1-2-DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO – OKAPI-The okapi, the giraffe’s closest living relative, is like a shorter, stripier version of its cousin. Both evolved from the prehistoric paleotragus, or “ancient antelope” — though neither is a true antelope in any modern sense. After several thousand millenia keeping the ancient line alive, okapis have dwindled to the lower hundreds in recent years, due to poaching and armed conflict in the DRC. The okapi’s notorious skittishness has earned it comparison to the mythical unicorn, and rightfully so: The entire species managed to go unphotographed in the wild until 2008. The secretive creatures don’t even poop for the first 1-2 months of their lives, supposedly to avoid detection during the nesting phase. Hey, that’s kind of like the unicorn, which only poops rainbows.* 3- PAKISTAN – MARKHOR Able to grow up to 240 lbs, this bad boy is the largest wild goat in the world -- as if that wasn’t obvious from the two iron-mining augers attached to his head. Its name resembles the Persian words “maar” (snake) and “khor” (eater), having earned it the misleading nickname, “snake-eating goat.” In truth, the markhor will eat a variety of things, mostly vegetable, and it is able to adapt quickly to ecological changes. Even so, its no match for humans, who have hunted the markhor down to triple-digits. Hunting has been regulated in recent decades, but the almighty U.S. dollar can earn you a markhor head for your wall. Tens of thousands of U.S. dollars, actually, for a single snake eater. 4. PANAMA – HARPY EAGLE The terrifyingly named Harpy Eagle has a wingspan of up to seven feet and talons that can grow as big as grizzly bear paws. It also has among the thickest tarsi relative to its body size, with relatively shorter wings for maneuvering around in the jungle, aaaand it can swoop at up to 50 mph. Basically, it could kick the red-white-and-blue out of a bald eagle, any day -- this thing literally eats sloths and monkeys for breakfast. Each nesting pair of harpy eagles requires about seven square miles of rainforest in which to hunt, so theyre not exactly getting enough breakfast these days.
Posted on: Mon, 22 Sep 2014 17:28:39 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015