Category Archives: Mammals

The  two-toed anteater is not as clumsy as its relative, the giant anteater. In view of its small size, about twelve inches in length, and its numerous enemies, which include poisonous snakes and man, the two-toed anteater has long since taken security precautions. It lives in the trees and comes down as little as possible, … Continue reading

Fr is hard to imagine a world without the large herds of domestic cattle found in almost every country. Men use these animals in many important ways—their milk and meat provide people with a valuable source of protein. Cattle hides are used extensively for leather goods.

Cheetahs are the fastest runners in the animal kingdom. Within two seconds after starting they can reach speeds of forty miles an hour and can even reach sixty for a few hundred yards. They cannot keep up such speeds, however, and must catch their prey soon after beginning the run.

Julius Caesar arranged to have a giraffe brought to Rome in 46 B.C. The Romans thought this strange-looking animal had a camel for a mother and a leopard for a father. Of course its parents were giraffes. Giraffes live only in Africa, south of the Sahara Desert. They are found in dry plains areas where … Continue reading

Peccaries are the native wild pigs of the Americas. They differ in several ways from the wild pigs found in the rest of the world, so scientists have classified them in their own special family. There are only two species, the collared peccary and the white-lipped peccary. Both are found in Central and South America, … Continue reading

When night falls in the tropical forests the tayras, tree weasels of South America, wake up and begin their search for food. They often hunt in family packs or in pairs. They eat almost anything they can find, from small animals to fruit. Since they are excellent climbers they also raid birds’ nests for eggs. … Continue reading

Tm gentle little wombats are sometimes called the “badgers of Australia.” However they are totally unlike the tenacious, carnivorous badgers in almost every respect. The only habit the wombats and the badgers share is that of digging burrows in the ground. The wombat uses its sharp claws to dig a long and rather large burrow … Continue reading

Tasmania is an island about the size of Ireland, one hundred and fifty miles off the southern coast of Australia. It was discovered by the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in 1642. In Tasmania there are low mountains, forests, swift rivers, and lakes. The eastern part of the island has areas of grassland. Settlers came to … Continue reading