Cochy-bundhu Camera trap photos

MAMMALS AROUND COCHY-BUNDHU

Together with birds and reptiles, mammals form the clade Amniota, which are separated from the rest of the Tetrapods (four-legged animals) by the fact that they lay their eggs out of the water. Now you would say that Mammals do not lay eggs. In fact, mammals are split into 3 groups, and the split comes from differences in the way their fetus' are nourished. The most primitive mammals, the Prototheria, are egg-laying mammals with only 5 extant species (Platypuses and Echidnas) who are restricted to Australia, New Guinea and Tasmania. The fetus is nourished by the egg-yolk. The second group are the Metatheria, the marsupials whose fetus is expelled from the womb early and is then fed milk in a pouch while it develops further. They are restricted to Australasia and the Americas. The final and largest group are the Eutheria, whose fetus develops fully within the mother via a placenta.
These  3 groups form the class Mammalia, warm-blooded animals with their bodies covered in hair (at some stage in their development) who feed their young with milk. 

There are 19 orders of mammals spread throughout the world in all habitats. Of these 19 orders, 15 occur in Southern Africa and its surrounding coastal waters and 13 of these orders should occur on the estate. I have photographic proof of 49 species of mammal on the estate, representing 10 of those orders.

The Jooste family from Cochy-bundhu recently sent me a bunch of photos from a camera trap that they erected beside the little grass road that leads to the parking on the north of K32. These photos, all taken from the exact same location, give an illustration of the diversity of mammals that our riparian bush (thick bush beside the rivers) supports. Let's see how many species, representing how many of these orders have been caught on this camera over a period of time. Since the camera uses infrared technology to capture photos in poor light, these photos will appear in black and white.

A troop of Chacma Baboon, Papio ursinus, from the Primate order. Other primate representatives to be found on the estate include Samango and Vervet monkeys, at least one of the two Bushbaby species and, of course, us humans.

A large Bushbuck ram, Tragelaphus sylvaticus, with an impressive pair of horns. This species, in the Bovidae family, represents the Artiodactyla order which are the even-toed ungulates, cloven animals that distribute their body weight evenly on at least 2 of their 5 toes, but usually digits 3 and 4. The order includes camels, giraffes, pigs, antelopes, hippos and whales. Interestingly, whales used to be lumped in to their very own order but genetic studies have revealed that it's closest living relative is the Hippopotamus, which is an artiodactyl!

A Bushpig, Potamachoerus larvatus, is also a representative of the artiodactyls. The artiodactyls are further separated into 3 groups by their different digestive systems: the Tylopods which are the camels and their relatives. They have a three-chambered stomach system that helps to break down the almost indigestible cellulose that makes up the cell wall of the plant cell; the Ruminants which are antelopes, deer, cattle, goats and giraffes and have four-chambered stomachs and; the Suids which are the pigs, like this one who have enlarged caecum's that ferment the vegetable matter which helps to break down the cellulose. 

A pair of Cape Clawless Otters, Aonyx capensis, which belong to the Carnivora order. The presence of the carnassial sheer (modified fourth upper premolar and first bottom molar teeth with sharp, cutting edges) will include an animal in this order. When you see your dog or cat cutting flesh with the side of their mouths, using their teeth like a pair of scissors, is when they are using the carnassial sheer. The carnivora order is divided into two superfamilies, the Feloidea which are your cat-like carnivores and the Canoidea which are your dog-like carnivores. The difference between the two superfamilies are the bone structure in the middle ear - that's it! Anyway, the Cat-like carnivores include the families of the Palm Civets, Cats, Lingsons, Civets and Genets, mongooses, Hyaenas and a family of 10 Madagascan species. The Dog-like carnivores are represented by the families of Dogs, Bears, Pandas, Skunks, Racoons, Walruses, 2 families of Seals and the Mustelidae, Badgers and OTTERS. 

A female Civet, Civetta civetta, from the Viverridae family of Carnivores. Of the 16 carnivore families worldwide, half occur in Southern Africa and its surrounding coastal waters, and of those 8, 6 are represented here on the estate.

A Common Duiker, Sylvicapra grimmia, is another artiodactyl from the Bovidae family. Besides the Pigs, Whales and Hippos and Camels (although not true ruminants, they also have a complex multi-chambered gut system), the artiodactyls are all ruminants. They are represented by 5 families of antelope-like animals and those families are separated by their horn structure. One of these families, the Musk Deer, Moschidae, do not have horns but fangs instead! After the Moschidae, come the Giraffidae, represented by the Giraffe and Okapi. The bony projections from the front of their skulls are covered in skin and never stop growing. Next comes the Pronghorns, Antilocapridae from North America, that have laterally flattened, branched bone blades that grow from the front of the skull and are covered in skin that turns into a keratinous sheath. The living bone continually grows and the sheath is shed each year. Then come the Cervidae, the Deer from the northern climes. They have a pair of bony projections growing from the front of the skull that is covered in skin. The bone dies and so the horns (skin and bone)are shed each year. And finally comes the Bovidae, represented by the above Common Duiker and all the other antelope-type animals. They have bony protrusions growing out the front of their skulls that grow continually and are covered by a continually growing sheath of keratin.  

A Eland cow, Taurotragus oryx, also from the Bovidae and so representing the artiodactyls. The Eland is the largest African Bovid, yes larger than a Cape Buffalo, and can weigh over 900kg. The heaviest Bovid is the Water Buffalo from Asia that can reach 1200kg. The largest (but not heaviest) Bovid is the Gaur, also from India, that can reach 220cm at the shoulder. That is huge. I mean, we all know how big an Eland can get but still, a large bull will only reach 160cm at the shoulder.

A honey Badger, Mellivora capensis, from the same family as the Clawless Otters, the Mustelidae, representing the Carnivora order of mammals. Even though members of this family differ considerably in size, they all have strong, elongated bodies with short legs, small round ears and thick fur, All are rather aggressive for their sizes, too, with the Honey Badger's well-known attitude in Africa and the Wolverine's equally famous attitude in North America.

The lack of horns on this Klipspringer, Oreotragus oreotragus, identifies it as an ewe, also from the Bovidae. In about half of the bovids, both sexes have horns, and in the other half, only the males have horns. It is believed that horns evolved first on males as weapons for fighting and wrestling amongst other males of the same species. So generally the rule goes as such:  In bovids whose habitat preference is thicker bush, the horns only develop on the males. This is required for fighting conspecific males but is actually an impediment for the males as the horns get caught up in the thickets which would slow the females down when fleeing through thick bush if they also had horns. The presence of horns on females of bovids that prefer more open areas is beneficial because they cannot hide easily from predators but can defend themselves and their young with those same horns. 

A herd of female (hornless) Greater Kudu, again from the Bovidae, representing the artiodactyls on the estate. Note the short horns growing on the young male at the back. He is not yet 6 months old.

A Large-spotted Genet. This secretive carnivore is in the Viverridae family, together with the Civet shown earlier. Closely related to the mongooses, the Viverrids are the most primitive of the cat-like carnivores. They also have semi-retractable claws although those on the Genet couldn't be more different than on the Civet featured earlier. The Genets have short claws and so they do not touch the floor when the animal is standing with its claws relaxed. This means they stay sharp and help the genet in its arboreal lifestyle. The Civet, however, has long claws that touch the ground when the animal is standing with it's claws relaxed, which bluntens (is that a word?) them, like a dog's. These differences can easily be noticed in the spoor of the Civet and Genet. True cats from the Felidae have fully retractable claws, making most of them good climbers although a Cheetah has such long claws that even when its claws are fully retracted, they still touch the floor. This makes its claws blunt like the studs on running shoes, helping it when it runs at such high speeds. The dew-claw, though, doesn't touch the floor and so stays sharp, acting as a tripping hook when the cheetah gets close enough to its fleeing prey! True dogs from the Canidae and the cat-like Hyaenas from the Hyaenidae do not have retractable claws but fixed claws instead. These, once again, act like the studs on running shoes and both families' members are good runners.

A large male leopard, Panthera pardus, also a member of the Carnivora order of Mammals. Called the roaring cats in English, the Panthera genus is separated from the other genera in the Felidae (cat family) by the presence of an elastic ligament connecting the ear to the larynx. The others have a solid bone connecting the ear to the larynx. The elasticity of the ligament allows the larynx freedom of movement and this allows it to vibrate when the animal is vocal, resulting in a very deep growl. The genus comprises Lions, Leopards, Tigers, Jaguars and, more recently, the Snow Leopards.

Just over a month after the previous shot, a female leopard walked past the camera in the same direction. This is a good time to compare the difference in size between the sexes. They are pretty much in the same place in their respective photos but the male in the first photo is clearly much bigger than the female in this one.

Porcupine, Hystrix africaeaustralis, as mentioned in my February blog, is Africa's biggest rodent, at up to 30kg. Fourth biggest in the world after the South American Capybara, 60kg, and a couple of Beaver species. Now, what makes the Rodentia order different from all other mammal orders is that they have a pair of upper and lower incisors that continually grow. Yes, if they don't wear the teeth down by gnawing on stuff, their incisors will grow into their skulls and kill them. Rabbits and Hares also have continually growing incisors but they have such vastly different digestive systems to the rest of the rodents that they are in a separate, but closely related order, the Lagomorpha. These ever-growing incisors have a thick layer of enamel on the front surface but just dentine at the back, so more wear on the back as apposed to the front results in a chisel-like edge. In fact, most rodents have a gap between their cheek-teeth and their incisors so they can suck their cheeks in and block debris from entering their throats while they can shovel it out of the side of their mouths. Anyway, rodents are very successful. Almost half of all mammal species, in all 19 orders, come from just this one order: Rodentia.

Talking of successful rodents. As much as I compare the picture with images of other rodents that occur here, I, unfortunately, still think this is a Brown Rat, Rattus norvegicus. Barring humans, certainly the most successful mammal on the planet, using humans, of coarse, to achieve that accolade. Thought to originate in northern China, the specific name refers to the fact that the animals were introduced to England on Norwegian ships back in the day.

And a beautiful Serval, Leptailurus serval, enters the scene. This cat is in a genus of its own because it is quite unique. The biggest difference between it and other genera is the extreme length of the metatarsal bones, giving it the longest legs, in relation to its body size, of all cats. So far, the carnivores in front of Cochy-bundhu have included Otters and Honey Badger from the Mustelidae, Civet and Genet from the Viverridae and Leopard and Serval from the Felidae... 

A blurred but unmistakable Side-striped Jackal, Canis adustus, a typical member of the dog family, Canidae, the fourth of the six families in the Carnivora order occurring here so far. It shares the estate with two other Canids, Canis mesomelas, which is the Black-backed Jackal and Canis lupis familiaris which is the domestic dog.

Another Carnivore. A pair of Slender Mongooses, Galerella sanguinea, but this time from the Herpestidae family of carnivores. A primitive cat-like carnivore, mongooses are well represented on the estate with records of White-tailed, Water, Southern Grey and these Slender mongooses so far.

The other suid of the Artiodactyla order, a big male Warthog, Phacochoerus aethiopicus, on the estate. These are the gentlest and most herbivorous of all the suids but still pack a punch. Together with Baboons, they present the biggest danger to domestic dogs on the estate, often sending them straight to the vet for stiches.

Another mongoose species, the Water or Marsh Mongoose, Atilax paludinosus, from the Herpestidae.

And finally, very rarely seen on the estate, a Waterbuck from the Bovidae family of artiodactyls. I know that on two occasions, at least, a young bulls was seen. I have seen him twice. But I have zoomed in to this photo and I can't seem to find his horns. If it is a female, it will be the first I have heard...

So that is 20 species of mammal, representing 9 families in 4 of those orders, all to be found in this one spot on the estate. Pretty cool.

I hope you are all well and surviving this national shut down. I think we are doing well as South Africans to bring this virus under control. Thank goodness we have had good leadership during this pandemic so far. Remember to exercise and stay healthy.