WILD ANIMALS

School:OMIROS
Accept:Ms.Philippa Kontopotu
ILIA LEGO
ELENA LEG

LEON
The lion is one of the five big cats in the genus Panthera and a member of

the family Felidae. The commonly used term African lion collectively
denotes the several subspecies found in Africa. With some males exceeding
250 kg (550 lb) in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger.
Wild lions currently exist in sub-Saharan Africa and in Asia (where
an endangeredremnant population resides in Gir Forest National Park in
India) while other types of lions have disappeared from North
Africa andSouthwest Asia in historic times. Until the late Pleistocene,
about 10,000 years ago, the lion was the most widespread large land
mammal after humans. They were found in most of Africa, across Eurasia
from western Europe to India, and in the Americas from theYukon to Peru.
The lion is a vulnerable species, having seen a major population decline in
its African range of 3050% per two decades during the second half of the
20th century. Lion populations are untenable outside designated reserves
and national parks. Although the cause of the decline is not fully
understood, habitat loss and conflicts with humans are currently the
greatest causes of concern. Within Africa, the West African lion population
is particularly endangered.

CHEETAH
The cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) is a big cat in the subfamily Felinae that
inhabits most of Africa and parts of Iran. It is the only extant member of
the genus Acinonyx. The cheetah can run as fast as 109.4 to 120.7 km/h
(68.0 to 75.0 mph), faster than any other land animal. It covers distances
up to 500 m (1,640 ft) in short bursts, and can accelerate from 0 to 96 km/h
(0 to 60 mph) in three seconds.
The cheetah's closest extant relatives are the puma and jaguarundi of the
Americas. Cheetahs are notable for adaptations in the paws as they are one
of the few felids with only semi-retractable clawsTheir main hunting
strategy is to trip swift prey such as various antelope species
and hares with its dewclaw.
Almost every facet of the cheetah's anatomy has evolved to maximise its
success in the chase, the result of an evolutionary arms race with its prey.
Due to this specialisation, however, the cheetah is poorly equipped to
defend itself against other large predators, with speed being its main
means of defence.

GRAY WOLF
The gray wolf or grey wolf (Canis lupus[a]) also known as the timber wolf,[3]
[4]

or western wolf,[b] is a canid native to the wilderness and remote areas of North
America and Eurasia. It is the largest extant member of its family, with males averaging
4345 kg (9599 lb), and females 3638.5 kg (7985 lb).[6] Like the red wolf, it is
distinguished from other Canis species by its larger size and less pointed features,
particularly on the ears and muzzle.[7] Its winter fur is long and bushy, and
predominantly a mottled gray in color, although nearly pure white, red, or brown to
black also occur.

The gray wolf is the second most specialised member of the genus Canis, after
the Ethiopian wolf, as demonstrated by its morphologicaladaptations to hunting large
prey, its more gregarious nature,[9] and its highly advanced expressive behavior.[10][11] It
is nonetheless closely related enough to smaller Canis species, such as the eastern wolf,
[5]
coyote[12] and golden jackal[13][14] to produce fertile hybrids. Its closest relative is
the domestic dog, with which it shared a common European ancestor which likely
diverged 40,000 years ago.

BEAR
Bears are mammals of the family Ursidae. Bears are classified as caniforms, or doglike
carnivorans, with the pinnipeds being their closest living relatives. Although only
eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety
of habitats throughout theNorthern Hemisphere and partially in the Southern
Hemisphere. Bears are found on the continents of North America, South
America,Europe, and Asia.
Common characteristics of modern bears include large bodies with stocky legs, long
snouts, shaggy hair, plantigrade paws with five nonretractile claws, and short tails.
While the polar bear is mostly carnivorous, and the giant panda feeds almost entirely
on bamboo, the remaining six species are omnivorous with varied diets.
With the exception of courting individuals and mothers with their young, bears are
typically solitary animals. They are generally diurnal, but may be active during the
night (nocturnal) or twilight (crepuscular), particularly around humans. Bears possess
an excellent sense of smelland, despite their heavy build and awkward gait, are adept
runners, climbers, and swimmers. In autumn, some bear species forage large amounts
of fermented fruits, which affects their behaviour. Bears use shelters, such as caves and
burrows, as their dens; most species occupy their dens during the winter for a long
period (up to 100 days) of sleep similar to hibernation.

FOX
Foxes are small-to-medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to
several genera of the Canidae family. Foxes are slightly smaller than a
medium-size domestic dog, with a flattened skull, upright triangular ears, a
pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or brush).
.

Twelve species belong to the monophyletic group of Vulpes genus of "true

foxes". Approximately another 25 current or extinctspecies are always or
sometimes called foxes; these foxes are either part of
the paraphyletic group of the South American foxes, or of the outlying
group, which consists of bat-eared fox, gray fox, and island fox. Foxes are
found on every continent except Antarctica. By far the most common and
widespread species of fox is the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) with about 47
recognizedsubspecies. The global distribution of foxes, together with their
widespread reputation for cunning, has contributed to their prominence
in popular culture and folklore in many societies around the world. The
hunting of foxes with packs of hounds, long an established pursuit in
Europe, especially in the British Isles, was exported by European settlers to
various parts of the New World
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TIGER
The tiger (Panthera tigris) is the largest cat species, reaching a
total body length of up to 3.38 m (11.1 ft) over curves and
exceptionally weighing up to 388.7 kg (857 lb) in the wild. Its
most recognisable feature is a pattern of dark vertical stripes on
reddish-orange fur with a lighter underside. The species is
classified in the genus Panthera with
the lion, leopard, jaguar and snow leopard. Tigers are apex
predators, primarily preying on ungulates such
as deer and bovids. They are territorial and generally solitary but
social animals, often requiring large contiguous areas of habitat
that support their prey requirements. This, coupled with the fact
that they are indigenous to some of the more densely populated
places on Earth, has caused significant conflicts with humans.

 Tigers once ranged widely across Asia, from Turkey in the west to
the eastern coast of Russia. Over the past 100 years, they have
lost 93% of their historic range, and have been extirpated from
southwest and central Asia, from the islands of Java and Bali,
and from large areas of Southeast and Eastern Asia.

AMERICAN BISON
The American bison (Bison bison), also commonly known as the American
buffalo, is a North American species of bison that once roamed
the grasslands of North America in massive herds. They became nearly
extinct by a combination of commercial hunting and slaughter in the 19th
century and introduction of bovine diseases from domestic cattle, and have
made a recent resurgence largely restricted to a few national parks and
reserves. Their historical range roughly comprised a triangle between
the Great Bear Lake in Canada's far northwest, south to
the Mexican states of Durango and Nuevo Len, and east to the Atlantic
Seaboard of the United States(nearly to the Atlantic tidewater in some
areas) from New York to Georgia and per some sources down to Florida.
Bison were seen inNorth Carolina near Buffalo Ford on the Catawba
River as late as 1750.
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JACKAL
The jackal is a small omnivorous mammal of the genus Canis, which also
includes the wolf and dog. While the word "jackal" has historically been
used for many small canids, in modern use it most commonly refers to three
species: the closely related black-backed jackal and side-striped jackal of
sub-Saharan Africa, and the golden jackal of south-central Eurasia.

Jackals and coyotes (sometimes called the "American jackal") are

opportunistic omnivores, predators of small- to medium-sized animals and
proficient scavengers. Their long legs and curved canine teeth are adapted
for hunting small mammals, birds, and reptiles, and their large feet and
fused leg bones give them a physique well-suited for long-distance running,
capable of maintaining speeds of 16 km/h (9.9 mph) for extended periods
of time. Jackals are crepuscular, most active at dawn and dusk.

THE END!!!
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