to the decimation of the
planet’s plant and animal species, ending the Cretaceous
period and opening the Cenozoic era that we live in
today, but it was not the first extinction event and it’s
unlikely to be the last. There have so far been five such
extinction events since the Earth was formed and yet New discovery
life has continued. In fact, such events tend to accelerate Though it looks
the evolution of life on Earth. As one magnificent group prehistoric, this
of animals perished, bringing the era of the dinosaurs to species is actually
an end, other animals survived and thrived and it gave of the existing
rise to even more wonderful creatures, including us. Enyalioides genus.

103
 Deadly reptiles

104
 Komodo dragons

Way of the

DRAGONS
From ancient Greece to modern China, dragons have traditionally
been shown as fearsome beasts of fantasy – but the real-life
creatures are more fascinating than fiction

On a volcanic south-east-Asian island, fringed with yellow

and pink sands, a scene that could easily be from a myth or
a flashback to a prehistoric time is unfolding, and it’s soon to
become even more surreal.
Several hundred metres from the beach, where sand banks
are broken by equally patchy areas of rock, savannah and
woodland, a collection of huge, clay-coloured lizards are
pulling and tearing at the carcass of a fallen long-horned
beast. The eerie sound of scrabbling claws and tearing flesh
is occasionally punctuated by a sharp hiss, or the crack of a
powerful tail against the armoured flank of a neighbouring
reptile, as the struggle to quickly consume the largest share of
a fallen water buffalo becomes increasingly frenzied.

105
 Deadly reptiles
The island is Komodo, part of the Lesser Sunda chain
of the Indonesian archipelago, and it lends its very name
to these giants: Komodo dragons. To the local Island
dwellers who share this tropical oasis between the Indian
and Pacific oceans, they are known simply as Ora, or
sometimes buaya darat (land crocodiles).
Despite the latter name, they aren’t in fact crocodiles,
but belong to the taxonomic order Squamata, which
contains the commonly known scaled reptiles, the snakes
and lizards. In fact, they are the largest living species of
lizard in existence today. Belonging ultimately to Varanidae
– the large monitor family – they can reach a size that has
made them legendary around the world, but there’s far
more to these dragons than sheer size.
From the branches of trees surrounding the clearing
where this macabre feast is taking place, smaller, more-
colourful lizards begin moving in, with an agility and speed
that’s quite opposite to the purposeful strut of the feeding
dragons. As they approach in what seems to be a sure
way to put themselves on the menu, a few of the huge
dragons open their mouths, hissing threateningly, their
throats expanded widely.
That the massive, frenzied carnivores before them would
be capable of eviscerating or simply swallowing
the speedy slender intruders,
seems to cause only the slightest
of hesitation. They advance with an ultra-
alert wariness, heads held erect and eyes darting to the
slightest detection of movement around them.
Fixated on the larger reptiles, the smaller lizards begin to
act very strangely. With their tails held stiffly behind them,
they fall into procession, adopting a curious, stiff-legged
ABOVE Komodo Island
line encircling the large dragons. Eventually, one by one, lends its name to its
the scrummage of dragons resumes, as they turn their dragon inhabitants
attention back to the task of racing to consume
the buffalo.
Continuing this bizarre ritualistic dance, the smaller
lizards occasionally shiver and convulse. If they venture a
little too close to a huge dragon, they lick it, before moving
on without breaking formation. After a while, the large

“Fixated on the larger

reptiles, the smaller lizards
begin to act very strangely”
How the dragon kills
They may be misunderstood, but dragons’ deadly reputation is backed up by a bite that is
definitely dangerous. Here are three main theories of how the Komodo kills
1 2 3
RY RY RY dragons are once
EO EO EO
TH TH TH again busily engaged, excavating digger-bucket-sized
scoops of flesh from the buffalo’s remains.
At this point, juvenile individuals break free from the
carefully choreographed line momentarily, to race to the
kill and tug free a portion of the exposed flesh. Then, with
a rapid gulp and a turn so lightning fast that you could
Bad bacteria Verification of venom Devastating delivery miss it in a blink, the marauding thief returns to rejoin his
It was thought the dragons In 2009, scans of dragons’ A gland in each side of the dance partners.
had mouths full of deadly skulls revealed the impact animals’ jaw packs three Although they bear little resemblance, these small lizards
pathogens, which could be that their ‘grip and rip’ compartments and a duct are Komodo dragons too, juveniles and possibly the young
introduced to prey and the attacks have on their that delivers poisonous of the animals at the carcass. Their strange dance seems
victim would succumb to skeleton. The scans also proteins to spaces between to be enacted to appease the adults.
infection. There are actually uncovered well-developed the teeth. These teeth It’s the least obvious of all the strategies that young
greater levels of bacteria venom glands in the lower have saw-like serrations dragons use to avoid being cannibalised by larger
in human mouths, so this jaw – something with far that create deep, serious members of their own species at a feeding site. Other
isn’t the dragons’ weapon greater consequences for wounds in the prey for the methods of avoiding attacks from their own family include
of choice. dragons’ prey. venom to ooze into. rolling in animal droppings and intestines – a behaviour
only seen in small juvenile dragons – and spending most

106
 Adult dragons can grow
up to three metres (ten
feet) from nose to tail

KOMODO DRAGON
Varanus komodoensis
Class Reptile

Territory Komodo, Rinca,

Flores, Gilli Motang, Indonesia,
south-east Asia
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 30 years
Adult weight 70kg / 198lbs,
Conservation status

VULNERABLE

of their first four years of life dwelling mainly in the trees.

However, if found in the path of an adult and given no time
to adopt submissive postures, any baby dragon caught on
the floor is consumed just as readily as a rat, small deer or
any other species of lizard.
Nobody is quite sure why the circling dance of the
dragons calms the adults, or how youngsters know how to
become involved. From a natural-selection perspective, it’s
clear that a young animal who somehow understands the
ritual is more likely to live to reproductive age than another
who ends up as a meal. Synaptic memories of the dance
could be passed down to any descendants, but could the
behaviour be learned?
Hierarchies, the systems where members of a group
decide who’s the boss and who is lower-ranking, are
common in animals that live in groups or societies, but
Komodo dragons are largely solitary. Outside of feeding
and mating, they spend their time away from other
dragons, mostly resting in shade and burrows to control

107
 Deadly reptiles
In the dragons’ den
This killer lizard’s day-to-day life is like no other –
featuring long pursuits, battles for superiority and
the spectacular dances of the young dragons
Halo of security
Small dragons form a moving circle around
the feeding. This serves to present no
single, clear target for an adult dragon
who isn’t getting a share of the carcass,
and might make a sudden rush to grab a
smaller dragon as an alternative meal.
The dancing ritual
One thing that distinguishes the
dragons from other reptiles is the
dancing ritual they do when they’re
young. Exaggerated, side-to-side
swings of the body, convulsions and
strutting would normally make an
animal stand out to predators. This
behaviour seems to have the opposite
effect on adult dragons, who appear
calmed by it. The young ones circle
adults feeding on prey and commit to
this strange dance in single file.
108
Scavenge, kill or carrion
A hungry dragon’s sense of smell will lead
them to any injured or dying animal, whether
they caused the fatality or not. Even if one
dragon brought the animal down initially,
others are likely to be drawn to feed.
Choosing their battles
Dragons have armour – tiny bones in
their skin called osteoderms. They
also appear immune to other dragons’
venom, but this doesn’t help if their
opponent is large enough to swallow
them, so smaller dragons will stay back.
Staking their claim
The largest dragons will take the best spot
at the carcass and defend their position with
tail-whips. If they’re forced to raise their head
to another persistent dragon, they will inflate
their throats, hiss and gape in threat.
Straight and orderly
Once the circle forms, the juveniles will adapt
their posture and gait to a uniform, stiff march.
Tails are stuck out erect, legs are extended and
mouths are shut, but if a slightly larger dragon
approaches the smaller may lick submissively.
 Komodo dragons
their temperature, or basking in the Sun after eating. They on which fork of the tongue has the most scent of an
need to digest the huge quantities of meat they consume approaching deer, boar or buffalo, the direction of an
before it has the opportunity to spoil inside their stomachs. approaching victim is known long before it is seen or
This social awareness displayed when they gather would heard. The dragon will position its body in this direction
seem to dispel the idea that Komodo dragons eat their and wait to launch a devastating attack.
young because they don’t recognise them as their own, Ideally, to save precious energy and avoid becoming
just consuming any animal – moving or otherwise – that too hot, the dragon will move only when the unaware
will fit inside their cavernous, wide-hinged mouths. victim is almost on top of it. If the prey is a smaller boar or
Far from the widely held image of mindless killing deer, the dragon will smash into it full-force, tearing away
machines, Komodo dragons appear to be incredibly with its formidable claws and unbalancing it to expose its
deliberate and calculating creatures. Everything we know underside. In the case of the large water buffalo, however,
about them seems to suggest they’re guided by a thought a vicious bite to the belly or legs is delivered. This is where
process all of their own, rather than pure instinct or the Komodo dragon begins to show its intuition and
mechanical reaction. hunting prowess.
Locals who share their home islands with dragons
have been aware of the reptiles’ intelligence for centuries,
passing down legends. They even modified their customs,
homes and daily patterns to avoid teaching the dragons
to raid their food stores, or worse consume their livestock,
pets and children. Funerals in the islands even involve
rituals to prevent the dragons from excavating human
graves in search of food.
The buffalo in the opening scene may have fallen
victim to the mind of the Komodo dragon just
as much as the devastating serrated teeth,
enormous strength and poisonous saliva of
its attacker. Lying low in the undergrowth, a
large hungry dragon will flick its yellow forked
tongue into the air, watch and listen for
approaching prey. The forks of its protruding
tongue flick across a vomeronasal organ
(known as the Jacobson’s apparatus) in the
roof of its mouth, transferring tiny molecules
of animal scent from the air. Depending

“The dragon will only

move when the
unaware victim is
almost on top of it”

High-speed, low-drag dragons

Younger dragons have longer legs
and tails, are much slimmer and
will run or change direction rapidly.
Once the adults are satisfied with
the submissive ritual dance, the Komodo dragons share a
nimble youngsters will finally risk a meal based on hierarchy,
daring dash for a mouthful of meat. with the top lizard taking
the best meat

109
 Deadly reptiles
As the injured buffalo moves away, the dragon slowly
and persistently follows. If the bitten victim begins to move
away quickly, the dragon doesn’t waste its energy running.
Instead, it begins to flick its tongue, while swinging its head
side to side, adopting a unique dragon walk. The scent of
ABOVE Young
the wound the dragon’s bite has created, along with the
Komodo dragons
will climb trees directional detection ability of the vomeronasal organ, tells
to stay out of the dragon exactly where the buffalo is. What’s more, the
the path of their
dragon knows it can bide its time – it will catch up with
larger relatives
© Corbis, The Art Agency; Ian Jackson, Rex
Features, Thinkstock, Dany Lay, Bryan Fry
110
the stricken animal eventually. During the attack on the
buffalo, the dragon’s bite did far more than break the skin.
Pulling back with its strong neck, the dragon sawed its
sharp teeth deep into the flesh.
Saliva in the dragon’s mouth oozed into the broken
blood vessels and a potent potion of chemicals, mixed
in venom glands in its lower jaw, seeped in. The buffalo
will never heal from the wound and it will soon be
experiencing shock, hypothermia, stomach pains and
unconsciousness. The scent may also attract other
dragons, each adding their own bite and subsequent
steady pursuit to the buffalo’s problems.
So, how do we know that dragons can apply their
thinking beyond social interactions or obtaining food? The
big lizards are popular species in zoos and wildlife parks,
with their size making them the highlight of many reptile
houses. Observations of and experiments with the captive
population show that dragons are capable of thinking at a
level previously unobserved in reptiles. Highly adaptable,
they respond quickly to solving puzzles that end in a
food reward. The lizards can be trained to follow keepers’
commands and even seem to posses distinct personalities
and even self-awareness.
Some individuals will readily form a bond with certain
keepers, enabling – and sometimes even seeming to
seek out and enjoy – physical contact. A pair kept at the
National Zoological Gardens of South Africa (NZG), named
Rinca and Raja will respond to their individual names
if called, each coming out to feed in turn when asked
verbally by the keeper. When Rinca and Raja are shown
a visual target to signal feeding time, they begin to eat.
When the target is removed, they will stop eating, even if
there is still food nearby.
At Bali Reptile Park in Indonesia, the world-leading
venom expert credited with discovering venom in Komodo
dragons, Professor Bryan Greig Fry, first met Monty, a
large male dragon who had become very used to humans.
Tasked with extracting venom from a live, conscious
dragon, an animal known by reputation to be a fearsomely
evolved killing machine, Fry could have found himself in
trouble very quickly.
Instead, when reporting on his own dance with the
dragon, he famously wrote: “Monty the magic Komodo
dragon is by far the most sentient reptile I have ever
encountered – intelligent enough to have an inquisitive and
quite sweet personality.”

How venom works
Painful cramping
A toxin from the AVIT
family of proteins causes
the smooth (or involuntary)
muscles of the intestines
to spasm and cramp. To
add to the effect, it also
heightens the sensitivity
to pain by damaging the
peripheral nerves.
Rapid loss of warmth
Other proteins, from the
CRISP (or cysteine-rich
secretory protein) family
begin to induce the
effects of hypothermia –
dropping the victim’s core
temperature below where
the body can function to
its usual potential.
Weak blood vessels
Compounds belonging to
the kallikrein sub-group of
protein-cleaving enzymes
cause veins and arteries to
become more-permeable,
leaking blood and reducing
pressure. This reduces the
ability of blood to transport
oxygen to the muscles.
Blood can’t clot
A phospholipase or fatty-
acid-releasing enzyme
in the dragon’s venom
prevents the platelets in
the blood from clotting at
the wound, which would
slow the loss of blood.
Local inflammation and
pain is also increased.
“They can be trained to
follow keepers’ commands
and even seem to posses
distinct personalities and
even self-awareness”
How to train your dragon
Name: Dan Lay, supervisor of herpetology
A B Organisation: Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust Website: www.durrell.org
How did you become a
dragon trainer?
I started working in the
Reptile and Amphibian
department at Durrell in
2010. Later that year, I
found myself travelling to
Rotterdam in Holland, to
collect our first juvenile dragons for training.
A We’d decided to house younger, smaller
dragons because most establishments only
want the big impressive adults. Eventually we
send them on to their next homes as big super-
B impressive adults, because they visibly work
with their keepers.
What exactly can you teach a dragon?
Far more than people realise! But everything
we train them for here is to avoid stress for the
dragons themselves – we aren’t having them
perform. That said, it still has a visible effect
A
on people who see us being able to stroke the
dragons, and the dragons very much enjoying
it! When the reptile house is closed we can
B even target the dragons out into the public area
and onto scales to obtain their weights, which
gives us a good indication of their health.
When they eventually leave Durrell,
watching a good-sized, powerful animal – that
I’ve witnessed growing and learning – calmly
A
B
ABOVE By training young dragons
to respond to food and visual cues,
experts can coax the creatures onto
scales and even pet them
Komodo dragons
walk into its shipping crate without having to
be caught up and wrestled, is emotional, but
totally rewarding.
Do you feel that they have personalities?
Absolutely. In fact, when we start working with
a pair, there’s usually a shy dragon and a bolder
one. The less-dominant dragon’s wariness
doesn’t go away completely with familiarity,
but they definitely learn to recognise and trust
the keepers who care for and train them. Some
of them prefer tactile rewards for behaviours –
a scratch on the head for example – and others
respond better when treated with food items.
I’ve heard observers say “they’re just like
dogs”, and I guess they are in that way!
So, just how do you train your dragons?
Once they are settled in at dragon school, we
start bridging with a clicker device. They soon
learn that a click means food and then we
move on to target training. They’re incredibly
inquisitive animals, so when we show them a
brightly coloured ball attached to a snake-
handling hook, they come and take a closer
look. We click and reward, so it takes no time
for them to realise that following it is the
behaviour we want. From there it moves to
making physical contact and we soon develop
a mutual understanding.
111
Ocean
hunters Beneath the waves dwells a host of fearsome
predators. Find out why sharks attack, and how the
killer whale hunts its prey

114 Great white sharks

The life of this ocean leviathan
124 Galápagos sea lions
Why this ocean carnivore is threatened
126 Whales: meet the family
Six incredible ocean giants explored
128 Killer whales
All about these intelligent ocean predators
136 Killer whales:
how they hunt
The hunting methods of the deadly orca
137 Moray eels
How this voracious eater catches its prey

126 128

112
 114
“When it comes to
hunting, ambush
is the great white’s
method of choice”

© Thinkstock
136

113
 Ocean hunters

114
 Great white sharks

All About
Great white sharks
A misunderstood giant of the
deep, or a calculated ice-cold
killer? Discover more about
the great white’s advanced
adaptations and learn about the
life of this leviathan of the oceans

115
 Ocean hunters
Inside a great white
Get under the skin of these fearsome predators
to see how their bodies have evolved cunning
adaptations for both speed and stealth, placing
them as voracious hunters at the very top of the
ocean’s food chain
Nostrils
GREAT WHITE SHARK
Carcharodon carcharias
Class Chondrichthyes
Territory Throughout most
temperate seas and oceans
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan Up to 70 years
Adult weight 2,300kg /
5,070lbs
Conservation status
VULNERABLE
Power bite
The great white’s bite
is strengthened and
braced from behind by
a cartilaginous structure
called the hyoid arch, so
that the shark can deliver
a bite of 1.8 tons.
Strong jaw
The upper jaw isn’t fused
to the skull, meaning
the shark can thrust it
forwards to trap prey.
INFANCY
Survival of the fittest 0 months
Even before birth, great white pups are
already voracious predators and have
been know to eat one another while still
in the womb.
116
Body temperature
This cold-blooded shark
is able to warm its body
above the heat of the
water temperature, for
more-efficient hunting.
In the shallows 10 minutes
Female great whites give birth to
between five and ten pups at once,
usually in the safer shallow waters of
coastal seas.
Brain
Pointed teeth
The great white’s preference for
seals means the dentition of the
upper jaw is more pointed in
shape, enabling it to impale and
immobilise its catch.
JUVENILE
Small white sharks 0-4 years
Great white shark pups are born as
miniature replicas of their parents. Giving
no parental care aer birth, the mother
abandons the pups almost instantly.
Eyes
The great white’s eyes function
rather like a human’s and are
highly sensitive to changing
light and colour. When the shark
attacks, it rolls its eyes back to
keep them protected.
Heart
Liver
With no swim bladder like
other fish, the great whites stay
buoyant in the water thanks to a
large oil-filled liver.
MATURITY
Mini killers 4-7 years Male sexual maturity 8-9 years
Despite their relatively small size, Aer around nine years, when they
juvenile great whites are already acute measure roughly 3.3 to 4 metres
hunters, feeding on fish, invertebrates (11.5 to 13 feet) long, male white
and other smaller marine creatures. sharks reach sexual maturity.
 Great white sharks
Collagen
The skin has a layer of collagen
that anchors the swimming
muscles and acts as a kind of
external skeleton.

Skin
The skin is formed of
tiny tooth-like dermal
denticles, providing a
tough armour.

Gills
Five gill slits provide a huge
surface area for absorbing
oxygen from the water. Fins
The dorsal fin along
the back provides
Muscle types
stability, the pectoral
Red muscle is used for
fins give lift and the
cruising and runs just
caudal fin at the end
underneath the skin,
is used for thrust.
carrying oxygen from the
gills. White muscle contains
no oxygen and is used for
short bursts of energy.

Neural tube

Skeleton
The skeleton is made of a strong
fibrous substance called cartilage.
This is much lighter and flexible
than bone, enabling the shark
to be supple and save vital
swimming energy.
Intestines

Crown tip
Closest family
Cousins of the great white include…
Retractable teeth
Cusplet
The dentition of great
Enamel
whites is retractable
and teeth rotate into
Crown
place when the shark
opens its jaw. They are
attached to pressure-
sensitive nerve cells for Mako shark Dogfish Stingray
tactile responses. Root A fellow member of This creature Another fellow
the Lamnidae family, belongs to the same elasmobranch is
the mako shark subclass as the the stingray. Along
shares many features great white sharks, with skates, these
with the great white. Elasmobranchii. They fish belong to the
At around three are much smaller superorder Batoidea.
metres (ten feet) in than most shark They share classic
Reproduction 9+ years Solitary predators 9+ years Female maturity 14-16 years length, they feed on species, but still share elasmobranch traits
Not much is known about the great Aer mating is concluded, the great whites Females take longer to mature cephalopods and some traits, such as a with great white
white mating season. Females will give will separate to roam the ocean and hunt than males, but actually grow bony fish, with similar cartilaginous skeleton sharks and dogfish,
birth every two years, having a year off alone. They will only congregate again to much larger – up to 4.2 to 4.8 hunting tactics to their and rough, almost but are flattened with
to recuperate. copulate and produce the next generation. metres (14 to 16 feet). great white relatives. sandpaper-like skin. enlarged fins.

117
 Ocean hunters

Impeccable hunting
The anatomy of this killer fish is honed in perfect
harmony with its highly effective hunting methods,
leaving almost nothing safe in the ocean

Diet and feeding Occasionally

they will
The menu for great whites is varied and wide-ranging…
supplement
An average male great white
70% of their their diet
diet consists with fish,
shark eats 30kg / 66lbs of marine cetaceans
of food every ten days. mammals, and turtles.
such as seals
and sea lions.

That’s 1.2%
of its total
body weight.

01 Inverted 02 Scope prey 03 Approach 04 Surface charge

Although rarely used, some great Using its amazing array of senses, The shark swims below its quarry, If the prey escapes this first attack,
whites have even been observed a great white shark will stalk its then shoots upwards with a the shark follows up with a rapid
swimming upside-down towards prey and wait for the opportune powerful burst to incapacitate the rush towards the creature to
their prey to cause confusion. moment to strike. prey in its jaws. confuse and disorientate it.

118

The importance of hierarchy
Not just colossal hunting machines, great whites have intricate social lives and family bonds
Marine biologists are only scratching the
surface when it comes to understanding how
great whites tick. As solitary fish, there’s some
social hierarchy when individuals meet. In areas
with regular populations, large groups gather
at certain times of year. These gatherings aren’t
fully understood, but coincide with the boom
of seal populations. Around this time, young
great white sharks will hang back from large
kills to let the larger and older sharks take the
lion’s share. Physical gestures have shown that
body language is also used to communicate.
Most social interaction between great
whites seems to be in order to establish rank,
which in turn helps to avoid conflict. Despite
having a reputation for being stone-cold
killers, they aren’t keen to fight one another.
In terms of hierarchy, the larger the shark, the
higher its rank; similarly, residents come before
newcomers and females before males. When
many sharks gather, competition for prey can
be fierce, so the sharks in some areas appear
to reduce conflict by respecting boundaries.
When it comes to hunting, ambush is the
method of choice. Hunting behaviour relies on
a potent mix of precision and efficiency and
the sharks use their developed brains and keen
senses to hone in on their prey. Using the scent
Great white sharks
organs in its snout, a great white can sense
tiny amounts of blood in the water up to five
kilometres (three miles) away. They have also
been witnessed raising their heads several feet
out of the water, and some think that this is to
get a sniff of scents in the air.
The sharks must keep swimming to stay
alive, moving a flow of water over their gills
to keep oxygen pumping. It’s not known how
they sleep, but some have been seen moving
slowly, or even being stationary in gullies. By
facing their heads into the current, they’re able
to catch a breather between mouthfuls as the
water passes into their gills.
119
 Ocean hunters

Epic migrations Atlantic journey

This shark, nicknamed Lydia, has shown
the true ability of great whites to swim
vast distances. She headed out into the
Satellite tagging has shown these fish can travel open Atlantic and swam over halfway
through miles of open sea to Europe.

The urge to migrate

Great whites are thought to
migrate to feed, coinciding
with the availability and
quality of food in particular
Regular routes regions. This could also
Great whites tagged be to do with mating or
between 2000 and pupping, with the sharks
2008 off the coast heading off to find the most
suitable mate, or the ideal
of California showed place to give birth. Evidence
regular migrations all suggests that all sharks
the way to Hawaii, appear to migrate, but
back to California scientists are still trying to
figure out when and why.
and in between.

Physiological demands
Although journeys may be erratic, many
sharks are known to migrate from their home
ranges to other areas rich in food. On the
journey it’s the shark’s fatty liver that enables it
to swim marathon distances, but it can quickly
replenish its reserves once it arrives.
Trans-oceanic voyage
A female great white named Nicole
broke great white records when she
swam 11,100 kilometres (6,900 miles) in
99 days from South Africa to Australia.

Born Solitary life

The baby great whites are much like
their parents in that they swim the
survivors oceans alone.

How pups are born

with survival instincts
Great white offspring are almost
miniature versions of their parents.
Unlike other creatures, there are no
life cycle stages to undergo for young
great whites. This means that simply
eating plenty to grow fast and reach the
gargantuan size of their fearsome shark
elders is all the little sharks need to do.
With no parental care whatsoever,
shark young come built with all the
instinctual survival knowledge they
need straight out of the womb. Initially
they will feed on small fish and bottom- Prepped and ready
feeders – these are tasty and nutritious Baby sharks develop their
bite-sized morsels for the mini sharks. killer senses in the womb, so
At around 1.5 metres (five feet) long, when they are born, they’re
the offspring are by no means tiny, but ready to hunt.
this small size can make them vulnerable Sticking to the shallows
to larger predators. Though they’re In their first few weeks, hungry little
thrown in at the deep end, learning great whites mainly stick to shallow
to survive in this way helps the young water where meals are plentiful.
sharks grow into hardened adults.

120

Mating rituals include biting
These slow-growing ocean leviathans keep their
mating secrets closely guarded
Great white sharks reach maturity at around nine
years old for males and 14 years old for females.
When the time comes to find a mate, it’s thought
great whites may make long journeys to hang
out in areas where other sharks are looking for
suitable partners. These congregations of great
whites looking for love seem to occur in the
same places each year.
Hormones are believed to play a big part in
shark mating rituals, with each male and female
producing a certain chemical and releasing it
into the water to let members of the opposite
gender know that they’re ready to mate. Some
great whites have even been observed making
constant vertical dives in order to spread this
chemical scent throughout the water column.
Courting behaviour isn’t well documented in
great white sharks. They may use their supreme
swimming strength to zoom upwards out of the
water and crash back down onto the sea surface
with a huge splash, known as a pattern breach,
as a mating display. A breeding couple may
also swim in circles around each other a little to
establish themselves before the male bites the
female. This bite may be to signal to her that he
is ready, or it may have a more practical use, in
Great white sharks
Shark signals
Body language is used to
establish social boundaries
that a bite will keep the pair together. As great
white sharks have to keep swimming constantly
to maintain the oxygen flow over their gills, a bite
may be the helping hand the male needs in order
to fertilise the female.
Fertilisation is internal for great whites and the
male has special appendages known as claspers
on his underbelly, modifications of his pelvic fins
Parallel swim
that he uses to inject his sperm and fertilise the
Two great whites swim slowly side by
female’s eggs. Once fertilised, the female swims
side to size each other up and establish
off and the male has no further part to play.
rank, or settle ownership of a kill. Smaller
Great whites, like many shark species, are
sharks will submit and swim away.
ovoviviparous, which means they give birth to
live young. The female’s fertilised eggs hatch
out within the womb and the young baby great
whites will eat any unfertilised eggs, providing
them with a source of much-needed nutrients.
This can also go a step further and unborn great
white young have been known to eat their own
brothers and sisters while still in the womb.
Although it’s not fully documented, marine
biologists generally think that gestation for great Swim by
whites is around a year. The mother will give This behaviour consists of a slow swim
birth in shallow water, but then immediately swim past each other, a few feet apart. It may
away and leave her pups to fend for themselves be used to identify each other, or to
as soon as they are born. establish which shark ranks highest.
“After swimming
circles around each
other, the male bites
the female as a Hunch display
This posture is assumed when faced
signal to her that he with a dominant shark and usually
comes before either fleeing or attacking.
is ready”
Splashing
A splash fight is quite rare to see
between two sharks, but usually
determines ownership of a kill. The rules
are simple – the biggest splash wins.
Circling
Great whites swim around each other in
a circle to identify rank.
121
 Ocean hunters
King of the oceans
These majestic sharks live in oceans across the
world, usually gathering in the shallower waters of
the continental slopes. Their principal habitat is the
Pelagic zone – the upper part of the water column
where light is still in plentiful supply. The sharks
will usually stay wherever food can be found, so
make their homes near coastal areas populated by
plenty of seals and sea lions.
Areas where deep water is close to the shore
are favourite haunts, as are offshore reefs, banks,
shoals and rocky headlands. These sharks also
like to cruise around seamounts and island
archipelagos, looking for food or mates depending
on the location and time of year. Many will make
long migrations each year to visit feeding or
breeding grounds.
Environmental factors
Life in the sea has issues even for these mighty ocean rulers
Commercial fisheries
Great whites can fall victim to
bycatch from the fishing industry.
© Alamy, Corbis, Getty, NPL, Thinkstock,
Michael HJC, Jim E Margos, G W Sharks
The creatures are oen trapped and
killed in nets intended to catch other
fish for humans to eat.
Shark nets
Designed to cordon off coastal areas
and make them safe for humans
to swim in, these colossal nets can
entangle and kill sharks, as well as
other marine life.
122
Great whites spend most of their time near the
surface, but have been known to dive to around
1,875 metres (6,151 feet) in open oceans. Because
of their preference to be close to the shore,
they have often clashed with humans, earning
themselves a reputation as murderous thugs. This
is unfair on the sharks, however, as most attacks
are mere cases of mistaken identity.
There are hot spots of shark activity across
the world, with greater concentrations of great
whites off the coasts of South Africa, Australia
and California. They’re also found along the coast
of Hawaii, most of South America, the Gulf coast,
New Zealand and the Mediterranean Sea. Great
whites rarely venture into icy waters but some are
spotted on the Alaskan and Canadian coasts.
Poachers
Despite their protection, great white
sharks are targeted to make shark-fin
“Their fearsome features
soup, a supposed oriental delicacy.
Poachers cut off the fins and throw
the animals back.
have helped paint
Changing climates an undeservingly
It’s not easy to predict the affect
climate change may have, but
alterations in climate may influence
negative picture of a
prey distribution, which in turn
could affect the great whites. misunderstood fish”
 xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Great white sharks
Why sharks should Nearest
neighbours
be left alone The great white shares its ocean
home with countless other
Great whites and humans have shared a chequered past.
amazing marine species
Their fearsome features, gigantic size and fierce array of teeth,
alongside fictional films such as Jaws, have painted a rather poor
picture of these misunderstood fish. Although shark bites do
happen, they are very rare. In 2013 there were 53 unprovoked
shark attacks in the USA, two of which were fatal. Compared
with the amount of people in America who swam in the sea
throughout the year, that number is very small.
The truth is that sharks don’t want to eat us. We aren’t fatty
enough for their nutritional needs and we have too many bones
to digest. Shark attacks on humans don’t usually conform to
the usual hunting strategy of the great white – ambushing and
rushing the prey from beneath. If they really did believe we were Coral
Forming massive offshore reefs,
their food, shark attacks would probably be much more common.
the great white is a frequent visitor
Despite this, shark culls to protect public safety are in effect in to these ecosystems. Coral is made
some areas of the world. For example, in Western Australia shark up of tiny invertebrate animals that
culls began in January 2014 and more are expected to happen live in colonies and secrete a hard,
calcium-carbonate skeleton.
after the region was given an exemption from the Environment
Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act to kill great white
sharks. As this species are so slow to reproduce and grow, culling
could have catastrophic impact on breeding populations of these
majestic animals.

Squid
A Pelagic dweller alongside the great
white, squid species live in the top
layers of the ocean right down to the
depths. They move by jet-propulsion
from their siphon, reaching up to 40
kilometres (25 miles) per hour.

Seals
The favourite meal of the great
white, seals, alongside sea lions
and walruses, live on shorelines
across the world and are full of fatty,
blubbery goodness – just how the
sharks like it.

In our culture
Sharks have captured many imaginations, cropping
up in blockbuster films and even sports
Jaws
Responsible for many people’s
shark fears, Steven Spielberg’s
1975 thriller follows the story of a
killer shark on the loose around
the beach resort of Amity Island.
The Devil’s Teeth
by Susan Casey
This aims to tell the truth about
the great whites of California’s
Farallon Islands, as well as the
scientists studying them.
Bruce in Disney Pixar’s
Finding Nemo
Finding Nemo went some way to
portray great whites in a better
light, with Bruce’s mantra being
“fish are friends, not food”.
Bony fish
Symbol of strength The great whites share their watery
The shark tooth has long been realm with thousands of species of
used as a symbol of male bony fish – from ocean-going giants,
strength and masculinity shoals of tiddlers along the shore
shark tooth necklaces came to and brightly coloured exotic species
prominence during the 1970s. teeming in the reefs.

123
 Ocean hunters

Endangered
Galápagos sea lion
While this magnificent sea mammal lives in a reserve
GALÁPAGOS SEA LION
Zalophus wollebaeki protected by the Ecuadorian National Park Authority,
Class Mammalia
its population can fluctuate wildly and since the Sixties
it has decreased from 50,000 to an all-time low of
14,000. Unpredictably violent storms, pollution, limited
Territory Galápagos Islands
Diet Carnivore food and human interaction have put a significant dent
Lifespan 20 years
Adult weight 50-250kg / in this animal’s numbers. A penchant for wandering far
110-550lbs
Conservation status out into the ocean, as well as an innate curiosity and
all-too-friendly attitude towards humans, often also
ENDANGERED lead the rare creatures into danger

Why it’s endangered

Pollution
Galápagos sea lions are particularly
vulnerable to the pollutants that inevitably
find their way into the sea. These creatures
are naturally curious animals, so they often
see floating plastics as toys or objects for
them to play with, which unfortunately are easily
swallowed. More-serious chemical dangers also
lurk in the form of toxic pesticides such as DDT.

Lack of food
Sardines aren’t just a Galápagos sea lion’s primary food
source, they’re also high up on a fisherman’s hit list. What
a seal lion wants to eat, so do humans. As such, over-
fishing has depleted this resource and climate change
hasn’t helped. The Pacific El Niño storm, which revitalises
the seas and increases food available, has become
increasingly irregular in recent years.

Disease
Through a genetic twist, Galápagos sea lions are
particularly vulnerable to diseases that also affect
dogs and domestic animals. Because of their unique
relationship with humans on the Islands, their forays onto
the mainland take them into the streets and parks, as well
as the beaches. This means they frequently come into
contact with other animals that spread illness.

Discover more…
WWW.GALAPAGOSPARK.ORG
Responsible tourism to the Galápagos Islands is
encouraged: the park authority limits tourist numbers and
access to certain areas, so by visiting the sea lion’s natural
habitat, within the rules, you can help secure its future.

124
 Galápagos sea lions
Decreasing numbers
Only a fih of the 1914 Galápagos sea lion
population exists today

Galápagos 1914
Estimated number of Estimated total animal
animals left today population 100 years ago

14,000 70,000

Island paradise
protection
The Galápagos National Park, or Parque
Nacional Galápagos as it’s known in its native
tongue, works towards the preservation of the
natural wildlife of this unique island group.
As a UNESCO World Heritage Site and
historic location of Darwin’s famous 19th-
century voyage, the Galápagos Islands are
a natural wonder that Parque Nacional
Galápagos is serious about preserving.
Initially, the animals in this area didn’t fear
humans like the rest of the world’s animals
do. However, in recent years there’s been an
increase in sea lion attacks from humans, as
well as accidental fishing gear entanglements.
As such, a programme was launched to
protect the species and help them better
cohabit with the human population.
The gem in the collection of unique species,
which has evolved in isolation over thousands
Where they live of years in the area, is the Galápagos sea lion.
© IMAGEBROKER,NORBERT PROBST/Imagebroker/FLPA

Part of the national park’s effort to protect

As its name suggests, the
this animal is a regular, detailed population
Galápagos sea lion is a species that
census. With the data recorded by the census,
lives exclusively on the rocks and
the park officials can follow up with a sample
in the ocean around the volcanic
and analysis of the disease prevalent in the
Galápagos Islands, just off the
population. They can also manage nurseries
Ecuadorian coast. It also lives in
and educate local schoolchildren about the
smaller numbers on the nearby Isla
importance of conservation and protection for
de la Plata.
the creatures.
Galápagos Islands
and Isla de la Plata For more information and to arrange a visit to
territory in 2014 the Islands, go to www.galapagospark.org.

125
 Ocean hunters

Meet the family

Whales
GRAY WHALE
Eschrichtius robustus
Class Mammalia
Territory Coastal North Pacific
Diet Amphipods and other
small sea floor dwellers
Lifespan 50-60 years
Adult weight 35,000kg /
77,162lbs
Conservation status
LEAST CONCERN
Filter feeder
Using baleen plates to sieve
zooplankton and small fish,
Sei whales consume up to 900
kilograms (2,000 pounds) of
food every day.
Gray whale
Meet six incredible members
of the whale super family
Along for the ride
Parasites and organisms
live on gray whales’ bodies,
giving them a distinctive
A haven for tiny rock-like look.
travelling parasites
Known for their distinctive look, these big ocean
beasts are covered in parasites and organisms that
make them look a lot like an ocean rock. Unusually, the
whale uses its snout to dislodge small creatures from the sea
floor and sieves them through comb-like filter plates in its
upper jaw known as baleen.
Once used to make corsets and umbrellas, gray whale
baleen is tough but flexible and can grow up to 50 centimetres
(19.7 inches) long. While following their lengthy migration, a gray
whale can swim some 20,000 kilometres (12,427 miles) to Alaskan
waters and then back to the Mexican coast.
Distinctive spout
The sei look similar to blue and
finback whales, except they’re
smaller and have a curved
dorsal fin with a dark underside.
They are oen noticeable by the
inverted V shape of the spout.

SEI WHALE
Balaenoptera borealis
Class Mammalia

Territory Atlantic and Pacific

Oceans
Diet Zooplankton and small
fish
Lifespan 70 years
Adult weight 28,000kg /
61,729lbs
Conservation status
The largest brain
Sperm whales have the largest
brain of all animals on Earth.
ENDANGERED Weighing 9kg (20lbs), it’s
about six times heavier than a
human’s brain.

Sei whale
A speedy cetacean with
a healthy appetite for plankton
SPERM WHALE Physeter
macrocephalus
Sperm whale
A filter feeder that uses its baleen plates to sieve
Class Mammalia The giant of the ocean with a
zooplankton and small fish out of the water, sei whales sizeable brain to match
can consume up to 900 kilograms (2,000 pounds) of With the biggest brain of any animal on Earth, the
food every day, competing with other whales, basking sperm whale is an incredible creature that can eat an
sharks and large fish such as herring. Territory All oceans enormous quantity of food a day.
Sei prefer temperate waters, although they can be Diet Carnivore The whale is named after the spermaceti oil that
found in seas all over the world, including tropical, Arctic Lifespan 50 to 70 years it produces in an organ of the same name, within its
Adult weight 41,000kg /
and Antarctic oceans. They usually travel alone or in 90,390lbs huge box-like head. It’s thought that this fluid, which
small pods with less than five members and can cruise Conservation status hardens to wax when cold, helps the whale regulate
at speeds of 26 kilometres (16 miles) per hour, up to its buoyancy. This comes in useful when the whale
a maximum of 50 kilometres (31 miles) per hour. They dives to the depths of the ocean to feed on things
have become a more popular target for whalers as the VULNERABLE like giant squid, where they can hold their breath for
populations of blue and finback whales diminish. up to 90 minutes at a time.

126
 Whales
Unique markings
Minke whales are
distinguished by a
pointy, triangular snout
and white bands around
their fins.

Minke whale
The baby of the filter feeders
The second smallest baleen whale, the minke, measures on average 6.9 MINKE WHALE
Balaenoptera acutorostrata
metres (22.6 feet). Distinguishable from other whales by a white band Class Mammalia

Most
on each flipper, minke whales have up to 360 baleen plates either side
of their mouths to help feed. They’re a dark, near-black colour with a

white underbelly. The whale takes three to five intakes of breath and
dives deep into the water for up to 20 minutes at a time. Reaching
speeds of around 38 kilometres (24 miles) per hour, they sieve
through the water for plankton and krill, catching the
occasional small fish and sometimes giving
chase to sardines. They habituate all the
oceans except polar ones and
swim in groups of just a
few individuals.
Territory: All oceans bar polar
Diet Plankton and small fish
Lifespan 30-50 years
Adult weight 9,200kg /
20,000lbs
Conservation status
LEAST CONCERN
unusual
Narwhal Monodon monoceros
A member of the Monodontidae family (a
group of toothed whales), narwhal are most
recognised for the tusk that grows up to 2.7
metres (8.9 feet) long. Nicknamed the unicorn of
the sea, its tusk is actually the more prominent
of two teeth of the male of the species (although
females can grow a small tusk too). The tusk
grows through the upper lip and some believe
it’s predominantly to impress females during
mating rituals or to battle off rival males. The
pale-coloured creatures travel in groups of 15 to
20, feeding mainly on fish and shrimp.

Natural filter
35 grooves on the throat
enable the humpback to
gulp and filter water by
extending the throat.

The song of the humpback

These whales are known for
the incredible way in which they
communicate. Their amazing
songs can be heard across
HUMPBACK WHALE massive distances.
Megaptera novaeangliae
Class Mammalia
Humpback whale
The oceanic composers
A remarkable creature, the humpback is another colossal
Territory All oceans baleen whale of the ocean. It has up to 35 grooves on its
Diet Krill and small fish throat all the way from the chin to the navel. It can expand
Lifespan 45-100 years
Adult weight 27,000kg /
the throat to enable huge intakes of water to then filter in
59,525lbs food such as plankton and krill.
Conservation status Humpbacks are renowned for performing amazing songs
© Thinkstock; FLPA

that can be heard over great distances. Thought to be great

methods of communication, particularly to attract mates,
LEAST CONCERN the songs are made up of moans, howls, cries and the
humpback’s complex noises can often last hours.

127
 Ocean hunters

INSIDE THE MIND OF A

KILLER WHALE Underwater mavericks, the epic brain power

of killer whales is key to how they hunt and
work together to dominate the oceans

128

Jaws was wrong: the great white shark isn’t the deadliest
marine monster – it’s the killer whale. No animal dares
to prey on these 9.8-metre (32-foot) beauties, qualifying
them as the apex predators of the ocean, just as humans
are the apex predator of the land. It’s human intelligence
that keeps us at the top of the food chain, and killer
whales – or orcas, as they’re also known – have incredible
brain power to match their superior brawn.
In fact, they have the second largest brain of any marine
mammal (after the sperm whale), but size isn’t all that
matters. Intelligence is measured by a number of different
factors, with scientists analysing social behaviour, self-
awareness and communication when forging lists of the
cleverest creatures on Earth.
Killer whales tick all these boxes, boasting one of
the most complex social structures in the entire animal
Killer whales
kingdom. They travel together in matrilineal groups
consisting of a mother and her offspring and since
females can live up to the grand old age of 90, there can
be multiple generations in one group.
While female offspring may go their separate ways
and start their own matrilineal lines when they hit sexual
maturity (between 10 and 15 years), the male killer whales
commonly remain with their mothers their entire lives.
That’s not to say they don’t enjoy a healthy social life,
though. Closely related matrilines (up to four matriarchs
and their offspring) form what are known as pods, which
BELOW Orca
sometimes meet up with other pods of orcas. whales surface
The final level of the social structure is called a in Lynn Canal
community. This is created when a group of clans in an with the
Alaskan Chilkat
area meet up and likely find themselves a mate, but the mountains seen
males will always return to their mother’s side. in the distance
129
 Ocean hunters
Amazingly, each pod of killer whales possible to tell which ecotype they belong
has its own dialect – a series of distinct KILLER WHALE to. There are actually three forms of killer More than
call patterns – which gives the group its
own unique identity. As soon as a baby
Orcinus orca
Class Mammalia
whales: resident (the most recognised),
transient and offshore. Not only do they
one orca
Take a closer look at the
killer whale (called a calf) is welcomed into each sound different, but they also look different populations of killer
the world, the family will use these calls and act in a variety of ways. They don’t whale in the world
more frequently than ever. This is so that associate with one another and one day we Offshore
the newborn can master the lingo, just Territory All oceans
might even be able to distinguish them as Distinguishing features:
like human parents use repetition to teach Diet Carnivore separate species. However, the one thing Smaller in size and females have
their children how to talk. Mothers share Lifespan 50-80 years they will always have in common is their rounded dorsal fin tips
Adult weight Up to 5,443kg Diet: Sharks, fish
valuable life lessons with their calves and / 6tn
unmatched hunting methods that they Commonly found: North-east
discipline them from as young as two days Conservation status pass to their young. Sometimes the adults Pacific and Vancouver Island.
old with a tooth scratch, or by using their will injure their prey and then release it near Their name gives away their love
bodies to restrict the baby’s movement. the juvenile whales to give them a sporting of travelling far from shore.
Communicating via distinct clicks and DATA DEFICIENT chance of catching their dinner. Transient
whistles also helps to hammer the message Despite actually belonging to the Distinguishing features:
Females have a triangular
home even further. dolphin family, killer whales can grow dorsal fin
An orca’s voice helps it find supper in the first place. to a staggering size of 9.7 metres (32 feet) and weigh Diet: Marine mammals
To enable the creatures to navigate the murky depths over 5,500 kilograms (12,100 pounds). Dare to peek Commonly found: Coastal
of the ocean, killer whales emit a clicking sound that inside their jaws and you’ll find over 40 spiky teeth up waters of the north-east Pacific,
usually in smaller groups of six.
travels under the water, bounces off an object and then to 13 centimetres (five inches) in length, each of which is
returns with revealing information about the object’s size, designed to bear down on blubbery flesh, ripping it apart Resident
Distinguishing features:
shape and distance. This incredible technique is known as without the need to chew. Females usually have a rounded
echolocation and helps orcas track down their favourite They are positioned so that the upper teeth fall into the dorsal fin
kind of fish – chinook salmon. Once they are locked onto gaps between the lower set, which help to lock the prey Diet: Fish, sometimes squid
their target, the incredible orcas appear to go into stealth in place. It’s definitely an advantage when the favourite Commonly found: Coastal
waters of the north-east Pacific.
mode so as to not give the game away too soon. meals of transient and offshore types tend to wriggle, They live on a diet of fish and
Not all orcas have the same diet, however, and just as including seals, penguins, sharks and other whales. move in matrilineal groups.
their unique dialects differentiate between pods, it’s also They’ve even been known to take on great white sharks

“Once they are locked onto their target, the Canada

incredible orcas appear to go into stealth mode Pacific

Vancouver Island

so as to not give the game away too soon” USA

Killer features
The impressive physical attributes that
Dorsal fin
An orca steers using the dorsal fin,
which can reach up to a staggering
1.8 metres (six feet) for males.
make the orca such a natural hunter

Blowhole
Air enters the
lungs through
the blowhole and
muscles keep it
covered under
the water.

Echolocation
over eye
Orcas have excellent
eyesight, but
echolocation is their
best navigation tool.

Pectoral fin
The fins on either
side are used to
touch and steer.

Fluke
An important part to the killer 40 sharp teeth
whale’s vital hunting manoeuvres, These are positioned so that
the tail propels the whale through the upper teeth fall into the
the water at top speed, enabling it gaps of the lower set, locking
to also balance as it floats upright, prey in place so killers can
peering cautiously. drag their victim underwater.

130
 Killer whales
Sharp senses
Orcas use echolocation as a means of
navigation, hunting and communication, by
emitting high-frequency clicks under the water

Emitting clicks
The orca emits short
pulses of sounds called
clicks and when these
sound waves connect
with an object, they
bounce back.
In communication
Orcas also use echolocation to
communicate and each pod has
its own unique sound that it uses
when members interact.

Making sound waves

Sound travels faster and
farther underwater than it does
in air, but the killer whale’s
sensory system enables it to
decipher the different echoes.

Listening for echoes

These echoes enable the
killer whale to detect prey,
but some fish are able to
hear the clicks and escape
with early warning.

Orcas in numbers BELOW The

whales peek
above water to

34 15-18 mph
months 5-30
A killer whale 90 yrs Orca pods 50 9.8 15 227
check for prey,
then jump at an
impressive speed
to catch one
swimming at full
power can reach
this incredible
The gestation
period for orca
mothers is twice
Some female
orcas can reach
this ripe old age
can consist of
many members
hunting and
thousand
The estimated
population of
metres
The top length of
yrs
Age at which
female killer
kilos
Amount an orca
top speed that of a human in the wild migrating as one killer whales a killer whale whales mature eats each day

and blue whales, the latter of which can grow larger safer on the land than in the water. Working
than three double-decker buses! However, it’s not just together, the whales duck under the surface and
a formidable body structure – designed to propel them swim side by side towards their quarry. At the
through the water at speeds of 50 kilometres (30 miles) last moment, they quickly change direction and
per hour – that enables orcas to bring down such large unleash an all-mighty wave that crashes over
prey. It’s their minds that make them true killers. the block of ice and knocks the prey clean
Working as a team, orcas adopt a manoeuvre known as into the water.
spy-hopping, where the creatures swim vertically to the By now the seal is fully aware that it’s
surface and poke their heads above water to take a good under siege and there’s always a chance
look at their surroundings. For at least 30 seconds they it can escape by clambering aboard
use their tail (or fluke) for balance and pectoral flippers another ice floe. The orcas will be doing
on either side to keep afloat, like a human uses their arms everything they can to prevent this, by
to tread water. They’ll be hoping to spot a seal, although using their immense bodies to create
these cute-looking animals are armed with sharp claws underwater turbulence and blowing
and teeth – the killer whales know this, so will always aim bubbles to encourage the seal to dart
to grab the seal’s tail to be on the safe side. into open water where it doesn’t stand
Before the chase even begins, the orcas gang up on the a chance against the pod. From this
seal that will be resting on an ice floe, thinking it’s probably point on it’s a game of catch-the-seal-

131
 Ocean hunters
by-its-tail, and once they do they will drag the creature to
the ocean’s depths and drown it. Unlike the seal, the killer
whale can hold its breath for long periods of time. The way
the killers hunt is a prime example of their intelligence and
fascinating minds.
A family that forages together, feeds together, but seals
only make modest meals. If the opportunity arises, the
orcas will hunt other whales, such as the Antarctic minke.
These solitary animals easily match the size of a killer
whale, which is still small by whale standards, but provides
a hearty feast for a hungry pod. When the minke whale
is within sight, the black-and-white hunters head towards
the creature at top speed and draw level. They position
themselves with one on either side of the victim, blocking
any means of escape, and pursue it for hours on end.
The minke’s only real defence is its sheer endurance, but
the killer whales are genius hunters. The outriders replace
one another in relays, keeping up momentum. With many
killers and only one minke, the latter inevitably tires. The
orcas then move in for the kill, biting and attempting to flip
the whale over. By keeping its blowhole submerged, they
can effectively drown the minke before devouring it.
The whales are so expertly organised that they have
been compared to wolf packs, and this fierce reputation
has endured since ancient times, giving them their
scientific name Orcinus orca. The name comes from the
mythological Orcus – the Roman god of death and the
underworld. Still, there’s no record of this sea-bound
behemoth ever killing a human in the wild. In captivity,
however, it’s a different story.
Since the 1970s there have been attacks on nearly
two dozen people worldwide, but opinion is divided
over whether these are accidents or deliberate attacks.
Orca expert and neuroscientist Lori Marino doesn’t
underestimate this animal’s intelligence: “I’m not trying to
second-guess what was in this particular whale’s mind,”
she told Orlando Sentinel, referring to a recent fatality in
an aquatic park. “Certainly, if we are talking about whether
killer whales have the wherewithal and the cognitive
capacity to intentionally strike out at someone, or to be
angry, or to really know what they are doing, I would have
to say the answer they do.”
Researchers agree that orcas exhibit high levels of
emotional capacity, self-awareness and problem-solving
skills that hint at a superior intellect. Fishermen tell stories
of Alaskan killer whales stealing fish from longlines and,
when the men started positioning their boats miles apart
and taking turns to reel in the haul, the orcas split into
two groups.
Footage of killer whales playing with chunks of ice
when a man tossed a snow ball in their direction shows
intelligence in the form of recreation, too. In fact, the
whales are well known for their playfulness and curiosity.

132
 Killer whales
Smart moves
Orcas display complex behaviour that
shows just how intelligent they are
Emotion
Male killer whales will remain with their
mothers all their lives, which can be up to
50 years! Families of orcas are so close
that capturing one is akin to kidnapping a
human. Researchers have noted that they
exhibit what seems like grieving when a
member of the pod dies, causing others to
become withdrawn.

Speech
One of the most amazing discoveries is
that different pods have their own unique
dialects. They make these sounds more
frequently when a calf has been born
“A family that so that the youngster can learn, just like
human parents teach their children to
forages together, speak. It’s thought that these advanced
dialects create a group identity and also
feeds together, but prevents inbreeding.

seals only make Social structure

These incredibly social animals travel
modest meals” in pods that can consist of up to four
generations. A social hierarchy exists
within groups of killer whales, with the
females being more dominant. Signs of
establishing authority within a pod include
slapping their tails against the water, as
well as snapping their jaws.

Problem solving
The average orca will eat over 550 pounds
(250 kilograms) of food a day, working
as a team to successfully catch their prey.
This could be flanking a minke whale on
either side and regularly swapping places,
like a relay race, or charging an ice block in
unison to cause a wave to wash their prey
into the water.

Playfulness
Orcas have a great sense of humour and
there’s plenty of video footage to back
this up. You can watch them playing with
balls of ice and even mimicking the sound
of a motor boat – a surprisingly accurate
impression. Other anecdotes include orcas
moving objects that humans are trying
to reach and they’ve even been known to
play with their food, letting it slip away but
always catching the prey in the end.

ABOVE Pods are led

by female matriarchs,
who pass on hunting
skills to their offspring
and family members

133
 Ocean hunters
Quick questions
with an expert
Name: Erich Hoyt
Role: Whale and dolphin researcher
Organisation: Research fellow with Whale and Dolphin Conservation UK
You were working as a sound
engineer to record orcas’ voices
before dedicating your career
to the scientific study and
conservation of them. Can you
describe that first encounter
with a killer whale?
I learned some of the orca
sounds on an electronic
synthesizer and on one of the
first times we met the killer
whales I played them my
imitation of one of their calls.
Aer a moment’s hesitation, two
or three whales answered in
unison with a perfect mimic of
my sound. Later we realised that
since the young whales are born
without the sounds of the pod,
that mimicry is an important
method for learning what turned
out to be vocal dialects that
were unique to each pod. Now,
many years later, we are still
learning every day about this
amazing species.
BELOW The
family structures
within pods is
“Orcas show high levels of emotional capacity, self-
integral to killer
whale survival,
and is a big
indicator of their
huge intelligence
134
They’ve been called wolves of same pods of killer whales,
the sea and killing demons. getting to know them as
What did orcas do to earn such individuals and families. Some
frightening names? were very stand-offish, while
They are predators at the top of others such as two older
the food chain. From Greek and matriarchs, Nicola and Stubbs,
Roman times orcas were seen were very friendly and tolerant
hunting together in pods, killing of our presence. There were a
and eating larger whale species. couple of hyperactive youngsters
That would have earned them in the early years that we called
some of those names. At the The Twins. They weren’t actually
same time, however, in native twins but hung around together
cultures living around the Pacific and used to play around our
rim, orcas were highly respected boat. They would also come by
for their hunting ability. Some our camp at night and splash in
cultures saw them as their the near-shore waters. We truly
ancestors and put them on their felt a part of their world.
totem poles.
As a senior research fellow with
For your book, Orca: The Whale Whale and Dolphin Conservation
Called Killer, you spent time UK, what can people do to help
living among pods of killer ensure the continued survival of
whales off northern Vancouver this amazing animal?
Island, Canada. Could you share Join a whale-conservation
some of your experiences? group, adopt an orca, a dolphin
I spent ten summers with the or a whale, volunteer, refuse to
awareness and problem-solving skills that show a
superior intellect”
They’re also often observed leaping out of the ocean
and landing on their side or back with a colossal splash,
known as breaching, and lob-tailing, which involves
slapping the tail flukes on the water’s surface. These
displays of water acrobatics can be a sign the killer whales
are courting, relieving an itch or purely playing. Mothers
dedicate a lot of time to the latter, investing so
much time in being good parents
that they only have a calf
every five years or so.
This is also due
to a lengthy
gestation
period of
16 to 18
go to SeaWorld, read
all you can about
the ocean. A good
starting point is
the website
Whales.org or its Facebook
page. Read up, follow them and
get to know the whale world!
Orca: The Whale Called Killer by
Erich Hoyt is available on Kindle.
For more information, visit
www.erichhoytbooks.com.
months – the longest of any whale. This is surprising since
killer whales are by no means the largest mammal of
the ocean; that title goes to the gargantuan blue whale.
However, it takes time to develop such a large brain – the
second largest of any animal on the planet.
Fascinatingly, killer whales also experience the
menopause just like human females do. They are one of
only three species that continue to live long after they
have stopped reproducing, which means the mothers
can devote the rest of their lives to taking care of their
offspring and grandchildren. The reason for this unusual
© Corbis; Getty; FLPA; NaturePL.com; Thinkstock; Dan Cole; Peter Scott; Christopher Michael
evolutionary trait is believed to lie in their social structure,
where mothers take a leading role.
Each member of the pod pitches in to raise the young
and the bonds between them are akin to those within
families of humans. When a calf dies, for example, mothers
have been witnessed carrying their baby with their heads
and when the calf slips, the family dives to retrieve the
body. They appear to become withdrawn, go off their
food and regularly return to the spot where their family
member died.
As humans, it’s difficult for us to avoid projecting our
own feelings onto an animal, but it seems that killer whales
– and other highly intelligent species such as bottlenose
dolphins and elephants – mourn their dead in a way
that seems to be very familiar to the processes that we
go through. In many ways it’s heartbreaking, but this
emotional intelligence is just another indication of how
astoundingly clever these magnificent apex predators of
the ocean really are.
 Killer whales
Lethal hunting techniques
Orcas make formidable predators thanks to their ability to operate as a team
and make use of methods that are masterstrokes of whale ingenuity

Team work
Seals have excellent hearing, so the
Spy-hopping whales remain silent before going
Killer whales are the only marine in for the kill. They remain in parallel
mammal known to locate and formation and charge towards the
capture prey out of the water by spy- ice floe where a seal is resting.
hopping – rising vertically above the
surface to see what’s there.

Catch of the day

A seal’s teeth are sharp, so the whales
will avoid getting hurt in the process of
capturing their meal by aiming for the
tail. They will then drag their quarry
under the water to drown it, before
divvying up portions among the pod.

Making killer waves

Pumping their tails (flukes), the whales
create an almighty wave that crashes
over the ice floe and washes the seal
into the water. They continue to work as
a team to confuse the seal by blowing
bubbles and creating turbulence.

“The way the killers hunt

is a prime example of
their intelligence and
fascinating minds”
135
 Ocean hunters

How killer 01 Ram the ice

As killer whales weigh in excess of five tons,
the first technique used when hunting for

whales hunt
seals is to ram their ice floe directly. Here a
single whale attempts to physically knock
the seal into the sea by crashing into the ice.
Incredibly sophisticated killers, orcas are Waiting
The rest of the pack circle
fearsome pack hunters that isolate, disorientate towards the other side
ready to pounce upon the
and devour their prey with lethal efficiency creature if it’s dislodged.
If you thought that the world’s most lethal
KILLER WHALE hunter-killer was a land animal, then think
Orcinus orca again, as not even the most vicious tiger
Class Mammalia or brutal bear matches the killer whale
in death-dealing ability. Its diet consists
of over 30 species of fish and numerous
species of mammal including seals, sea
Territory From the polar
regions to the equator
lions and walruses. Arguably the most
prolific hunters in the world, orcas use a
02
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 50-90 years combination of brains and brawn to outfox Charge
Adult weight 5,000kg /
11,023lbs
and outmanoeuvre their prey at every
turn. Orcas also have an incredibly diverse
the ice
Conservation Status If the battering ram
range of abilities and advanced mental
processes to bring down their prey. One
technique proves to be 03 Make a wave
ineffective, killer whales
DATA DEFICIENT
such advanced killing technique is the can then instigate their
Just as they reach the ice,
effective wave-hunting method, which you
can follow here step by step.
advanced wave-hunting they dive aggressively
technique. This involves two
or more whales swimming
underneath it to create a
BELOW An Orca checks out a Weddell
seal on an ice floe near Rothera directly at the ice floe. large wave that continues
Station, along the Antarctic Peninsula
in the same direction.
Signal
One orca positions
itself behind the seal
and exhales through its
blowhole to signal the
attack run.

Educational
Young orcas will watch
the co-ordinated attack
in order to learn the
same technique.

04 Collect
the seal
If the diving whales have
timed their manoeuvre correctly,
© Naturepl.com; Thinkstock

the generated wave reaches a height

where it washes at speed over the floe,
tilting it sharply and causing the ensconced
seal to be hit by a wall of water. Usually the force of
the water’s impact, along with the tilted floe, causes the
seal to slip off and into the mouth of a waiting whale.

136
 Killer whales & moray eels

How moray eels feed

Find out why catching a fish dinner is a doddle when you’ve got two mouths
The moray eel is a slender, reef-dwelling fish native to
the nooks and crannies of subtropical and temperate
seas. While they are voracious eaters, they are not
great swimmers due to their lack of a pectoral fin.
Instead they lurk almost motionless in rocky crevices,
often with just their heads peeking out, waiting for a
meal to swim by.
Most other bony fish have developed a method
of slurping up prey by very rapidly opening their
mouths to create an area of negative pressure
directly in front of them. This quickly draws water –
and any unsuspecting victim – back into the mouth
cavity. While fish that bite also use suction to get
food from their mouths into their throats, the moray
eel doesn’t. In fact, few fish consume their food in
as impressive – or terrifying – a manner as the
moray eel.
Because moray eels live in tight crevices, the
suction method wouldn’t work for a moray because
the head has no space to expand into. And besides,
the eel’s prey is generally too large to really be
affected by the suction technique. Instead, morays
are the only known species of vertebrate to possess
two pairs of jaws. It sounds like some kind of
special-effects monster from the Alien movies, but
the moray eel has a second set of raptorial jaws in
its pharynx: the pharyngeal jaws. These gnashers
located behind the eel’s skull lurch forward after the
fish has taken the initial bite and grab at the victim,
drawing it back down into the throat so the eel can
swallow it.
It’s thought that these movable second jaws are a
result of adaptation to suit the confined spaces these
fish tend to inhabit in reef environments.
Off the menu
Moray eels are high up the food
chain, which leaves them more
susceptible to the accumulation of
toxins. Ciguatoxin, for instance, is a
nasty organic compound made by
a specific type of dinoflagellate (a
single-celled organism). At first the
ciguatoxin may be consumed by a
snail, which may then be eaten by a
crab; the crab might become dinner
for a larger fish and so on until,
finally, the moray eel eats something
contaminated. Essentially, the higher
up the food chain, the greater the
toxin concentration. Cooking does
not destroy ciguatoxin so it’s safest
simply to avoid eating moray eels.

Jaw-dropping anatomy Skin

Moray eels don’t have
Get the lowdown on this opportunistic reef hunter
scales – instead the
thick skin is slimy to the
touch as it is coated in
mucus. To hide in the
Poor eyesight dappled reef, morays are
Most moray eels
camouflaged, including Spine
are nocturnal. While
Pharyngeal jaws inside their mouths which Over 100 vertebrae
their small eyes and
Deep in the throat, gape open a lot. keep the moray eel
ears make for poor
behind the eel’s skull, very flexible, helping it
eyesight and hearing
is a second set of contort to manoeuvre
during the day, this
ballistic jaws shaped the jaw and drag prey
is made up for by a
a bit like forceps and into the throat.
keen sense of smell.
used to grab prey
and drag it into
the oesophagus.
Muscles
Elongated muscles
Smell surrounding the
To make up for pharyngeal jaws
limited vision and allow for much
hearing, the moray greater range of
eel constantly movement than
opens and closes other types of jaw.
its mouth sucking
in water to taste or
sniff out prey
or predators.

MORAY EEL
Muraena retifera
Class Actinopterygii
Teeth
The moray’s
deadly
looking
Territory Tropical and sub-
mouthful of tropical oceans
incredibly Diet Carnivore
sharp teeth Lifespan 10-20 years
Length Up to 3m (9.8ft)
curve Weight Up to 30kg (66lb)
Oral jaws
© Corbis; Thinkstock

inwards Conservation status

slightly so The lengthy lower mandible of the first
as to prevent oral jaw enables the fish to snap its
their meal mouth shut very quickly and powerfully LEAST CONCERN
wriggling back out. grip its victim as if in a vice.

137
Birds & insects In the skies and crawling along the ground are some of nature’s
most fascinating predators. Learn all about the hunting methods
of birds of prey, vicious insects and arachnids

140 Bald eagles

The truth about these iconic birds
152 Eagles: meet the family
Discover six fascinating types of eagle
154 Spiders: meet the family
Some of nature’s most notorious arachnids
156 Tarantulas
The secrets of this infamous spider
157 Bulldog ant
One of Earth’s most aggressive insects
158 Orb-weaver spider
An arachnid that takes no prisoners
159 Praying mantis
A stealthy and ravenous predator
160 Birds of prey
The most adept aerial assassins
164 Peregrine falcons
How Earth’s fastest animal hunts
166 Penguins
The carnivorous bird with a taste for fish

154 156 159

138
 140

© Thinkstock; Alamy
“When hunting, bald eagles circle
high above the ground, scanning
for movement below”

164 166

139
 Birds & insects

140
 Bald eagles

All About
Bald eagles
This majestic predator is the national bird
of the United States, chosen as a symbol
of strength and freedom

141
 Birds & insects

Inside a bald eagle Keen eyesight

The eyes of a bald eagle are huge
and take up the majority of the
space of the skull.
These large birds of prey are built
to hunt. Their enormous talons
can overpower even large animals
and their sharp, hooked beaks tear
through flesh with ease

Fovea
The eye of an eagle has
two focal points, enabling
Sharp beak
The beak of a bald eagle
the birds to look both
is covered in keratin,
forwards and to the side.
which grows continually,
Lens ensuring the edge is
always razor-sharp. Trachea

Retina
Sclera

Crop

Cornea

Broad sternum
The flight muscles in the chest are
Optic nerve attached to the large breastbone,
providing an anchorage point for
the powerful downbeats of the
strong wings.

Pecten oculi
Birds and reptiles have an
additional blood supply at the
back of their eyes, reducing the
number of blood vessels covering
the retina and giving them much BALD EAGLE
clearer vision than mammals. Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Class Aves

How the bald eagle circles

its prey Territory North America
When hunting, bald eagles Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 28 years
circle high above the ground, Adult weight 3-6.5kg / 6.5-
scanning for movement below. 14lbs
Their eyes are slightly smaller Conservation status
than our own, yet they can
resolve images in four times
LEAST CONCERN
more detail. To conserve
energy they take advantage of
wind currents and up draughts,
spreading their feathers to
capture the rising air.

INFANCY
Breaking out 2 days
Using their tiny beaks, it takes
eagle chicks up to 48 hours
before they can finally break
out of their shells.
Newly hatched 0-2 weeks
Eaglets are vulnerable – for
the first few weeks they cannot
stand up and their eyes aren’t
fully opened.
Learning to stand 2-4 weeks
Aer around two weeks the chicks
are strong enough to li their
heads and by the time they’re a
month old they can stand.
JUVENILE
Adult size 4-8 weeks
Aer around two months the
chicks are the same size as their
parents, rivalling them for space
in the nest.
Flight practise 8-10 weeks
The juvenile eagles begin to
stretch their wings, catching the
currents and hovering in the air
for brief periods.
Taking wing 10-13 weeks
Eagles take their first flight aer
around three months, but it’s a
dangerous time and around 40
per cent don’t survive.

142
 Light skeleton
The skeleton of a bald
eagle is almost hollow
and weighs even less
than its feathers.
Big muscles
These stocky birds use their
talons as their primary weapon,
so their leg muscles are large
and powerful.
MATURITY
Preparing for adulthood 13 weeks+ Adult feathers 5 years
Bald eagles take several years to reach Aer five years the birds have
full maturity. It’s during this time that they lost their juvenile feathers and
hone their hunting skills while perfecting have developed their iconic
their flying ability. black-and-white plumage.
Huge wings
The wingspan of a bald
eagle can measure
over two metres (seven
feet) to catch warm air
currents. Like hair and
nails, these feathers are
made from keratin and
will grow continually. Thousands of feathers
Bald eagles have around
7,000 feathers.
Strong claws
The talons of a bald eagle are large,
even for a bird of this size. When
hunting, they lock their toes around
their prey like a cage.
Marginal coverts
Secondary
Scapulars coverts
Primary
Aerodynamic feathers
wing slots
What feathers do
Primary feathers
spread out like fingers
Light and strong
to reduce drag.
A miracle in lightweight
Coverts make the
design, a bald eagle’s wings
wing thicker in front,
are huge but light. At low
so that air flows faster
speeds, broad wings hold
over the top of wing.
the bird up in the air longer,
providing extra lift when an
eagle has to carry its prey.
Closest family
Closely related to the bald eagle are…
Golden eagle Harpy eagle White-tailed eagle
Golden eagles are These enormous Bald eagles aren’t
similar in colour raptors are the largest found in Europe or
and size to juvenile eagles found in the Asia, but in their place
bald eagles. There Americas, and are one is this very similar
is one key difference
that makes the
of the most powerful
eagle species. Their
species. White-tailed
eagles are almost
two species easy wingspan is barely exactly the same size
Finding a mate 5-30 years to distinguish: bald wider than that of a as their American
Bald eagles mate for life, and live for eagles have bare legs, bald eagle, but the cousins and fill the
up to 30 years in the wild. Each eagle while golden eagles females can weigh a same ecological niche
couple will produce between one and have feathers all the huge ten kilograms on the other side of the
three chicks every year. way down to their feet. (22 pounds). Atlantic Ocean.
143
 Birds & insects

Raising a family
As loyal companions, many pairs will mate for life, working
together to build their nest and raise chicks
Bald eagles make some of the largest nests
in the animal kingdom, returning to the same
location annually to continue construction. Even
the smaller nests measure almost 1.5 metres
(five feet) in diameter and the biggest can
weigh more than a car.
Built using sticks and lined with soft moss,
feathers and leaves, the enormous nests are
suspended high above the ground in the thick
branches of coastal trees. Both parents are
involved in nest-building and maintenance,
which intensifies in the mating season.
The most-successful nests are
located high up in the trees, away
from ground-based predators
and close to the water, so that there’s a readily
available supply of food. New pairs of eagles
choose their nest site together, often preferring
to return to the area where they hatched. Nests
take around three months to build, but most
eagles continue to modify and improve them as
the years go by.
It’s a myth that eagles mate in the air, but
they do engage in an unusual aerial courtship
ritual. Pairs of birds lock their talons together
in flight, engaging in a death-defying freefall,
hurtling towards the ground together in a
manoeuvre known as cartwheeling. Just
before they hit the floor, the birds break
apart and soar back into the sky. They
retire to nearby branches to mate and five to
ten days later the female lays her first egg.
Bald eagle eggs are relatively small and the
chicks are ready to hatch within five weeks.
During the incubation period one parent
remains with the clutch at all times, ensuring
the temperature stays constant and that the
developing chicks are protected from threats.
The cavity that contains the eggs is barely 30
centimetres (one foot) across, ensuring the eggs
are easily concealed.
When the chicks are ready to hatch, they use
their beaks to break free of the shells. The battle
takes nearly two days, but the adults remain
vigilant throughout.

Aerial Hanging on
One bird dives towards the
Cartwheeling
They tumble through the air,
courtship other and the two lock talons,
joining together at the feet.
hurtling towards the ground with
their feet still firmly entwined.
During the mating
season bald eagles take
to the air to engage in a
dramatic dance

Co-ordinated flight Breaking

At certain times of the year pairs away
of bald eagles can be seen flying Just before they
together in unison. reach the floor,
the eagles break
apart, swooping
back skywards.

Friend or foe?
Bald eagles also lock talons when they
fight to defend their territory.

144

The eagle nest
Eagle chicks are vulnerable, so their parents go to
great lengths to keep them safe
Eaglets
Eagle chicks are entirely
defenceless and are barely
able to move when they
first hatch. They’re covered
in a fine layer of down that
not only helps to keep them
warm, but also provides
some camouflage within the
nest. The adults bring scraps
back to the nest to feed their
young, shredding the meat
into bite-sized mouthfuls.
Lasting architecture
Bald eagles return to the
same nest year aer year,
building on the existing
foundations to create huge
structures measuring over 1.5
metres (five feet) in diameter
and weighing up to two tons
(over 2,000 pounds).
First few
weeks of life
Bald eagles are some of the most powerful
birds on the planet, but their newly hatched
chicks are vulnerable. Both parents work
together to protect their brood, guarding
the hatchlings against predators like
squirrels and bringing food to the nest.
For the first few months the chicks are
barely able to support their own weight
and the parents must be careful not to
crush them underfoot. Adult eagles often
keep their talons curled under when in the
nest, walking on balled fists and taking
care not to skewer the tiny chicks on their
sharp claws.
Bald eagles
Long-term partnership Parental responsibility
Bald eagles form lasting bonds with their mates, Bald eagle eggs incubate for 35 days
remaining together year aer year. Breeding and before they hatch and during this time
rearing young is a co-operative effort, and both both the male and the female remain
parents play an active role in raising their chicks. close to the nest. One parent is always on
guard at the nest to protect the eggs from
hungry predators.
Competition for resources
Between one and three eggs are laid at
a time, but it’s rare for all the chicks to
survive. Larger eaglets oen kill their
weaker siblings in order to gain access
to more food and the adult eagles rarely
intervene. This might seem brutal, but
competition for resources is fierce and
eagles must gain weight as quickly as
possible to survive.
Unable to stand
Bald eagle chicks are weak,
vulnerable and aren’t even able
to support their own body
weight initially.
Eyes half open
For the first few weeks the
chicks’ eyes are barely open
and they can’t see beyond
the safety of the nest.
Staying hidden
The soft down that covers
eagle chicks provides
warmth and camouflage.
145
 Birds & insects
“The bird’s steely
Fighting determination means
over food that it will stop at nothing
Bald eagles have the anatomy to get a decent meal”
of a formidable predator, and
they’re also smart thieves of
the natural world
Intimidation
These huge sea eagles are at the top of
With a wingspan measuring up to
the food chain, using their strong talons,
two metres (seven feet), bald eagles
brilliant flying ability, stealth and prowess
easily intimidate smaller birds and can
to catch their prey. However, it’s often
even scare away large mammalian
the case that the birds don’t catch their
scavengers, such as coyotes.
own food. Bald eagles are regularly seen
harassing other birds such as ospreys,
herons, and even other eagles, using
their size and power to steal fish. Stalking
their opponent midair, the bird’s steely
determination means that it will stop at
nothing to get a decent meal.

On the menu
Opportunistic feeders, eagles aren’t fussy
Stolen fish
Eagles are great fishermen but they’ll
oen steal other creatures’ catches,
too. They’ll harass a hunting osprey
until it drops its prey in midair, where
the eagle swoops it up.

Animal carcasses
A seal or deer carcass is a tempting
treat for any bald eagle. Rich in
protein, the carcasses will feed a
group of eagles for days. The energy is
necessary for fighting over the find.

Small mammals
Supplementing a fish-heavy diet with
small mammals like rabbits and
rats, mammal bones and fur must be
stored in a special section of the bald
eagle’s throat called the crop.

Reptiles and amphibians

A bald eagle’s liing power is about 4
lbs. A hungry bald eagle will take on
a snake, though it may try and strike
its abductor in the air, as the bird flies
back to safety with its slithering catch.

Juveniles watch adults

hunt to pick up skills they
can practise later on

146
 Bald eagles

The target is locked

During the initial dive down, bald eagles
extend their powerful legs downwards,
opening their talons in preparation to grip
their target.

Making enemies
Bald eagles will pick on most other birds,
even harassing members of their own
species for food.

Primary weapon
Bald eagles fight mainly with their feet,
using their sharp claws and strong talons to
swipe and grab at their opponent.
Secondary weapon
The beak is also a formidable weapon – the
top edge is hooked into a sharp point, and
the two mandibles slide past each other
like scissors.

147
 Birds & insects
Learning to be a predator
These stunning sea birds spend much of their time soaring
high up in the air, on the lookout for a meal below
When the air is calm and still, bald eagles spend their time
perched on branches overlooking the water, but on windy
days they take to the sky. These large raptors belong
to the sea eagle family and are adapted for soaring and
gently gliding on the ocean gusts.
To lift their substantial weight, the eagles rely on
thermals – columns of hot, rising air. By stretching their
broad wings, fanning out their tails and using their feathers
to balance, the birds catch upward-moving currents,
gliding in circles and effortlessly climbing higher.
Individual eagles can patrol a home range spanning
anything from 1,700 to 10,000 acres, while out in the open
they can reach average speeds of 50 kilometres (30 miles)
per hour. From their vantage point, 610 to 915 metres
(2,000 to 3,000 feet) above sea level, the eagles have a
direct line of sight to the water below. They spend their
flight time scanning for potential hunting opportunities.
Between 60 and 90 per cent of a bald eagle’s diet is
fish, but they aren’t easy to spot from the air. Many species
living near the surface of the water have silvered scales
that reflect and refract the sunlight, breaking up their
outline. Most are darker in colour at the top than they are
underneath, which reverses the effect of natural shadows
and enables them to blend in with the murky water below.
However, eagles have extremely well-developed eyesight –
148
human fishermen might struggle to see fish from the side
of a boat, but these birds have substantially more colour-
sensitive cone cells than we do, enabling them to see in
much higher resolution.
When a bald eagle identifies its target, it swoops
downwards, adjusting its tail to maintain balance and
control acceleration. As it approaches the water, the
fearsome predator extends its legs, opening its talons
wide and plunging them into the sea. The claws act like
spears, piercing the fish and holding it still, while tiny
spikes on the scales that cover its talons grip the slippery
fish like Velcro.
Juvenile eagles haven’t developed into skilled hunters
and it takes several years to master the techniques. This
means young birds often feed on carrion, finding the dead
fish much easier to spot and capture.
Eagles can carry up to half their own body weight, but
if a fish is too heavy they’re often reluctant to give up their ABOVE Always on the lookout for a
prize, preferring to use an awkward form of breaststroke meal, the eagles will perch in trees
when conditions aren’t ideal for hunting
to drag the fish to the shore. Back on land, the birds stand
out on the rivers and coasts
on one foot to eat, using the other to hold the fish while
they tear off chunks of flesh with their beaks. A bald eagle BELOW Juvenile bald eagles are oen
forced to scavenge food from other
can eat just under half a kilogram (a pound) of meat in creatures and older eagles, as their
under four minutes – that’s around ten per cent of its total hunting techniques and flying abilities
body weight. are still in development
“Juvenile eagles haven’t
developed into skilled
hunters and it takes
several years to master
the techniques”
 Bald eagles

Bald eagles patrol their home

vigorously, and from a vantage
point of up to 915 metres above
the sea level

Diet and feeding

Bald eagles use a combination of hunting, An average male bald eagle eats
scavenging and the to obtain food 700g / 1.5lbs of food per day
Occasionally they
supplement their diet
with reptiles, birds and
even mammals

90% of their diet

consists of fish

That’s 10% of its body weight!

The birds spend their flight

time scanning for potential
hunting opportunities

149
 Birds & insects

Returning from the brink

How this national icon nearly became extinct
Bald eagles are native to North America
and historically were found across the
continent. They thrive in wide, open spaces,
with plentiful water for fishing and large
trees to support their enormous nests.
Eagles dominate their natural
environment, but have struggled to
compete with the scale of human fishing,
farming and deforestation. By the 1930s,
population numbers were dangerously low.
The eagles were considered a nuisance to
farmers and fishermen, so were hunted as
pests or for sport until they were finally
protected in 1940.
The pesticide DDT came into use during
the Second World War and was widely
sprayed to control outbreaks of malaria
and typhus. After the war ended, DDT
was sold to the agricultural industry. It
was extremely effective, but traces of the
chemical began to accumulate in the food
chain. By the 1950s there were clear signs
that something was wrong.
The animals at the bottom of the food
chain had been eating DDT-contaminated
plants and were carrying traces of the
chemical in their bodies. Each had only
been exposed to a small quantity, but large
predators like bald eagles catch and eat
vast numbers of contaminated animals, so
they were accumulating more and more
DDT over time.
The pesticide doesn’t kill the birds
directly, but instead interferes with their
ability to metabolise calcium – a vital
structural component of eggshells. Brown
pelicans, peregrine falcons and bald eagles
all fell victim to the effects of DDT, and
would return to their nests to find the eggs
cracked and broken, the shells too weak to
protect the developing chicks.
The devastating effect of DDT was
brought to public attention in 1962
by Rachel Carson, who published a
revolutionary book: Silent Spring. Although
heavily criticised, the underlying science
holds true: DDT is damaging to birds. The
use of the pesticide was banned in the USA
in 1972 and since then the conservation
effort has seen bald eagles reintroduced
into states across the continent. In 2007
the birds were removed from the list of
federally endangered species and now
populations are doing well.

“The eagles were considered a nuisance

to farmers and fishermen, so were
hunted as pests or for sport”

In our culture
Bald eagles have become known as a symbol of
American freedom
National bird of the USA
The bald eagle is the national bird
of the United States, chosen for its
power, majesty and longevity. It
appears on many government signs,
insignias and currency.
Sam the Eagle
In The Muppet Show, Sam the Eagle
is a patriotic bald eagle, who goes
to great lengths to uphold American
values and feels responsible in his
role as a national symbol.
Master of the Skies
According to traditional Native-
American beliefs, the bald eagle is
the master of the skies. In tradition
it acts as a messenger between the
Earth and the Creator.

150

Environmental threats
Bald eagles are apex predators – humans and the environment are their biggest enemies
Electrocution
Bald eagles have large wingspans
and occasionally touch two power
cables at once as they land,
completing the circuit and receiving a
fatal electric shock.
Recreational hunters
Not only do marksmen sometimes
hit the wrong target, but they also
leave lead shot in deer, ducks and
other game animals, which can
poison hungry bald eagles.
Bald eagles
and humans
Since the arrival of the European settlers in North
America, the relationship between eagles and
humans has been tense.
Once dominant predators, a combination of hunting,
urbanisation, pesticides, over-fishing and invasive
species drove the bald eagle populations in North
America down to dangerous levels. However, human
intervention has not all been bad.
The bald eagle is one of the biggest success stories
in species conservation. At the height of the DDT
crisis the number of nesting pairs in the lower 48
states had dropped to just under 500, but the species
has since been saved.
Reintroduction programs, nest conservation,
pesticide bans and federal protection ensured the
recovery of America’s national animal, and around
10,000 breeding pairs of bald eagles are once again
soaring over the lower United States.
Egg thieves
Adult bald eagles have no natural
predators, but their eggs and chicks
are vulnerable. Mammals and birds
are the biggest threat and both
parents work to protect the nest.
Pesticides
Bald eagles are extremely vulnerable
to the effects of toxic chemicals in
the food chain and the pesticide DDT
led to a huge population crash in the
mid-1900s.
Bald eagles
Nearest
neighbours
The rivers, lakes and coastlines
of North America are home to a
diverse range of species
American mink
These semi-aquatic mammals are
related to weasels and ferrets. They
are native to North America, but are
considered an invasive species on
the other side of the Atlantic, where
they out-compete their cousins, the
European mink.
Snapping turtle
These large freshwater turtles are
found in the central and eastern states
of North America. Unlike other turtles,
they don’t hide inside their shells
when threatened and instead deliver a
fierce series of bites.
Osprey
Also known as sea hawks, ospreys
eat mostly fish and are in direct
competition with bald eagles for
food. Ospreys are efficient hunters,
but eagles are much larger and oen
swoop down at the last minute to
steal the catch.
© NPL, Alamy, Corbis, Rex, Thinkstock, Richard Barts, Bjorn Christian
Torrissen, Yathin SK, Pdreijinders, Peter Scott/The Art Agency
Swamp rabbit
These large cottontails are semi-
aquatic and are surprisingly good
swimmers. They live in the swamps
and marshland of the southern United
States, feeding on reeds and other
water-dwelling plants.
151
 Birds & insects

Meet the family Surfer bird

The golden eagle
likes to surf on air

Eagles
currents, holding its
wings in a V shape
to glide effortlessly
on the air.

Discover six fascinating types GOLDEN EAGLE

Aquila chrysaetos

of the majestic bird of prey that’s Class Aves

king of the skies

Territory Northern
Hemisphere

Philippine eagle Diet Birds, reptiles, fish,

insects
Lifespan 25 to 30 years
A deadly predator that’s Adult weight 3-7kg / 6-15lbs
Conservation Status
facing extinction
Currently found on just four Philippine
islands, this bird of prey is one of the most LEAST CONCERN
endangered species of eagle in the entire
world. Its incredible and formidable wingspan

Perfect balance
of 2.1 metres (seven feet), however, still
makes it a frightening sight on the islands
it inhabits, where it hunts lemurs and other
During flight the wings mammals. Because of its diet, this animal is
are broad and the tail
long for excellent speed. also somewhat unsurprisingly known as the
monkey-eating eagle.
PHILIPPINE EAGLE
Pithecophaga jefferyi
Class Aves
Territory The Philippines
Diet Lemurs, other small
mammals
Lifespan 30 to 60 years
Adult weight 6.4kg / 14lbs
Conservation Status
CRITICALLY ENDANGERED
Keratin weapons
The beak, talons and feathers
are made of keratin, the same
thing human hair and fingernails
are made of.
© Alamy; Thinkstock
Golden eagle
Arguably the fastest eagle in the world
Found across the Northern Hemisphere, this bird of prey is one of the
most widely distributed eagles. Its speed makes it a formidable predator,
as it can dive on its prey at up to 240 kilometres (150 miles) per hour.
This huge bird is primarily noticeable
They have a wide and varied diet that includes carrion, reptiles and
for its large bill and the elongated
even fully grown deer. They maintain huge territories and prefer to nest
feathers on its crest, in addition to a
high in trees where they can easily spot their prey. Their immense speed
white chest between black wings. Its
combined with their agility and sharp talons make them particularly adept
loud and high-pitched whistle gives
hunters. In the UK only the white-tailed eagle is a larger bird of prey than
prey some forewarning of its deadly
the golden eagle, the latter of which is noticeable by its broad wings and
approach. Deforestation has pushed
very long tail.
this bird of prey into small areas where
it struggles to find enough food to
sustain itself.
Bald eagle
Why this US icon is a deadly
and efficient predator
Found throughout North America, from Alaska
to Canada to northern Mexico, the bald eagle is
the national bird of the USA. It’s mainly brown in
colour, with a white head and tail. Female bald
eagles are also larger than the males.
The bald eagle prefers to live near water such
as rivers, oceans and lakes where it can easily
get access to fish. Because of this, the eagle also
prefers to nest in trees near
water from where it can hunt
BALD EAGLE
Haliaeetus leucocephalus
for prey. It can reach speeds
Class Aves of 70 kilometres (43 miles) per
hour and more than double
this when diving for prey. It
seldom dives, however, and
is more of a scavenger of
Territory North America
Diet Carrion dead fish (carrion), earning it a
Lifespan 15-20 years somewhat negative reputation.
Adult weight 2.9-6.4kg / The species was actually
6.5-14lbs
Conservation Status near extinction due to the

use of certain agricultural

pesticides, but was bred back
LEAST CONCERN to stronger numbers thanks to
national conservation efforts.

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 Eagles
Harpy eagle
One of the heaviest eagles in the world
Located in the rainforests of Central and South America, the
harpy eagle is one of the most powerful and heaviest birds
1 3
of prey in the world. Its huge rounded wings can span up
to two metres (6.6 feet) across, although compared to its 4
body they are relatively small, providing a great degree of 2
flexibility when swooping in on prey. HARPY EAGLE
This dark bird of prey has a distinctive look, namely Harpia harpyja
a plume of feathers on its head that the bird fans Class Aves
into a crest when it feels threatened. It can even 1. Smallest 3. Fastest
use some of its feathers to amplify incoming Booted eagle eagle
sounds and more easily pinpoint the The booted Golden eagle
location of prey. Harpies reside in tall Territory Central and South eagle measures The fastest eagle
trees, where they build huge nests America a measly 46 in the world is
Diet Sloths, monkeys and
big enough for a human to lie in. other small mammals
centimetres (18 the golden eagle,
Lifespan 25-35 years inches) in length which can reach
Razor sharp Adult weight 4-9kg / 9-20lbs with a wingspan a maximum
The hooked black bill, Conservation Status
together with the large
of 1.2 metres (3.9 airspeed of 320
and robust talons, make feet), making it kilometres (200
the harpy eagle deadly. the smallest. miles) per hour.
NEAR THREATENED

2. Heaviest 4. Rarest
eagle Philippine eagle
Wedge-tailed eagle Steller’s sea eagle
On average, the
The rarest eagle
in the world is
Among the most heavy-weight eagles Steller’s sea eagle the Philippine
Arguably the largest eagle of all, the wedge-tailed eagle has a huge is the heaviest eagle, which is
wingspan that can reach up to 2.3 metres (7.5 feet). It’s found in eagle in the facing complete
mainland Australia, Tasmania and southern New Guinea, where it world. Weighing extinction and
inhabits a wide range of regions from sea level to the mountains. up to a mammoth is now native to
However, the eagle has adapted to thrive in wooded areas as well nine kilograms only four of the
as in the open country. (20 pounds). Philippine islands.
These particular eagles are known to soar to heights of up to
2,000 metres (6,500 feet), where they hunt for unsuspecting
prey below. They enjoy nests with good visibility of the
surrounding area, which is normally one of the tallest they can
find. From this vantage point they can look for both carrion
and live prey, including rabbits and hares, while some are
even known to kill lambs if given the opportunity. Though
it’s not considered to be endangered, the Tasmanian variety
of this eagle is under threat.
King of the eagles
WEDGE-TAILED EAGLE The huge size of the African
Aquila audax crowned eagle enables it to

African
Class Aves hunt larger prey than other
eagles around the world.

Territory Australia, Tasmania

crowned eagle
Tail end
and southern New Guinea
Diet Small mammals, carrion A ferocious bird native to
The wedge-
shaped tail
Lifespan 20-40 years
Adult weight 2-5.8kg / 4.4- the African continent
of this eagle 12.7lbs Known for its short temper and immense
Conservation Status size, the African crowned eagle is among AFRICAN
makes it very CROWNED EAGLE
noticeable, in the largest birds of prey in the world. Stephanoaetus coronatus
addition to its Its home is in the forest woodlands and Class Aves
feathered legs. LEAST CONCERNED
savannahs of southern Africa, where
it enjoys a diet of reptiles, birds and
mammals, including monkeys.

Bald eagles The African crowned eagle’s dark-brown

or black feathers cover a white undercoat, Territory Southern Africa
Diet Mammals, reptiles, birds

are not bald

The word bald in its name is a misnomer, as
bald eagles aren’t lacking feathers. The word
bald once meant white, so this bird is not bald
in the modern sense of the word at all, but
rather it’s white-headed, which was the original
meaning of the term. The name has stuck,
however, causing some confusion.
while its rounded wings make it extremely
agile. The largest of this subspecies can
measure up to a metre (3.3 feet) in length
Lifespan 12-16 years
Adult weight 2.6-4.7kg /
5.7-10.3lbs
Conservation Status
with a wingspan of 1.8 metres (six feet).
Like other species of eagle, however, the
female is the larger of the two genders. NEAR THREATENED
Interestingly this bird is very loud and,
like the Philippine eagle, makes itself known
to its prey in the African sky with a whistle.

153
 Birds & insects

Meet the family

Spiders
From 40,000 species we’ve picked
Famous markings
The hourglass-shaped mark
is indicative of the black

six of the most notorious and deadly widow spider.

spiders in the world

Black widow
Giant house spider Why this infamous spider is
feared across the globe
The fastest spider in the world There are actually several
A close relative of the house spider, the giant
SOUTHERN BLACK species of this spider, of
house spider isn’t deadly but it is terrifying
WIDOW which the southern black
in its speed. Found across northwestern Latrodectus mactans widow is regarded as the
Europe and in North America, this Class Arachnida
‘true’ black widow. Found
creature can reach speeds of up to 1.9
across the southeastern
kilometres (1.2 miles) per hour, making
United States, this spider is
it the fastest ‘true’ spider.
GIANT HOUSE SPIDER immediately recognisable by
The size of the body of an adult Tegenaria duellica Territory Southeast USA the hourglass-shaped red
female ranges from 1.1-1.8 centimetres Class Arachnida Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 1-3 years mark on its black abdomen.
(0.4-0.7 inches), and slightly less for
Adult weight 1g / 0.04oz The female can be up
the male of the species, while the leg Conservation Status
Extra weapons to five centimetres (two
span can reach a spine-chilling ten At the end of each inches) long, a whopping
centimetres (four inches). Notable for Territory Western Europe and leg of the giant
Pacific northwest of North six times bigger than males.
their black, brown and tanned colour, America house spider are LEAST CONCERN
three tarsal claws Like most black widows, it
they have eight similarly sized round Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 2-3 years which it uses to builds irregular and erratic
eyes at the front and very long, thick
Adult weight 2g / 0.07oz catch prey. webs. They are also well known as having a potent venom
legs. At the end of each are three Conservation Status
that can be fatal to humans, with children and the elderly
‘tarsal claws’, which help it to catch and
being particularly vulnerable. This black widow’s diet
devour its prey.
consists mostly of insects, although using its web it will
In addition to its claws, the giant LEAST CONCERN
also feed on other critters, including woodlice.
house spider possesses a potent venom
which can help to bring down its
unsuspecting insect victims.

Giant huntsman
The biggest spider in the world
If you’re not a fan of spiders, we’d suggest you stop
reading now. The giant huntsman spider is found
only in Laos, but this impressive specimen is not GIANT HUNTSMAN
notable for its large distribution. No, it is its wide SPIDER
leg span, which can reach up to 30 centimetres (12 Heteropoda maxima
Class Arachnida
inches), that makes this spider so revered.
The cave-dwelling giant huntsman is considered
the largest spider in the world, although it is beaten
in mass by the goliath birdeater spider. They prefer
not to build webs (but are still able to produce
Territory Laos
silk) instead foraging and hunting for food on Diet Carnivore
the ground, with their meals consisting mostly Lifespan 2 years
of insects, although they have been known Adult weight Unknown
Conservation Status
to eat small geckos as well.
Such is their behaviour, they are often
referred to as ‘crab spiders’. It can also
LEAST CONCERN
be recognised by its yellow-brown
colour and dark spots.
Amazing considering its size, the
giant huntsman spider was only Great strength
discovered relatively recently in 2001 The total leg span of the colossal giant
huntsman can be anything up to a terrifying
dwelling in a cave. 30 centimetres (12 inches).

154
 Spiders

Robust webs

Golden silk orb-weaver The web of the

golden silk
These spiders build super-strong webs orb-weaver is
regarded as

Not a spider
Found in areas of high humidity in places some of the
including southeast USA and Argentina, GOLDEN SILK ORB- strongest spider
golden silk orb-weaver spiders are generally WEAVER silk in the world.
Nephila clavipes Sun spider
regarded as building some of the strongest Class Arachnida Despite its name, the sun spider, also known
webs. Aside from catching and feasting on
as the solifugae or the camel spider, this is
insects, their webs have even been known
not actually a spider. While all spiders are
to stop small birds such as finches.
arachnids, not all arachnids are spiders,
Varying in colour from yellow to red, this
Territory Southeast US, so even though this critter belongs to the
spider can reach up to five centimetres Argentina, Peru
Diet Carnivore Arachnida class, it is not technically a spider.
(two inches) for females, while the males
Lifespan 1 year The name solifugae is Latin for ‘those who flee
are about three times smaller. Their name, Adult weight 4g / 0.14oz from the Sun’, as it inhabits dry deserts.
however, derives from the golden-yellow Conservation Status
silk they weave, not their own colour. In fact,
this spider can slightly adjust its pigment 3
for camouflage, allowing it to sneak up on LEAST CONCERN 1
unsuspecting prey in its webs.

TARANTULA
Theraphosidae
Class Arachnida
Territory Americas, Africa,
Asia, Australia, Europe
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan Up to 30 years
Adult weight 28-85g / 1-3oz
Conservation Status
LEAST CONCERN
Tarantula 2
The hairy spider celebrity 4
Tarantulas encompass a group of more than 900 spiders that are
instantly noticeable thanks to their furry appearance and thick bodies.
1. Heaviest 3. Smallest
Their mild venom is not dangerous to humans, making them popular
Goliath birdeater Patu marplesi
pets – although they can still deliver a nasty bite.
Although the Found in Western
Tarantulas can be found all over the world, from the Americas to
giant huntsman Samoa, the
Australia. They can reach up to 28 centimetres (11 inches) in size and are
spider is the Patu marplesi
known to periodically shed skin through a process called molting.
biggest in leg measures
Although varying from place to place, tarantulas generally live
span, the massive a miniscule
in burrows under the ground and are slow, purposeful
goliath birdeater 0.43mm (0.017in)
movers. Tarantulas do not rely on webs,
trumps its weight in length, or
although they can spin a ‘tripwire’ of sorts
at an impressive about the size of
to alert it to prey.
170g (6oz). this full stop.
While they generally feed on
smaller insects and bugs, the
bigger specimens can also kill 2. First in 4. Most
birds, mice and lizards. space venomous
Cross spider Brazilian
Arabella and Anita wandering spider
Famous furry
appearance were sent into The deadliest in
You should instantly space on NASA’s the world, just
recognise the furry Skylab 3 mission 0.006 milligrams
appearance of a tarantula, in 1973, becoming of its venom is
in this case the well known
redknee variety. the first spiders in enough to
space – that we kill a
know of... mouse.

Brazilian wandering spider

BRAZILIAN WANDERING
SPIDER
Phoneutria nigriventer
Class Arachnida
Territory South America,
Central America
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 1-2 years
Adult weight 2.5g / 0.09 oz
Conservation Status
Take a look at the world’s
deadliest spider
The most venomous spider on Earth, these ruthless
hunters not only carry a deadly venom but they are
also very aggressive. Fortunately for humans, we
have an effective antivenom.
Most animals are not so lucky, however. The
venom of the Brazilian wandering spider can kill
mice and the creature is known to toy with its
prey before killing it. They have a dark colour
Roaming around
and its legs can spread up to 15 centimetres (six
Wandering spiders are
inches) in diameter. so called because they
They like to dwell in dark spaces, including wander the ground at
© Alamy

LEAST CONCERN shoes. If disturbed, they will bite repeatedly night, as opposed to
and furiously. building a web.

155
 Birds & insects

All about tarantulas

Unravelling the secrets of the world’s largest spiders
They may be the ultimate nightmare for arachnophobes, but
tarantulas are incredible creatures once you look beyond their
fearsome exterior. With some 900 species spread throughout the
world, from tropical rainforest to arid deserts, their ability to adapt
is a feat that deserves respect.
Webs are impractical for a spider as large as this, but they still
make use of silk in their homes. Many tarantulas dig silk-lined
burrows to shore up the walls and with ‘tripwires’ extending
from the entrance to signal prey and potential mates. Others
live in trees, in tubes made of silk or in gaps in the bark, while
some species have no fixed abode, preferring a wandering and
nomadic lifestyle.
Generally resting during the day, tarantulas use the cover of
darkness to their advantage to ambush prey. Their typical quarry
is insects, eg crickets, but larger species are capable of taking
down small rodents, lizards and even baby birds. Once they have
pounced, articulated fangs up to 2.5 centimetres (one inch) long
deliver a lethal dose of venom before injecting digestive juices
to start breaking down their meal for a liquid lunch. Surprisingly,
the venom is thought to be weaker than a bee’s sting so bites to
humans are fairly harmless, if painful.
They may be the planet’s biggest spiders, but
they too have their enemies who’d like to make
dinner of them. As a result, tarantulas have
developed some cunning defence strategies
to deter predators. In the first instance, the
spider will rear up on its hind legs to make
itself look bigger and to expose its fangs as
a warning. If this doesn’t work, New World
species have another trick up their sleeve
– or at least on their abdomen – in the
form of urticating bristles. With quick leg
movements over its abdomen it dislodges a
cloud of barbed microhairs that can irritate
both the eyes and skin of an assailant.
Even if they do get injured during an attack,
all is not lost. Like all arthropods, tarantulas
have to shed their outer skeleton in order to
grow – typically about once a year – in a process
known as moulting. As well as replacing the old suit
of hair-lined armour and certain organs, over two or
three moults entire limbs can amazingly be regenerated.

Arachnid anatomy Heart

The tube-shaped heart is surrounded
Abdomen (body)
Much of a tarantula’s physiology is the same
as any other spider – only supersized
by muscle and attached to the Pedicel (connecting point)
exoskeleton with ligaments. Blood,
called haemolymph, leaves through Cephalothorax (head)
arteries towards the head and returns
via tiny slits called ostia.

Intestine Claws
The tarantula has evolved At the end of each leg are
a super-efficient digestive two retractable claws and
tract, which ensures next pads of microscopic hairs
to no water or nutrients are for grip when climbing.
wasted. Malpighian tubes
off the gut act like kidneys to
filter the blood of waste.

Ovary (female)
The female spider can
produce several hundred
eggs at a time which,
aer laying, she will
protect in a special silk
sac until they hatch.
Central nervous system
Book lung Two clusters of nerve cells called
Numerous folds of ganglia near the brain receive
tissue inside the lungs information from all around the
increase surface area body via fibres, controlling basic
for absorbing oxygen; reflex actions and motor functions.
their resemblance
to pages in a book
Setae
gives them their
Despite having eight eyes,
literary name.
tarantulas don’t have the
best sight, so they use
sensory hairs over their body
© Corbis; Alamy

to detect prey and predators.

156

“The bulldog ant has all the aggression
and belligerence of a top predator”
Piercing sting of the bulldog ant
Described as a wasp without wings, the bulldog
ant has all the aggression and belligerence of a top
predator. Preying on carpenter ants is a dangerous
task, as they can recruit aid by sending chemical
signals to nest mates. As the bulldog ant darts
around, it can leap onto its prey’s back and thrust
out its stinger before the carpenter alerts its team.
Tarantulas & bulldog ants
Modus operandi
Combining both bites and stings, a bulldog ant
© Mark Moffett/Minden Pictures/FLPA
has mandibles with an average of 12 to 13 teeth to
damage its prey, while the queen’s teeth grow to an
average 19 millimetres (0.7 inches). With a stinger
located in the abdomen, the aggressive bulldog
ant can sting repeatedly, each time with a deadly
dose of venom entering the prey. Their vision is also
superb, enabling them to track and hunt prey from
up to a metre (three feet) away.
157
 Birds & insects
“It pounces on its victim, trapping it
in a silken cocoon before paralysing
it with a sharp bite”
The silky prison of an orb-weaver
The orb-weaver spider certainly doesn’t take any
prisoners when it comes to food. Building itself a
steely web, the arachnid waits patiently until an
insect gets caught on the sticky threads. Picking up
on vibrations in the web, it pounces on its victim,
trapping it in a silken cocoon before paralysing it with
a sharp bite and consuming its liquefied innards.
158
Modus operandi: Unlike other spiders, the
orb-weaver builds a new web every day,
taking it down at dawn and seeking refuge
from its predators during the daylight hours.
As soon as dusk falls, the orb-weaver sets
to work to build a new web to acquire its
next meal. Its threads are undeniably strong,
and the spider has been known to catch
© Nature PL
a wide variety of insects, from ants and
grasshoppers to moths and even bees.
 Orb-weaver spider & praying mantis

“The ravenous predator lunges

forward in 0.05 seconds”

Stealthy strike of a praying mantis

The praying mantis is a master of deception – hiding,
waiting, turning its head 180 degrees and using its
two large compound eyes to watch for potential
prey. The ravenous predator lunges forward in 0.05
seconds, with razor-sharp hooked spikes on its
Modus operandi
Some of the 2,300 species of praying mantis creep up on
their prey, but some wait until their victims come to them.
Either way, their angled, raptorial forelegs impale and cling
to the victim, holding it steady so it can use its tiny teeth
to bite into its head. A mantis will devour insects, lizards,
frogs, mice and birds up to three times its size, working
© Thinkstock

its way down the body. However, males must watch out:
strong front legs piercing firmly into the flesh of its cannibalistic hungry females commonly snack on males
meal, before it starts to slowly chew. during or aer mating.

159
Birds of prey
The fastest, the strongest, the most agile – meet the planet’s
most adept aerial assassins and learn how they survive
Some are manoeuvrable dog-fighting
specialists, while others soar high above the
ground like stealth bombers. They attack in the
air, on the ground and in water. All of them are
apex predators, adapted for life at the top of the
food chain.
Birds of prey, also known as raptors, may look
a bit like feathered dinosaurs, but they aren’t any
more related to the giant lizards than any other
type of bird. The physical resemblance comes
from their shared carnivorous lifestyle. Most
belong to one of two families: the Accipitrids
include eagles, hawks, buzzards, kites, harriers
and true vultures, while the Falconids consist of
160
falcons, kestrels and falconets. There are also to catch fish swimming close to the surface.
two families of owls and a few species, such as Ospreys, which hunt in freshwater as well as
the osprey and secretary bird, that are in the sea, can spot fish under the surface
families of their own. Extinct while flying as high as 40 metres
Raptors hunt in two main ways. The mega-eagle (130 feet) above the water. They
large Accipitrids and ospreys float high The Haast’s eagle drop feet first, and will completely
lived in New Zealand
above the ground while they scan for until it was driven extinct in
submerge in pursuit of the kill.
possible targets using their extremely the 15th century. It weighed Uniquely among raptors, ospreys
15kg (33lb) and had a 3m
acute vision. They will then dive-bomb (9.8) wingspan! have nostrils they can close to keep
or circle around to strike silently and water out.
suddenly. Eagles prefer to snatch prey and Falcons and hawks hunt other birds
keep flying in order to minimise the time they in the air. The peregrine falcon attacks
spend vulnerable on the ground. Sea eagles, pigeons and water birds from high above, dive-
such as the bald eagle, use this technique bombing – or stooping – from 4.8 kilometres

Built for the kill
All the equipment you need
to deliver death from above…
Articulated neck
Extra neck vertebrae enable the
head to be swivelled further. Owls
have 14 compared to our seven.
Huge wingspan
Wings adapted for efficient
soaring flight allow long hunting
trips without wasting energy.
Tail rudder
Enables rapid
changes of
direction for
aerial combat
and can be
spread wide
to assist with
takeoff.
Honeycomb bones
Saves weight without sacrificing
strength. The skull bones are
much more fused than ours.
(three miles) high so that they accelerate to
phenomenal speeds over 320 kilometres (200
miles) per hour. At this speed the increased
air pressure is enough to burst their lungs, but
peregrines have small bones in their nostrils
called tubercles that divert most of the airflow
to the sides. While the peregrine is technically
the fastest animal in the world, falling isn’t the
same thing as flying. The fastest in level flight
may actually be the Eurasian hobby, which
actually has the ability to chase down speedy
swallows and swifts.
Species that can’t compete in speed rely
on their superior agility, like the forest falcons.
These sit patiently in dense forest areas, using
their extremely sensitive hearing to listen for
birds flying nearby. When one passes close
enough they will launch into a short and
Birds of prey
Land
hunter
The secretary
bird resembles an eagle
Fixed vision with the legs of a crane. It
hunts on the ground, oen
The eyes are too big to move in
their sockets, so the raptor must
stamping on snakes and
mice to kill them.
turn its head to look around.
Hooked beak
Curved for ripping
flesh. The colour
of the upper part
shows off the
health of the bird to
potential mates.
Telescopic eye
The highly curved lens gives
eyesight that can be eight times
more acute than ours.
“The shape of the
Talons
Talons are used
talons depends on
for killing prey
and carrying it off.
the type of animal
Leg scales even
protect against
they hunt”
snakebites in
some species.
Eyes like a hawk
Falcons and eagles hunt primarily by sight. Their eyes
dangerous slalom run through the branches operate at extremely high resolution – buzzards have
to catch the bird before it escapes. five times as many cone receptors in their retina as
Falcons use their beak as a weapon, and we do. If our eyes were scaled up to the same relative
some even have a tooth on the upper beak proportions as an owl’s, they would become the size
that they use to snap the spine of their prey. of oranges!
For most other raptor species, though, the Many raptors can see beyond visible light, into the
beak is only used for tearing chunks of flesh ultraviolet. Kestrels use this to hunt, because rodent
from an already downed victim. To kill, they urine actually reflects UV light. Raptors have good
rely on their talons. The exact shape of hearing too, particularly the owls. Barn owls can attack
these depends on the type of animal they in complete darkness, guided only by the sound of their
hunt: owls have short, heavily muscled toes scurrying prey as they swoop in, while great grey owls
to squeeze the breath from mice and small can hear a lemming under 0.3 metres (a foot) of snow.
mammals, with thin, straight talons to hold Most raptors have almost no sense of smell, but New
them still; while eagles and buzzards have World vultures are an exception. The scent of rotting
longer, curved talons on the backwards- meat has been added to gas supplies in North America
facing toe and the first forward-facing because Turkey vultures will detect leaks in pipelines by
toe for a powerful pincer grip. The osprey circling high above the spot.
can even rotate its talons so that two toes
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 Birds & insects
face forward and two back to hold on to

On the hunt
wriggling fish.
Vultures and condors have the weakest
talons of any raptor, because their diet
consists almost entirely of carrion. Vultures
have bald heads to make it easy for them to How to catch a rabbit from hundreds of metres up
plunge their entire head into the carcass of
a large animal without the blood getting on
their feathers. On the lookout
Judging which is the biggest bird of Large raptors need Sushi
huge ranges to specialist
prey isn’t easy. The Andean condor has the find enough food. Ospreys are
largest wingspan at up to 3.5 metres (11.5 A golden eagle can the only raptors that
live exclusively on fish.
feet) and the Philippine eagle the longest patrol an area of Backwards-facing scales on
body at over one metre (three feet), while 200km2 (77mi2). their talons act as barbs to
help grip their catch.
the heaviest is Steller’s sea eagle in north-
east Asia, which can weigh up to nine Stealth mode
kilograms (20 pounds). Light plumage on
Because they have no predators, raptors their underside
makes them hard
tend to live a long time. Golden eagles last
to see against the
for 25 years in the wild and up to 46 years bright sky.
in captivity, and the Philippine eagle can
survive for up to 60 years in the wild! But a
long lifespan goes hand-in-hand with a slow
rate of reproduction.
Bald eagles take from four to five years
to reach sexual maturity, and usually lay
only one or two eggs per season. Even
when more than one egg hatches, in many
raptor species the strongest chick will kill the
others in the nest. This makes many raptors
very vulnerable to population crashes from
hunting or habitat loss. To give just one
example, around 120,000 Amur falcons are
illegally killed by hunters every year in India
as they migrate between eastern Asia and
South Africa.
It’s not all bad news, however. There are
some success stories too. For example, red
kites have been successfully reintroduced to
the UK and Ireland, and peregrine falcons
are thankfully no longer endangered in
Britain now that organochlorine pesticides
have been banned.

Veggie
raptor
Home sweet home The palm-nut
vulture gets most of
its food from the fruit of
Falcons take over abandoned nests of other birds the oil palm. It will also
rather than building their own, but other raptors
occasionally eat crabs and Eye protection
insects, though.
As it strikes, the
build wide platforms called eyries, or aeries. raptor closes its third
These are normally high up with a commanding eyelid – or nictitating
view of the countryside. A golden eagle can see membrane – to
a hare from a mile away, and a sheep from 4.8 protect the eyes.
kilometres (three miles), so it can search a wide
area without ever leaving its nest. Raptors add to
their nest each breeding season and can become Dust off
very big. A bald eagle’s nest is strong enough to Staying on the ground
support a man and can weigh two tons! is dangerous. Raptors
will immediately
carry off anything
that weighs less
than them.

Claws of death
Small prey die by
asphyxiation –
squeezed so tightly
they cannot breathe.
Raptors oen start
eating before
their prey is dead.

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 Birds of prey

Soaring
Large raptors need to stay alo for long periods
while they search for prey. To save energy, they
make use of natural updras. In wide-open
areas, the Sun heats the ground, which warms
the air next to it. Hot air rises, creating a thermal.
Another source of li comes from cliffs and
peaks, where the wind is deflected upwards.

Gliding run
The raptor glides from
one updra to another,
always scanning the
terrain for movement.

Divebomber
Eagles and buzzards make their attack run from
downwind and swoop in at a shallow angle. This
minimises the speed lost if they miss their target
and allows them to gain altitude again easily.
Hovering Smaller hawks and falcons aim for maximum
Kites and buzzards speed, with their wings tucked back to increase
prefer to hover low, their freefall speed to over 240km/h (150mph).
near to gaps in ground
cover, and drop on
anything that moves.

© Ian Jackson; Thinkstock; SPL

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 Birds & insects

Peregrine falcon’s
stoop dive
Meet the all-time fastest animal on Earth,
the peregrine falcon, and find out how
it can grab a meal in midair…
Many birds of prey have special
adaptations that help them survive; owls
can’t move their eyes so they have necks Flight feathers
that turn almost 270 degrees, while A consummate pilot, the
kestrels eat a diet of small rodents and peregrine falcon has extremely
so have shorter beaks than most other specialised flight feathers. Its
wing muscles make up about
raptors. The peregrine falcon, meanwhile, a third of its body weight.
takes its specialism to the extreme.
Found on all the continents
except Antarctica, this bird
is a formidable predator. A
combination of sharp talons, a
hooked beak and lightning-fast
reflexes makes the peregrine
capable of seizing medium-
sized birds in midair. However,
that wouldn’t be possible were
it not for one major attribute:
speed. The peregrine falcon is the
fastest animal ever to have lived with a
maximum velocity of over 320 kilometres
(200 miles) per hour.
So how does this bird achieve such
great speed and, indeed, use it to its
advantage? Well, first it gains a height
advantage over its prey and then it Tail feathers
uses surprise for a stealthy ambush. These stiff feathers at
To gain sufficient height, the peregrine the rear serve as the
ascends by flying in tight circles to rise perfect rudder to steer
the bird during flight.
up through warm columns of air known
as thermals. Once a good vantage point
of over a kilometre (0.6 miles) has been PEREGRINE FALCON
obtained, the falcon trains its eyes on an Falco peregrinus
Class Aves
unsuspecting victim, before using gravity
and a technique known as the rapid stoop
to swoop silently down.
A stoop is a high-speed dive from
Territory Every continent
high altitude, and during such a descent except Antarctica
the peregrine falcon reaches speeds Diet Carnivore
three times faster than the fastest land Lifespan Up to 17 years
Adult weight 530-1,600g
animal – the cheetah. As well as using (18.8-56.5oz)
gravity to perform these highly controlled Conservation status Talons
dives towards the ground, the peregrine Powerful talons are
can also boast a number of anatomical used for first stunning
attributes that help it achieve such record- LEAST CONCERN prey upon impact and
then keeping the victim
breaking aerial acrobatics. locked in their clutches.

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 Peregrine falcons

Nictitating membrane
This clear third eyelid moves
across the eye from the
inner corner to sweep away
debris and keep the eye moist
without blocking out light.

While human skydivers freefall at around

240km/h (150mph), a peregrine can drop
into a stoop and achieve freefall speeds in
excess of 320km/h (200mph)

Nostrils
Due to the pressure of air entering
the nostrils when diving at speed,
breathing would be impossible if
not for bony valves that slow the air
as it enters. Similar structures are
now used inside jet engines.
Beak
All raptors have strong,
sharp beaks, including
the peregrine whose
short, hooked beak is
ideal for puncturing
Eyes prey and tearing flesh.
All birds of prey have very
keen eyesight, helping them to
locate and train their sights on
unsuspecting victims far below.
They have a lot more vision cells
(cones and rods) than humans.
The ultimate flight control
We pick out the main stages a peregrine falcon performs during the
perfect stoop dive
Lookout
The peregrine
circles unseen up
high in order
to spy out a
potential victim.
Shape-shift
What is terminal
velocity?
Freefall occurs when no force other
than gravity affects the acceleration of
an object in motion. Terminal velocity,
meanwhile, is the constant speed of an
object (such as a peregrine falcon) as
it freefalls through a gas (such as the
atmosphere) or a liquid.
A falling skydiver – before they launch
their parachute – hits their terminal
velocity at around the 240-kilometre
(150-mile)-per-hour mark. At this
speed they are neither accelerating nor
decelerating through the air so the effects
of air resistance (ie drag) are equal to the
downward force of gravity.
Roll
With the target in its
sights, the bird rolls into
position to begin the dive.
Impact
The bird strikes its
victim at high speed
and the impact alone
can kill. With the prey
incapacitated the
peregrine seizes the
bird in its talons and
© Thinkstock; Corbis; Greg Hume

Toes flies off to eat it.

The falcon has four toes – three The falcon tucks in its wings,
facing forward and one called the shape-shifting into a perfectly
hallux, which faces backwards. aerodynamic teardrop form.
The middle toe is extra long to The peregrine braces itself for
help reach through the quarry’s
feathers and grip the body. a high-speed dive-bomb as it
rushes through the air.

165
 Birds & insects

50
FACTS ABOUT

EXPLORE SOME OF THE MOST AMAZING HABITS AND

TRAITS OF THESE FANTASTIC FLIGHTLESS BIRDS

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 Penguins

1. Penguins are carnivores

It’s easy to forget, but all penguin species are actually
piscivorous carnivores, consuming massive amounts of
meat during their lives. In fact it’s estimated that the
Earth’s macaroni penguin population consumes 9.2
million tons of krill each and every year.
While penguins consume a wide variety of food
sources, they do have some favourites, with krill, squid
and fish such as anchovies and sardines common
favourites. Certain species also have a penchant for
crustaceans, cuttlefish and shrimp too, eating and
digesting them directly or consuming and processing them
into a slurry to be more easily transferred to their young.
Hunting for meat occurs on a daily basis and trips are
undertaken in groups, but foraging itself can occur both
in isolation or as part of a concerted group effort. They
work together to catch prey or take it in turns to enter the
water while the others rest. Penguins’ desire for meat will
see hunting parties frequently travel many miles both in
and out of water to reach prime feeding grounds, spending
days on end catching and eating fish.

Blood-thirsty
Penguins are carnivores,
consuming fish, shellfish and
crustaceans in very large
quantities to survive.

Hunting technique
A popular hunting technique
is to dive to 50m (164) and
then swim up to surprise
fish swimming closer to the
ocean surface.

“Penguins’ desire for meat will

see hunting parties frequently
travel many miles”

2. They are extremely 3. Their colonies

short-sighted
Intriguingly penguin eyes and human eyes are
remarkably similar, with a cornea, iris and crystalline
lens focusing light onto a retina. With penguin eyes,
however, the cornea is almost flat and its iris is
controlled by a far more powerful muscle than ours
– two features that make the penguin capable of
seeing both in and out of water equally well (unlike
humans who are farsighted underwater).
The trade-off for this ability is a general short-
sightedness both in and out of the water, however,
particularly so when on land. Regardless, with
little need for pin-sharp, hawk-like vision, penguin
LEFT Penguins
have similar
eyes have been shown to be completely adequate. In
eye structures general, individuals are easily able to pick out partners
to humans and chicks at medium range.
can be massive
If you thought a penguin rookery was big, with
thousands of birds all drawing together in one
place, then think again, as a penguin colony can be
over 100-times larger.
The current Guinness World Record for
the largest penguin colony on Earth lies with
Zavodovski Island, an active volcano in the South
Sandwich Islands. Zavodovski sees approximately
two million chinstrap penguins breed on its slopes
each and every year, with several hundreds of
thousands of birds descending on the island to
court and mate.
Along with the macaroni, the chinstrap penguin
is among the most numerous penguin species
found across the world.

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 Birds & insects
5. They are able to
4. Penguins drink salt water
Another unique evolutionary feature possessed by

have 70 all penguin species is the ability to drink salt water

without any adverse side effects.

feathers per Humans and most other land-dwelling animals

cannot drink ocean water due to its high salt
content, but penguins have evolved a special

square inch Warm coating

supraorbital gland that filters all salt intake from its
bloodstream, enabling it to drink and be refreshed
as if drinking from a freshwater source.
As penguins spend so much of their
Feathers keep penguins The filtered salt, once extracted and separated
time in water, they need a reliable warm in freezing from the animal’s bloodstream, is then eventually
waterproof coating, which for all species temperatures, but also
maintain a waterproof excreted as a concentrated fluid from the penguin’s
comes courtesy of their feathers. In fact,
barrier for swimming. nasal passages.
these are some of the most dense and
numerous plumages of all birds.
The average feather count per square BELOW Penguins are able to
inch (6.5 square centimetres) of a consume salt water, without
any adverse effects
penguin is 70 and with some species,
such as the emperor penguin, that
number rises to more than 100. These
small, stiff and tightly packed feathers
overlap and when in good condition
not only help insulate the bird against
its cold environment but ensure a
waterproof barrier is maintained at
all times, enabling the penguin to slip
through the water effortlessly before
returning to land in a fast-drying state.
On the rare occasion that a penguin
gets too hot, it cools itself by raising
its flippers, which are the one part of
its body, aside from the feet, where its
plumage is not so dense and heat can
escape quickly.

“The penguin varies its blood flow rate by

adjusting the diameter of its arterial vessels”

Heat exchangers
A system of arteries
6. They can
exchanges heat to
keep the extremities
as warm as possible.
control their
blood flow
Arterial vessels Ever wondered why parts of a penguin don’t just freeze
The penguin is able and fall off in the harshest climate on Earth? Well, the
to adjust its blood answer is due to the ability to control its own blood
flow rate to suit the
changing conditions. flow, which is certainly a handy trait when living in such
typically cold climates.
The penguin varies its blood flow rate by adjusting
the diameter of its arterial vessels, supplying its blood in
accordance with climate conditions. In cold conditions
the diameter is reduced to limit the blood flow (which
reduces heat loss) and in warmer conditions the diameter
is expanded, increasing the flow.
Partnering this ability, which is controlled with a
complicated nervous and hormonal system, are also
countercurrent heat exchangers, which are positioned
at the top of the penguin’s legs and exchange heat from
warm blood travelling in one direction with cold blood
travelling in the other. This ensures that heat is distributed
efficiently around the body and that minimal loss occurs
at the extremities, while ensuring they don’t freeze.

168

7. They molt at
an unusually
fast rate
Not many people are aware that
penguins, like all birds, molt
their feathers. In the penguin’s
case, molting generally occurs
annually and all in one go, which
is referred to as a catastrophic
molt. This results in each
species completely shedding its
outer layer of feathers quickly
and with spectacular results,
with a penguin mid-molt looking
like an exploding pillow.
8. Males and
females look
identical
Most penguin species are not
sexually dimorphic. This means
that both the males and females
are identical in appearance with
regards to both their plumage
and colouration.
9. They do not
have teeth
Rather than teeth, a penguin has
hundreds of spines on the top
and bottom interior of its beak.
These spines help the penguin
hold slippery, moving prey,
particularly fish.
10. Every
penguin lives
in the Southern
Hemisphere
Every species of penguin lives
in the Southern Hemisphere,
ranging from the continent
of Antarctica through to the
relatively warmer waters of the
Galapagos Islands.
11. The
Magellanic is
named after
Ferdinand
Magellan
The Magellanic penguin
(Spheniscus magellanicus)
was named by its discoverer,
Portuguese explorer Ferdinand
Magellan. The adventurer
stumbled upon the species in
around 1520 CE, along with a
range of other species that had
gone undiscovered.
Penguins
12. The Little The littlest penguin
The Little Penguin’s
small size oen leaves it
Penguin is vulnerable to predators
such as lizards, stoats
and even pets.
13 inches tall
Penguins on average
LITTLE PENGUIN measure between two
Eudyptula minor and three feet in height,
Class Aves
but this figure means
nothing to the Little
Penguin – a species
that averages a paltry
Territory South coast of 33 centimetres (13
Australia, coastal New Zealand
Diet Carnivore inches) in height when
Lifespan 6-7 years fully grown.
Adult weight 1.5kg / 3.3lbs
Conservation Status
Due to its small size,
the Little Penguin is
often also commonly
LEAST CONCERN
referred to as the
fairy penguin, with
the animal’s small size
and low weight – individuals struggle to break 1.5
kilograms (3.3 pounds) – granting them a cute and
friendly appearance. Like most seabirds Little Penguin
have a long lifespan, with the average being 6.5 years.
The Little Penguin was first discovered and
recorded in 1781 CE and today is a well-established
species, with 350,000-600,000 individuals estimated
to exist in their natural habitat. Indeed, the little
penguin population is well dispersed, with
the animal found on New Zealand,
Australia, the Chatham Islands, as
well as some sightings in Chile and Australia
even sporadically in South Africa.
Unfortunately, however, due to this
species’ establishment on national
mainlands, they are frequently killed
by cats, lizards, foxes and stoats.
These attacks typically come when
Little Penguin range
the little penguin is at its on-shore
nest, which it returns to each evening
with food harvested from the ocean.
13. They toboggan when
leaving the water
All penguin species are capable of tobogganing, which is
essentially where the bird lies on its stomach and propels
itself horizontally across the ice, with its flippers and
feet acting as the propelling mechanisms.
Tobogganing is not only a much faster form
of travel for penguins – whose large bodies,
short legs and webbed feet make walking
cumbersome – but it also helps the animal
conserve more energy, which is so
precious in its oen unforgiving habitat.
Penguins are capable of sliding
with minimal effort across flat or
descending inclines. They even use RIGHT When
this tobogganing method to quickly penguins toboggan,
they are not only
escape predators such as seals and conserving energy,
sea lions, who don’t posses the same but can also evade
ability and so cannot keep up with predators much faster
than by waddling
their prey.
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 Birds & insects

14. The macaroni is the 16. They

are able to
most common species consume
stones to aid
With an estimated 20 Shetland Islands among many others, with the animal
MACARONI PENGUIN
Eudyptes chrysolophus
million individuals in spreading far and wide – especially during foraging with digestion
existence, the macaroni trips – and frequently coming into contact with Scientists believe penguins will
Class Aves
penguin is the most scattered human settlements. actively consume small stones
numerous penguin Aside from its high numbers, the macaroni penguin along with food to aid digestion
species living on Earth is also known for its remarkable fasting behaviour. within their stomach. The stones
and millions of birds During the species’ breeding period the male fasts are also believed to add weight
Territory Subantarctic
Diet Carnivore
occupy a range that for around 37 days after the arrival of the egg, before and aid the birds’ diving.
Lifespan 15-20 years stretches from the swapping with the mother for a ten-day period
Adult weight 15.5kg / 12lbs
Conservation Status
subantarctic to the
Antarctic Peninsula.
to forage, while the female then fasts for 42 days
straight. When the male eventually returns from
17. An emperor
To be precise, at least foraging, it then proceeds to fast once more for a egg takes 67
VULNERABLE
216 colonies have been
identified at over 50
similar time frame.
Due to this extensive fasting habit, both male and
days to hatch
As you may expect, the largest
different sites around female macaroni penguins lose between 35 and
penguin species in the world –
the world. The macaroni penguin can be found from 40 per cent of their total body weight during the
the emperor penguin – has the
Chile, through the Falkland Islands and onto the South hatching and raising period.
longest incubation time in-egg
than any other, with it taking
“Macaroni penguins lose between 35 and 40 per over two months for any chick to
hatch into the world.
cent of their total body weight during the hatching
and raising period” 18. Most
Widespread species
Macaroni penguins living species lay two
on the snow-covered
slopes of Cooper Bay,
eggs at a time
Bluish-black plumage South Georgia. All penguins, aside from the
The macaroni has a black emperor and king species, tend
plumage with a bluish
sheen when new and a
to lay two eggs in a nest made
brownish sheen when old, of stones, bones and moss. The
just prior to molting. emperor and king penguins only
ever lay one, however, and don’t
build nests but incubate the egg
on the tops of their feet to keep
them from the cold floor.

19. Penguins
Crested species
breed during
The macaroni penguin spring and
is one of six species of
penguin with a crest. This summer
stretches from the centre Aside from the emperor penguin,
of the forehead to the nape. which breeds during the cold of
the harsh Antarctic winter, all
other species of penguin breed
during the spring and summer
months, when generally
conditions are a lot warmer.

15. 1 in every 50,000 penguins is born
with a unique brown plumage
Around 1 in 50,000 penguins is born as an isabelline
penguin. These unique and rare penguins are
marked due to their distinctive brown plumage,
which is caused by a similar biological process
to albinism.
Unfortunately, due to their brown plumage
standing out against the animal’s native
LEFT Isabelline penguins are extremely rare
and also have a shorter life expectancy
20. Male
emperors
make very
good fathers
As soon as a female emperor
backdrop of ice and snow, therefore offering no
penguin produces an egg, the
camouflage against predators, these isabelline
male partner immediately takes
variants tend to have shorter life expectancies than
over the caring duties, incubating
regular penguins.
the egg carefully on the top of his
Additionally, even if an isabelline penguin
feet. While he’s doing this, the
somehow survives against predation, it oen then
female emperor travels away on
finds it difficult to mate, with the other penguins with
a hunting and feeding trip.
normal plumage overlooking it when the breeding
season arrives.

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 Penguins
21. The gentoo Acrobatic

can swim at
Gentoos are also one of the
most agile penguins and
are capable of leaping high

up to 22mph
out of the water.

Faster than any other diving bird, the gentoo penguin

is distinctive for many reasons, primarily for its ability to
swim at a rapid 22 miles (36 kilometres) per hour. It’s also
notable due to its flamboyant red-orange beak, white
feathered caps and super-streamlined body, with this
species type commonly found throughout the Antarctic Rapid swimmer
While swimming
Peninsula and its many icy islands.
under the water
On land, gentoo penguins have no natural predators, gentoos can hit
but despite their speed in the water they are frequently 22mph (36km/h).
preyed upon in the oceans by leopard seals, sea lions and
orca whales. Additionally, during the breeding season,
their eggs are prone to be taken by birds of prey such as GENTOO PENGUIN
caracaras and skuas. Pygoscelis papua
This predation, along with climate change and human Class Aves
fishing operations, has seen the number of gentoo
penguins decrease rapidly over the past couple of
decades, with the species receiving a Near Threatened
rating by the IUCN Red List in 2007. This is particularly Territory Subantarctic
depressing, as the gentoo is one of the cornerstone Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 10-15 years
penguin species, being the third largest (76 centimetres
or 30 inches) in height and weighing a modest 5.5
Adult weight 5.5kg / 12lbs
Conservation Status
“Adult gentoos spend
kilograms (12 pounds). Adult gentoos spend most of their
days hunting close to shore, where they consume large
most of their days
quantities of squid and krill. Gentoo chicks take just over
a month to hatch and then a further month of direct care
NEAR THREATENED
hunting close to shore”
before they can leave the nest.

“The emperor
22. A penguin’s body Staying warm

temperature is 38 °C
Though they live
in cold conditions,
penguin can dive
The average temperature in a penguin’s
penguins can still
remain warm. down to 1,700 feet”
body is 38 degrees Celcius (100 degrees
Fahrenheit), even despite most living in 23. They aren’t
subantarctic conditions, where temperatures
oen plummet well below -20 degrees
able to breathe
Celcius (-4 degrees Fahrenheit). underwater
Interestingly, however, scientists Despite spending the majority of their lives there,
have used infrared imagery to show that penguins can’t actually breathe underwater, with
at times parts of a penguin’s body can the time and depth they can be submerged for
drop in temperature by over 15 being wholly dependent on the species type.
degrees Celcius, with inactive As an example, little penguins can only manage
extremities kept cooler than to dive down to around 60 metres (200 feet) and
the core. This helps the remain underwater for up to a minute. In contrast,
penguin conserve energy the emperor penguin can dive down to 565 metres
that otherwise would have (1,850 feet) below the surface and may remain
been wasted. there for around 20 minutes at any one time.

24. They are a very

sociable species
Despite their remote habitats and general lack of
contact with the wider world, penguins are social
animals, conducting almost every aspect of their
daily lives together. From diving and hunting,
through to breeding together in large colonies
and communicating with one another constantly
Toasty seat via calls, as well as visual displays, penguins are
Penguin chicks can always in contact. They even travel and sleep in
perch on a warm groups too – the latter oen to increase safety
pair of feet to avoid
the cold snow.
and warmth – and will band together to fight off
predators who are trying to capture a younger or
weaker individual.

171
 Birds & insects

25. The emperor penguin breeds at -60°C

If there is one fact above all
EMPEROR PENGUIN others that pays testament to
Aptenodytes forsteri
Class Aves
how amazing penguins are,
it’s that emperor penguins
breed at -60 degrees Celcius
(-76 degrees Fahrenheit), a
feat that would be simply
Territory Antarctica
Diet Carnivore unthinkable and impossible
Lifespan 15-20 years for any other species on
Adult weight Up to 40kg / Earth. This flightless bird,
88lbs
Conservation Status which is native to the coldest,
driest and windiest continent
Antarctica
on Earth, Antarctica, braves
NEAR THREATENED an environment where, with
wind chill taken into account,
the temperature can plummet to insane levels of cold.
Don’t think that such cold conditions are experienced
only rarely by the emperor, as the average temperature in
Antarctica is consistently around -30 degrees Celcius (-22
degrees Fahrenheit), while the coldest temperature ever
recorded in the emperor’s natural habitat stands at -89.2
degrees Celcius (-128.6 degrees Fahrenheit).
What makes this feat even more astounding, however, is
that emperor penguins spend the entirety of the long winter Emperor penguin range
months in Antarctica on the open ice, completely exposed
to the elements. The female of the species breeds directly BELOW RIGHT A
penguin chick has
into this cauldron of cold, before leaving the tiny vulnerable the extreme environment relatively unscathed, but to survive harsh
young to be sheltered by the male partner. They will then incredibly hungry. conditions in order to
proceed on a hunting trip that lasts two months and can Emperor penguins possess many amazing features survive into maturity
see them travelling over 80 kilometres (50 miles) away and abilities, many of which we’ll explore here.
from their partners and young. The female will only return However, this ability to withstand the worst, most BELOW LEFT An
once her belly is stocked to the gullet full of fish, squid and brutal climate and environment the Earth can muster example of a penguin
huddle, where the
other marine creatures. If she’s lucky the male emperor will for months on end, without food and with newborn birds gather together
not have starved to death and the chick will have survived young to protect, is the most jaw-dropping of them all. to stay warm

Blizzard
Emperor penguins live in
Antarctica and, as such, have
to endure temperatures of -60°
C (-76°F) and frequent bone-
freezing blizzards.

Huddle
To survive and breed in
such harsh conditions,
emperor penguins huddle
together in groups, with
those directly in the wind
blast continuously rotated.

172
 Penguins

26. The word

penguin was
first used in the
16th century
The word penguin was originally
created as a synonym for the extinct
great auk in the 16th century. It is
believed the word stems from the
Latin ‘pinguis’, meaning ‘fat’.
27. The gentoo
has a bright-
orange bill
Gentoo penguins are easily
identifiable due to their bright-
orange bill, which no other
species has. They also have the
biggest tail of all penguins
30. A nest
area is called
a rookery
As social birds, penguins mate together en
masse in large breeding grounds referred
to as a rookeries. It’s here that penguins
construct their nests and incubate their
young, with each nest being a specified
distance from its neighbour.
Rookeries frequently contain thousands
of birds all tightly packed in one place and,
as such, each penguin develops its very own
Safety in numbers
unique call that it can use to find its partner Penguins nest in close
or chick, even amid the throng. By nesting proximity in order to
together in a rookery rather than on their protect one another
own in isolation, penguins also help defend from potential threats
one another against predators.

28. They enter 31. Each species has LEFT

32. There are 16
the water in a distinctive call
Penguins
rely on their
species of penguin,
groups Penguin calls may sound the same
calls to warn
of danger
15 of which are now
Penguins tend to jump into but each one is identifiable, with a single as well as
the ocean in large groups. penguin amid thousands of others capable
identify nests
endangered
Researchers believe that this of recognising its mate. As penguins are Sadly, over two-thirds of all penguin species are
habit is an evolved behaviour to nearly identical, these vocalisations play a currently rated as Near Threatened, Vulnerable
aid survivability and increase crucial part in their lives. or Endangered by the International Union for
safety from predators. There are three main types of penguin call: Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Climate change
the contact, display and threat calls. The first and human fishing activities have been highlighted
29. Megadyptes assists a penguin in recognising other colony
members and it’s typically very loud, with the
as the main factors that are driving them towards
complete extinction.
antipodes has contact calls of the larger penguin species, A recent study by the World Wide Fund for Nature
yellow eyes such as the emperor and the king, travelling
over a kilometre (0.6 miles). The display call
predicted that, thanks to the aforementioned
threats, emperor and adelie penguins will
Megadyptes antipodes (yellow-
is used between penguin partners and differs experience a steady decline in population size by
eyed penguin) is easily identifiable
to the simpler and loud contact call in that it’s 50 and 75 per cent respectively over the next 40
purely by the colouration of its
far more complex, conveying information on years, making present conservation efforts all the
eyes, which stand out as a bright
territorial placement, sexuality and individual more vital.
greenish-yellow. This species is
recognition. The threat call is the simplest
found only in New Zealand.
penguin vocalisation of the three and is used Macaroni
to warn other colony members of predators. Emperor Gentoo
Eudyptes
Aptenodytes Pygoscelis
chrysolophus
forsteri papua
LEFT Penguin colonies can
include many hundreds of
thousands of individuals, all
in one place Chinstrap Little Penguin
Pygoscelis antarctica Eudyptula minor
King
Aptenodytes
Humboldt patagonicus
Spheniscus
African humboldti
Spheniscus Adelie
demersus Pygoscelis adeliae
Yellow-eyed
Megadyptes
Fiordland antipodes
Galapagos
Eudyptes Spheniscus
pachyrhynchus mendiculus Snares
Eudyptes robustus

Rockhopper Magellanic
Erect-crested
Eudyptes chrysocome Spheniscus
magellanicus Eudyptes sclateri

173
 Birds & insects

33. The yellow-eyed 34. The

penguin is the rarest
So endangered that a dedicated
conservation organisation has been set
up for it, the yellow-eyed penguin is
the Earth’s rarest species of penguin,
with around 5,000 individuals extant
and 2,000 breeding pairs left in their
native habitat. Despite being unique to
New Zealand, human development and
interference has left the yellow-eyed
now most numerous on the country’s
southern-most islands.
Yellow-eyed penguins hunt for food
primarily over New Zealand’s nearby
continental shelf, which lies roughly
1.6 kilometres (one mile) offshore and
extends out to 25 kilometres (16 miles).
Like all penguin species, their diet
largely consists of fish, which the
yellow-eyed harvest by diving down to
120 metres (394 feet) into the ocean
waters. They are also among the
longest living penguin species, capable
of hitting 20 years in age. Males tend
to live longer than females, leaving the
species with a male-to-female ratio of
2:1 after about ten years of age.
Older and wiser
The yellow-eyed penguin
is also one of the longest
living penguin species,
frequently surpassing 20
years in age.
Until then the chicks have thinner
emperor
stands over
a metre high
The largest penguin species is
the emperor penguin, which
averages 1.15 metres (3.8 feet)
in height, but can oen surpass
a whopping 1.3 metres (4.3 feet),
with these giants towering over
lesser species with ease.
35. They
mainly walk
at two miles
per hour
Almost all penguins waddle at
around 3.2 kilometres per hour
(two miles per hour) on land.
However, this rule is broken by
the king penguin, which has a
different gait and can walk at up
to 5.6 kilometres per hour (3.5
miles per hour).
36. Only the
adelie and
emperor
actually live in
Antarctica
While penguins are oen
thought to inhabit Antarctica
exclusively, only two types live
on the continent proper, with
the emperor and adelie species
braving its extreme climate.
37. Chicks are
not waterproof
Adult penguin plumage isn’t
acquired until a year aer birth.
and less waterproof plumage.
38. A wild
penguin lives
up to 20 years
In the wild penguins live to
between 15 and 20 years,
however in captivity that number
is closer to 30 years. The official
record for the oldest captive
penguin is 29 years, four months.
39. All the sub-
species lay
eggs on land
Despite all penguin species
preferring a water habitat, they
always return each year during
breeding season to lay their eggs
on land, which take between 32
and 68 days to hatch.
40. A group of
young chicks is
called a creche
Penguin young sometimes group
together in what is referred to as
a creche. A group of fully grown
penguins, however, is referred to
as a ra.
41. The
chinstrap
is the most
aggressive
Chinstrap penguins not only fight
fiercely with one another during
the breeding season, but also
engage in thieving behaviour,
oen stealing choice pebbles
from rival nests, to supplement
their own homes.

42. They cover

New Zealand
YELLOW-EYED PENGUIN
Megadyptes antipodes
Class Aves
Yellow-eyed
penguin range
Territory New Zealand
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan 10-20 years
“They are also among Adult weight 5-8kg / 11-18lbs
Conservation Status
the longest living
penguin species” ENDANGERED
their feathers with
a protective oil
All penguins have evolved a feature that helps
them care for and maintain their feathers.
Each penguin comes packing a uropygial
gland, a special oil-producing gland near the
animal’s tail feathers that it can harvest with
its beak and then spread over its body. LEFT In order
This oil acts as an extra barrier for to stay smooth
the penguin, protecting its feathers in the water,
a penguin can
from damage and ensuring its plumage
produce an oil
remains dry. The activity of harvesting the to spread over
its body
gland and covering the feathers is referred to as
preening, with penguins spending parts of each
day working on their feathers. If a penguin works
on another’s coat it’s referred to as allopreening.

174
 Penguins
45. They swim
at six miles
per hour
On average penguins swim at six
miles (9.7 kilometres) per hour,
however when hunting or being
chased by predators this spikes
massively, with certain species
frequently hitting over 20 miles
(32 kilometres) per hour.

KING PENGUIN
Aptenodytes patagonicus
Class Aves
Territory Subantarctic islands
Diet Carnivore
Speed demon Lifespan 15-20 years
Adult weight 11-16kg / 24-35lbs
Most penguins waddle
when on land, but the king
Conservation Status
penguin walks, enabling it
to travel at up to 3.5 miles
per hour. LEAST CONCERN
46. Humans
ate penguins
During the early explorations of
the Antarctic, human explorers
ate penguins as a food source.
They reportedly had very fatty
and oily meat, but today penguin
consumption is forbidden.
47. They don’t
fear humans
Due to their general remoteness
from human populations and
their activities, penguins seem to
be completely unafraid of them,

43. The king is a fast walker oen being greatly intrigued.

The king penguin is notable for being the second with St. Andrew’s Bay on South Georgia frequently
48. Penguins
largest of all penguin species, measuring up to a witnessing more than 100,000 birds at any one are preyed
metre in height. It’s also capable of diving down
to 300 metres (984 feet) in ocean waters and
time. On a breeding note, the king penguin is
also interesting as it’s one of the earliest capable
upon by killer
remaining there hunting and foraging for a rather of reproducing, with individuals able to start the whales
lengthy five minutes. Also, rather than waddling on process from the age of three onwards, but most Penguins are oen preyed
land like all other penguin species, king penguins waiting a further three years before mating. upon by a variety of creatures
can walk and run properly due to adaptations in The king also has one of the longest breeding including leopard seals, sea lions
their leg anatomy, with speeds up to 5.6 kilometres cycles, with up to 16 months necessary to raise a and killer whales. They are also a
(3.5 miles) per hour recorded. chick from egg-laying through to fledging status. target for large birds, ferrets and
King penguins are also known for congregating Female kings always lay a single egg that weighs even lizards.
in some of the Earth’s largest penguin colonies, approximately 300 grams (10.6 ounces).
49. The
emperor is the
Bubbly wake
Penguins create this
fifth heaviest
stream of bubbles that
reduces water density
bird on Earth
around their plumage. Not only is the emperor penguin
the heaviest penguin in the
world, but it’s also the fih
heaviest bird of any species on
Earth, weighing in at a rather
beefy 45 kilograms (100 pounds).

50. They
44. Penguins create a spend 75%
bubble boost when swimming of their lives
© Ardea; Thinkstock; FLPA; Getty; Naturepl.com

Penguins can swim at great speeds thanks to an ability to generate

a stream of bubbles in their wake. These come from the penguin
underwater
Rather than primarily being a
fluffing its tightly packed feathers, an action that creates a series
land-dwelling flightless bird,
of micro bubbles to reduce the density of the water immediately
penguins actually spend 75 per
surrounding the bird’s plumage.
cent of their lives underwater,
Whenever a penguin travels at high speed, a visible stream of
only really coming onto land for
bubbles can be seen surrounding their bodies and trailing off. This
long periods to breed.
technique is oen used when exiting the ocean.

175
 ff l
l o ia
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