miércoles, 23 de mayo de 2007


SCIENTIFIC NAME: Manis Temminchii
COMMON NAME: Pangolin.
DIET: They don't have teeth so they open anthills with their claws and they capture ants with their tongue that meassures 30cm.
HABITAT: They live in Asia (chinese pangolin) and Africa (giant pangolin).
ENEMIES AND PHYSIC: Their enemies are all the predators that live in the african savannah and in the woods of China. They can protect itself because they can coil itself and then they are hard because they have big scales. They can cause serious damages in their enemies with their claws. They also give off a toxic smell.
ENDANGERED: They are endangered because the natives capture them and they eat their meat and they do handmade objects. There is only one specie that is save the Giant Pangolin.


Digging for ants and termites with their strong claws and large tongue, the pangolins have little to fear, except humans. They can curl up into a ball and their razor sharp provide extra defense. Another defense mechanism is their ability to spray acid like a skunk when threatened. They can be found in parts of Africa and Asia. Once placed with the Xenarthra, the edentates, because of their ability to curl, like the armadillo and the use of their tongue, like the anteater, but now the seven species of pangolin have an order of their own, the Pholidota.

Information from wikipedia.

martes, 8 de mayo de 2007

A giant pangolin from Africa

This photo is from google.

lunes, 7 de mayo de 2007

Pangolin in action

The video is from Youtube. In this page you can find more videos.

Chinese Pangolin

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Pholidota
Family: Manidae
Genus: Manis
Species: Manis pentadactyla

Chinese pangolins have a head and body length of 50–80 cm, a tail length of 26–40 cm, and a weight of 2–9 kg. They have about 18 rows of overlapping scales. The yellow-brown scales are bony, up to 5 cm across, and encompass all of the body (including the tail) except for its snout, cheeks, throat, inner limbs, and belly. They have hairs at the base of the body scales. Their limbs are slender with comparatively long and sharp claws, an important help when they climb. Chinese pangolins have a small, pointed head, a very round body, and a narrow mouth. The nose is fleshy and has nostrils at the end, and the thin tongue, that meassures 40 cm, scoops up ants and termites. Their small, external ears are better developed than are those of the other pangolins. The strongly prehensile tail and long claws make this pangolin very agile in trees and a powerful burrower.

They inhabit subtropical and deciduous forests and grasslands. Burrows are often built adjacent to termite nests and extend further below the surface during the cold winter months. During the summer months they sometimes occupy burrows for just a few days. It is unclear whether the winter burrow is maintained during warmer months. Although predominantly a terrestrial species, it has been observed in the jungle canopy up to 6m above the ground.

Chinese pangolins are extremely shy, and are very agile tree climbers. They are classified as arboreal and often hang by the tip of their tail. Chinese pangolins generally are not aggressive, but males can fight over mating rights. They dig tunnels up to 3m long (sometimes in as little as 3–5 minutes) that terminates in a den. The den is closed off while they are inside. They swim rapidly with undulating movements. When rolled into a ball, no soft areas are exposed.

They feed primarily on the ground, mostly digging for termites and ants with its strongly clawed feet. Their range corresponds to those of its preferred subterranean termite species Coptotermes formosanus and Cyclotermes formosanus. They forage through a surrounding area that is about 50–100m in circumference, and then move onto another area when food becomes scarce.

Males fight violently over females. Mating occurs during a 3–5 day period in late summer or early autumn. Young are born in a winter burrow, and emerge with the mother in the spring. The gestation period is unknown, but in Nepal, Chinese pangolins were found to reproduce during April and May. Females give birth to 1–2 young at a time. Birth weight and head-and-body length are generally unknown but have been reported to be about 0.5 kg and about 45 cm respectively. Scales in young animals are purplish brown. When a baby Chinese pangolin nurses, the mother lies on her back or side. While resting, she holds the baby pressed to her abdomen. Young are able to walk at birth, but are carried on the mother's tail or back. When the mother is feeding, the offspring is left alone. Weaning, sexual maturity, and life span are unknown. Males have been observed to exhibit good parental instincts and share a burrow with the female and young.

Their main enemies are humans, large cats (especially leopards, lions, and tigers), hyenas, and pythons. They live in many protected forests throughout their range. Land development often threatens unprotected habitats.

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jueves, 3 de mayo de 2007

The giant pangolin

Giant pangolins have a head and body length of 75–90 cm, a tail length of 50–80 cm, and a weight of 25–35 kg. The female is smaller than the male. They are terrestrial animals with broad sole cushions and blunt claws on the hind feet, and with fore feet containing large digging claws. It is the largest of the order Pholidota. They have large grayish brown scales, with whitisth skin and sparse hairs. The tongue measures the longest of the seven species, at about 40–70 cm, and can be pushed out 36–40 cm. The salivary glands, which supply the tongue with tacky saliva to which ants and termites adhere, are the size of goose eggs. They do not have external ears, have scales on the tail (but do not have scales beneath the tail), and have a breastbone that is very long.

They live along the equator in Africa, from Senegal to Uganda and Angola. Giant pangolins prefer tropical rainforests, but will also inhabit forests and savannas. They do not occupy high altitudes. They usually live near water. Burrows may be up to 5 m deep and 40 m long.They are nocturnal animals, being active mainly between midnight and dawn when searching for food. They may eat up to 200,000 ants in a night, with a stomach capacity of 2l. A ready access to drinking water is a necessity. Giant pangolins generally are observed singly, but pairs can be found with young. Terrestrial burrows are dug in which to sleep inside during the day. They often dig around large termite nests, both above and below the ground, using powerful fore-claws. The species uses slow and deliberate movements. When walking on all four legs, they curl in their front paws to protect the sharp front claws, actually walking on the outside of the wrists rather than on the palms. They can walk only on the hind limbs, with the help of their long tail for balance. Giant pangolins often hide inside or under stilt or platform roots of large trees.
If threatened, giant pangolins will often roll themselves into a ball, a technique that protects themselves against most enemies. If necessary, they will lash out against enemies with their sharp-scaled tail and spray urine and anal gland secretions. If near water, they will plunge into the water, rather than roll up, where they can stay underwater for considerable time, either swimming below the surface or walking along the bottom. At times a giant pangolin may rise on its hind legs and even attempt to defend itself by waving its immense fore-claws at its adversary. Unfortunately, with poor eyesight and hearing, they usually have problems identifying where their possible attackers are located.

The gestation period is about five months. Females give birth to one young at a time. Young are usually born in an underground nest. Weight at birth is 400–500 g. Newborns have soft scales, which will harden in several days. Newborns cannot walk on their legs, but are active and can crawl around on their stomachs. They will accompany their mother on feeding trips, often sitting on the base of her tail. Weaning, sexual maturity, and life span are unknown.

This map shows where the pangolin lives.

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lunes, 30 de abril de 2007

A coil pangolin

miércoles, 24 de enero de 2007


Order Pholidota
Family Epoicotheriidae (extinta)
Family Metacheiromyidae (extinta)
Family Manidae
Subfamily Eurotamanduidae (extinta)
Kind Eurotamandua
Subfamily Maninae
Kind Eomanis (extinto)
Kind Necromanis (extinto)
Kind Patriomanis (extinto)
Kind Manis
Subkind Manis crassicaudata ,Manis pentadactyla
Subkind Paramanis ,Manis javanica ,Manis culionensis
Subkind Smutsia ,Manis gigantea ,Manis temmincki
SubkindPhataginus ,Manis tricuspis
Subkind Uromanis ,Manis tetradactyla