THE
BLACK
RHINOCEROS
~An endangered species~
By Prepared for:
4th Hour Language Arts
January 2, 2001
The black rhinoceros or rhinos are a very unique animal of Africa. They are important for the balance of nature. They are a large stocky animal. Their size is 5 to 6 feet tall at the shoulder and 10 to 12 feet long. Their weight can range in from 1,000 to 3,000 pounds. Rhinos are naturally gray in color but will often take on the color of the local soil. The horn of a rhino is not a true horn. It is not attached to the skull. It grows from the skin and is made up of keratin fibers, the same materials found in hair and finger nails. Black rhinos have a prehensile lip that is used much like a finger to select and pick the leaves and twigs they prefer to eat. Their habitat is in the bushy plains, rugged hills, and scrublands in isolated areas of Central and South Africa. Rhinos are heavy browsers that hinder woody plants from dominating their habitat. This is important because it allows grasses to grow, which provide food for many other animals on the grassy plains. Black rhinos travel alone except while breeding or raising offspring. Juveniles remain with the mother until they are completely weaned, just before a new a baby is born.
Young rhinos are occasionally prey for many items for large carnivores such as lions and hyenas. People of some cultures believe that rhino horns contain medicinal properties. This is most likely not true but is one of the primary reasons rhinos are poached.
Flying Tigers is the name of a mercenary group of American pilots that helped defend China and the Burma Road from the bombing of the Japanese during World War II. The name of their planes was Tomahawks, but the Chinese called them Fei Hu for the sharks teeth painted on their planes. Flying Tigers were known as the American Volunteer Group of the Chinese Air Force. The Flying Tigers did not see combat until December 1941 when the Japanese started bombing China.
Male red-tailed black-cockatoos are black with areas of red on the underside of their tails except on the two central feathers. They have an upright, backward-sloping crest and dark grey bills and feet. Females are brownish black with areas of yellow on their head, shoulders, and the underside of their tales. Their bills are cream colored, and their feet are dark grey. The actual size of the cockatoo ranges from 50-65 cm and 570-870 g (Del Hoyo et al., 1997). Calls of the cockatoo are loud, harsh, and can be heard from a distance (Higgins, 1997).
The family of Elephantidae shows a high rate of evolution, early stages of which were confined to Africa, while later stages occurred in Eurasia (Kalmykov & Mashchenko, 2006). Numerous studies have been conducted to understand the phylogeny of Elephantidae, and many of the researches have concluded different answers. Maglio, Beden, and Todd each concluded their research with phylogenetic trees that contrasted with each other.
White tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are one of the most common species of mammals seen in North America, the most common of large animals actually. The last official count of deer in the USA and Canada was done in 1982, at which time 15000000 were found at an average of 3 deer in every square kilometer. The deer are very much native and were hunted even by Native Americans.
While the claws and teeth of the animal are used in traditional Asian medicine. Tiger parts are regarded highly in Asian medicine; however, there is no medical value to any part of a tiger. Rhinos are highly endangered due to poaching. A type of rhinos, called Javan rhinos, is known as the closest mammal to extinction with less than 100 of these beasts still roaming Africa. Rhinos are killed mainly for their horns while the rest of their bodies are left to rot in the wilds. A worst fate for these animals is living with a gaping wound on its face where their horns use to be. Poachers make good money by selling rhino horns to the black market. Rhino horns are believed to be a key ingredient in many Asian medicines and also believed to be a cure for cancer in some countries. This belief is false and in truth rhino horns have the same medical value as biting one’s toenails. Poachers hunt African elephants exclusively for their tusks that are made out of ivory. Elephant tusks are used as trophies or turn into other materials Poachers wipe out and separate elephant herds with machine guns and cruel traps. Poachers tend to hunt the elephants with the largest tusks. Which is usually the leader of the herd and if killed leaves
In this passage, Ionesco creates a parallel conversation between Berenger and his friend Jean, and the Logician and an Old Gentleman in a bar in which the first two are discussing Berenger’s life and the latter are discussion a syllogism. This passage serves to exemplify how logic can be twisted, absurd and inexplicable beyond human rationality. With this passage, Ionesco goes far beyond the literary realm and into the world, commenting on the brutalities of fascism that can take hold of human emotions through simple misconstrued “logic”. He does this by creating a parallel conversation between two separate parties discussing two separate topics. Both, however, use circular reasoning and get nowhere: Ionesco exploits this to prove the absurdity of logic. He also has both characters use logic against itself in their arguments, showing its’ fragile and inconsistent nature. By the end of the passage, Ionesco proves the irrationality of logic with regard to human emotion and its ability to be completely abused and misunderstood by others.
The common name is the African Elephant, the scientific name is Loxodonta Africana, the phylum is Vertebrata, the class is Mammalia, the order is Proboscidea, and the family is Elephantidae. The Closest Relatives to the African Elephant are: the Asian Elephant, mammoths, primitive proboscidean (mastodons), sea cows, and hyraxes. Scientists believe that the African Elephant evolved from one of its closest relatives, the Sea Cow. The geographical location and range of the African elephant covers all of central and southern Africa. In Ethiopia there are isolated populations that exist around Lake Chad in Mali and Mauritania. Also in Kenya, Rhodesia, Tanzania, Zambia, Uganda, Zaire, and in National parks located in South Africa, as well as several other countries. African Elephants, originally, were found in all of the Sub-Saharan African habitats except desert steppes. Elephants still occupy diverse habitats such as: temperate grassland, tropical savanna and grass lands, temperate forest and rainforest, tropical rainforest, tropical scrub forest, and tropical deciduous forest despite their drastic decline in numbers. However, their migratory patterns and habitat use have changed, due to the fact that they are restricted to protected areas. The elephant can exist in many types of environments but it prefers places that have many trees and bushes, which the elephant needs both for food and shade. They also like warm areas that have plenty of rainfall.
The American Black Bear is the smallest, yet most common species of Bear in North America. People have a propensity to think that Bears are very dangerous, especially to humans. In reality, Bears are harmless creatures, and have a very friendly demeanor.
At present time Elephants have small ears to help them radiate the African heat. Elephants are in much need of water, they enjoy showering themselves by sucking water with their trunks and spraying it all over themselves because sometimes the heat can become really overwhelming, then they roll around dust to create a protective coat on their skin. Elephants today also use their trunks to eat their food. Another use their trunk for plucking leaves, but sometimes when they have to tear branches they hurt their trunk creating damage to the foliage. African Elephants eat around four hundred fifty kilograms (450) of vegetation per day. Their diet is grasses, fruit, and bark. The male African Elephant weighs around four thousand seven hundred kg to six thousand kilograms (4,700- 6,000). The female elephant weighs around two thousand a hundred sixty kg to three thousand two hundred thirty kg (2, 060- 3,030). Their scientific classification is Animalia, Chordata, Mammalia, Proboscidea, Elephantidae. The African elephant is one the largest mammals around this time, and it is an endangered species thanks to us humans for hunting
... allowing the hidden character of the Narrator, and the truth of the situation to be revealed. The black cat may have been the agent that was instrumental in his downfall, but it is the man himself who is wholly responsible and Poe leaves little doubt of that. The black cat, hideous, hidden behind the wall, cemented in by the Narrator himself, is a striking symbol of the decay and corruption of the man's soul. His guilt, self-hatred, and need for punishment are all exposed when he bangs on the wall, prompting the black cat to howl, and revealing to the stunned policemen the secret hidden behind the wall.
Otherwise known as saiga tatarica originally lived in the Eurasian steppe. They also lived in North America. Today they are only found in Russia and Kazakhstan. Normally their height is 0.6 - 0.8 meters at the shoulder and weighs 36 - 63 kilograms (79- 139 Pounds). Their lifespan is 6 to 10 years. They are in Phylum: Chordata, Class: Mammalia, Family: Bovidae. They form large herds in grasslands, steppes, and semidesserts.
The hornbill has a casque on top of its head, giving it its name. The casque is made of the same material of the bill itself. It is a black bird with a white stomach. The bottom of the wings are white as well. It has white around its eyes. The bird is typically 55-60 cm long. The male is 680-907 g in weight. Those are just a few of the characteristics of the hornbill.
Sikes, Roberts. and William L. Gannon. "Guidelines of the American Society of Mammalogists for the Use of Wild Mammals in Research." Journal of Mammalogy 92.1 (Feb. 2011): 235-253. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 5 Oct. 2011.
Recently over the years elephant populations have drastically declined. This is due to human encroachment on their habit and poaching. Demand for ivory has increased the number of poaching kills in Africa. In 1988 congress passed the elephant African Elephant Conservation Act which placed a ban against illegal ivory imports and authorizes government funding for elephant field conservation projects. Although some African countries have initiated African elephant conservation programs, many do not have the sufficient resources to properly manage, conserve and protect their elephant’s populations. Unfortunately, we are possibly undergoing “the greatest percentage loss of elephants in history” (Ruggiero). Without the proper conservation of elephant survival we will see a drastic shift in the environment.
The West african black rhinoceros are an example of endangerment and extinction. These animals were declared extinct in 2011. This has happened because of poaching and major demand for rhino horns. The Pyrenean ibex is another example. This wild goat became extinct in 2000. This population was thinned by hunting. In 2009, scientists were able to clone a female using DNA they had earlier gathered from its skin, but due to lung defects, the pyrenean ibex died shortly after