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- #1
During my August trip to Uganda I was incredibly fortunate to come across one of these critically endangered animals foraging in an old coffee plantation. Pangolin means "Roller" in Malay, the action they take of curling up into a ball for self-defence. There are 8 species in the World , 4 in Africa and 4 in Asia--this particular animal is a White-bellied or Tree Pangolin.
Note the very powerful front paws with long claws to rip off bark and dig into termite mounds and ant-hills. Indeed, they are sometimes referred to as "scaly anteaters". This particular species is semi arboreal and frequents lowland forests where they help to prevent termite destruction, thus maintaining a balanced ecosystem.
Their scaly tail can sometimes be mistaken for a snake in the dense undergrowth, which unfortunately can lead to death by the machete wielding ladies who do most of the cultivation in Uganda and are traditionally fearful of snakes (of which there are many in the countryside with a highly venomous bite ! ).
The tail is also quite prehensile in this species, giving the animal a stable platform to balance on and thus freeing its front legs to rip off bark and access the insects hidden inside.
Although their eyesight is poor they have a great sense of smell and a long sticky tongue to pick off the smallest prey in some numbers. They can consume up to 20,000 ants a day !
Tragically, there is one Pangolin being killed every 5 minutes for their unique scales, and over the last decade well over a million have been illegally taken from the wild to feed demand from the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) market as they are believed to treat a range of ailments from asthma to rheumatism and arthritis. None of TCM using animal parts, including the Keratin scales of Pangolin have been found to be scientifically effective --- you may as well crush your own nail clippings and save yourself a stack of money and more importantly save the Pangolins too !!
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Note the very powerful front paws with long claws to rip off bark and dig into termite mounds and ant-hills. Indeed, they are sometimes referred to as "scaly anteaters". This particular species is semi arboreal and frequents lowland forests where they help to prevent termite destruction, thus maintaining a balanced ecosystem.
You can only see EXIF info for this image if you are logged in.
Their scaly tail can sometimes be mistaken for a snake in the dense undergrowth, which unfortunately can lead to death by the machete wielding ladies who do most of the cultivation in Uganda and are traditionally fearful of snakes (of which there are many in the countryside with a highly venomous bite ! ).
You can only see EXIF info for this image if you are logged in.
The tail is also quite prehensile in this species, giving the animal a stable platform to balance on and thus freeing its front legs to rip off bark and access the insects hidden inside.
You can only see EXIF info for this image if you are logged in.
Although their eyesight is poor they have a great sense of smell and a long sticky tongue to pick off the smallest prey in some numbers. They can consume up to 20,000 ants a day !
You can only see EXIF info for this image if you are logged in.
Tragically, there is one Pangolin being killed every 5 minutes for their unique scales, and over the last decade well over a million have been illegally taken from the wild to feed demand from the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) market as they are believed to treat a range of ailments from asthma to rheumatism and arthritis. None of TCM using animal parts, including the Keratin scales of Pangolin have been found to be scientifically effective --- you may as well crush your own nail clippings and save yourself a stack of money and more importantly save the Pangolins too !!
