DOCSLIB.ORG

Animal Encounters to Remember – a Photo Essay by Mohammed Jinnah

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Animal Encounters to Remember – a Photo Essay by Mohammed Jinnah Animal Encounters to Remember – A photo Essay by Mohammed Jinnah South Africans are doubly blessed as they are amidst two of the great wilderness areas of the world. Both the Kruger National Park and Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park can present the most unforgettable animal encounters. Driving through these areas is an exhilarating experience as one does not know what is round the next corner. Figure 1 - Rare Serval Sighting on H3 near Lower Sabie The thrill is in finding an animal as your encounters are not staged as in some other parks where you are taken to a sighting. Figure 2 - Unforgettable Young Leopard seen at Biyamiti Weir Kruger offers a rich diversity of wildlife, unmatched and unforgettable. A majestic male kudu in the early morning sun fills up ones senses. Figure 3 - Male kudu in early morning sun on S114 As does a black maned Kalahari lion showing his dominance Figure 4 - Lion pride at Sitzas waterhole in the Kgalagadi. Our flagship National Parks also offer rare gems such as pearl spotted owlets, the smallest owl in the world Figure 5 - Pearl spotted owlet seen on H7 And the endangered saddle-billed stork Figure 6 - Saddle billed stork seen at Jones Dam on the S36 Brightly coloured birds that leave you in awe Figure 7 - Lilac breasted roller, probably the most photographed bird in KNP And others that leave you marveling at their power such as the African Crowned Eagle. Figure 8 - African Crowned eagle near Pafuri picnic site Some are just regal in appearance and posture Figure 9 - Majestic lappet face vulture on the S142 While others let you know who rules - an encounter with a musting African Elephant will be remembered. Figure 10 - Charging elephant on S36 I will never forget seeing the king of beasts from the hide at Nossob. No safety of a car between you and his majesty, a magical moment when you make eye contact. Figure 11 - Lion seen from Nossob hide Or getting spooked by an African Wildcat while braaing at Grootkolk in the Kgalagadi park. There she sat staring at us just like a domestic cat, truly memorable Figure 12 - AWC seen at Grootkolk while braaing Then there was a wonderful brown hyena sighting at the Cheleka waterhole in the Kgalagadi. Will never forget how long she drank for after been chased around by a gemsbok. Figure 13 - Brown hyena at Cheleka waterhole. Then there are the once in a lifetime sightings like the cheetah in the tree. The cheetah had killed an impala which in turn got killed by a leopard and both cheetah and impala were hoisted up a tree where the leopard ate the impala. Figure 14 - leopard/cheetah sighting on the S28 And the mating leopards that got chased by a herd of buffalo at Kumana Dam Figure 15 - Mating leopards Figure 16 – A herd of buffaloes spoil the party The photogenic zebra always make a pretty picture Figure 17 - Zebras seen on the S126 An encounter that will never be forgotten is the majestic Sable Antelope Figure 18 - Sable at Manzimhlope waterhole on S36 A trip to Kruger or the Kgalagadi guarantees some exceptional sightings that you will remember for a long time. It is a feeling that has to be experienced. It is a high that cannot be matched and you will want to return Figure 19 - Pied Kingfisher seen from Mlhambane Bridge on the S114 Figure 20 - Fish eagle scanning at Nsemani dam .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Eagle Hill, Kenya: Changes Over 60 Years
    Scopus 34: 24–30, January 2015 Eagle Hill, Kenya: changes over 60 years Simon Thomsett Summary Eagle Hill, the study site of the late Leslie Brown, was first surveyed over 60 years ago in 1948. The demise of its eagle population was near-complete less than 50 years later, but significantly, the majority of these losses occurred in the space of a few years in the late 1970s. Unfortunately, human densities and land use changes are poor- ly known, and thus poor correlation can be made between that and eagle declines. Tolerant local attitudes and land use practices certainly played a significant role in protecting the eagles while human populations began to grow. But at a certain point it would seem that changed human attitudes and population density quickly tipped the balance against eagles. Introduction Raptors are useful in qualifying habitat and biodiversity health as they occupy high trophic levels (Sergio et al. 2005), and changes in their density reflect changes in the trophic levels that support them. In Africa, we know that raptors occur in greater diversity and abundance in protected areas such as the Matapos Hills, Zimbabwe (Macdonald & Gargett 1984; Hartley 1993, 1996, 2002 a & b), and Sabi Sand Reserve, South Africa (Simmons 1994). Although critically important, few draw a direct cor- relation between human effects on the environment and raptor diversity and density. The variables to consider are numerous and the conclusions unworkable due to dif- ferent holding-capacities, latitude, land fertility, seasonality, human attitudes, and different tolerances among raptor species to human disturbance. Although the concept of environmental effects caused by humans leading to rap- tor decline is attractive and is used to justify raptor conservation, there is a need for caution in qualifying habitat ‘health’ in association with the quantity of its raptor community.
    [Show full text]
  • A Multi-Gene Phylogeny of Aquiline Eagles (Aves: Accipitriformes) Reveals Extensive Paraphyly at the Genus Level
    Available online at www.sciencedirect.com MOLECULAR SCIENCE•NCE /W\/Q^DIRI DIRECT® PHYLOGENETICS AND EVOLUTION ELSEVIER Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 35 (2005) 147-164 www.elsevier.com/locate/ympev A multi-gene phylogeny of aquiline eagles (Aves: Accipitriformes) reveals extensive paraphyly at the genus level Andreas J. Helbig'^*, Annett Kocum'^, Ingrid Seibold^, Michael J. Braun^ '^ Institute of Zoology, University of Greifswald, Vogelwarte Hiddensee, D-18565 Kloster, Germany Department of Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, 4210 Silver Hill Rd., Suitland, MD 20746, USA Received 19 March 2004; revised 21 September 2004 Available online 24 December 2004 Abstract The phylogeny of the tribe Aquilini (eagles with fully feathered tarsi) was investigated using 4.2 kb of DNA sequence of one mito- chondrial (cyt b) and three nuclear loci (RAG-1 coding region, LDH intron 3, and adenylate-kinase intron 5). Phylogenetic signal was highly congruent and complementary between mtDNA and nuclear genes. In addition to single-nucleotide variation, shared deletions in nuclear introns supported one basal and two peripheral clades within the Aquilini. Monophyly of the Aquilini relative to other birds of prey was confirmed. However, all polytypic genera within the tribe, Spizaetus, Aquila, Hieraaetus, turned out to be non-monophyletic. Old World Spizaetus and Stephanoaetus together appear to be the sister group of the rest of the Aquilini. Spiza- stur melanoleucus and Oroaetus isidori axe nested among the New World Spizaetus species and should be merged with that genus. The Old World 'Spizaetus' species should be assigned to the genus Nisaetus (Hodgson, 1836). The sister species of the two spotted eagles (Aquila clanga and Aquila pomarina) is the African Long-crested Eagle (Lophaetus occipitalis).
    [Show full text]
  • Taphonomic Aspects of Crowned Hawk-Eagle Predation on Monkeys
    Journal of Human Evolution 44 (2003) 87–105 Taphonomic Aspects of Crowned Hawk-Eagle Predation on Monkeys William J. Sandersa*, Josh Trapania,b, John C. Mitanic a Museum of Paleontology, University of Michigan, 1109 Geddes Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1079, USA b Department of Geological Sciences, University of Michigan, 2534 C.C. Little Building, 425 E. University, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1063, USA c Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, 500 South State Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1382, USA Received 24 January 2002; accepted 11 November 2002 Abstract This study provides a taphonomic analysis of prey accumulations of crowned hawk-eagles (Stephanoaetus coronatus) from Ngogo, Kibale National Park, Uganda, collected over 37 months from below nests of two eagle pairs. Crowned hawk-eagles are powerful predators capable of killing animals much larger than themselves, and are significant predators of cercopithecoid monkeys in forest habitats throughout sub-Saharan Africa. At Ngogo, 81% of the individuals in the kill sample are monkeys. Redtail monkeys (Cercopithecus ascanius) are particularly well represented in the sample, making up 66% of monkeys identified to species. Despite an impressive killing apparatus, crowned hawk-eagles are fastidious eaters that inflict far less damage to bone than mammalian predators. Examination of skeletal material from the Ngogo kill sample reveals that crania, hindlimb elements, and scapulae survive predation better than do other bones. Crania of adults are typically complete and accompanied by mandibles, while crania of young individuals are usually dissociated from mandibles and lack basicrania and faces. Long bones are often whole or show minimal damage. Thin bones, such as crania and innominates, are marked by numerous nicks, punctures, and “can-opener” perforations.
    [Show full text]
  • The Responses of Black-Casqued Hornbills to Predator Vocalisations and Primate Alarm Calls
    1 Published in Behaviour, Volume 141, Issue 10, 2004, pages 1263–1277 which should be used for any reference to this work THE RESPONSES OF BLACK-CASQUED HORNBILLS TO PREDATOR VOCALISATIONS AND PRIMATE ALARM CALLS by HUGO J. RAINEY1), KLAUS ZUBERBÜHLER2,3,4) and PETER J.B. SLATER1,5) (1 School of Biology, Bute Medical Buildings, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9TS, UK; 2 School of Psychology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9JP, UK; 3 Centre Suisse de Recherches Scientifiques, Taï Monkey Project, Abidjan 01, Côte d’Ivoire) Summary Black-casqued hornbills (Ceratogymna atrata) forage in small flocks in the tropical forests of West Africa, often in the vicinity of primate groups, including Diana and Campbell’s monkeys (Cercopithecus diana, C. campbelli). Previous work has shown that these monkey species produce acoustically distinct alarm calls to crowned eagles (Stephanoaetus coronatus)and leopards (Panthera pardus), two of their main predators. Black-casqued hornbills are highly vulnerable to crowned eagles, but not leopards, suggesting that individuals may respond differently to these two predators. We analysed the vocal response of these birds to field playbacks conducted on different monkey species in Tai National Park, Ivory Coast. We tested six stimuli, three of which related to the presence of a crowned eagle (eagle shrieks, Diana and Campbell’s eagle alarm calls) and three to the presence of a leopard (leopard growls, Diana and Campbell’s leopard alarm calls). Results showed that hornbills consistently distinguished between eagle- and leopard-related stimuli, suggesting that birds attended to the predator class associated with the various stimuli.
    [Show full text]
  • South Africa Mega Birding III 5Th to 27Th October 2019 (23 Days) Trip Report
    South Africa Mega Birding III 5th to 27th October 2019 (23 days) Trip Report The near-endemic Gorgeous Bushshrike by Daniel Keith Danckwerts Tour leader: Daniel Keith Danckwerts Trip Report – RBT South Africa – Mega Birding III 2019 2 Tour Summary South Africa supports the highest number of endemic species of any African country and is therefore of obvious appeal to birders. This South Africa mega tour covered virtually the entire country in little over a month – amounting to an estimated 10 000km – and targeted every single endemic and near-endemic species! We were successful in finding virtually all of the targets and some of our highlights included a pair of mythical Hottentot Buttonquails, the critically endangered Rudd’s Lark, both Cape, and Drakensburg Rockjumpers, Orange-breasted Sunbird, Pink-throated Twinspot, Southern Tchagra, the scarce Knysna Woodpecker, both Northern and Southern Black Korhaans, and Bush Blackcap. We additionally enjoyed better-than-ever sightings of the tricky Barratt’s Warbler, aptly named Gorgeous Bushshrike, Crested Guineafowl, and Eastern Nicator to just name a few. Any trip to South Africa would be incomplete without mammals and our tally of 60 species included such difficult animals as the Aardvark, Aardwolf, Southern African Hedgehog, Bat-eared Fox, Smith’s Red Rock Hare and both Sable and Roan Antelopes. This really was a trip like no other! ____________________________________________________________________________________ Tour in Detail Our first full day of the tour began with a short walk through the gardens of our quaint guesthouse in Johannesburg. Here we enjoyed sightings of the delightful Red-headed Finch, small numbers of Southern Red Bishops including several males that were busy moulting into their summer breeding plumage, the near-endemic Karoo Thrush, Cape White-eye, Grey-headed Gull, Hadada Ibis, Southern Masked Weaver, Speckled Mousebird, African Palm Swift and the Laughing, Ring-necked and Red-eyed Doves.
    [Show full text]
  • Breeding Biology of Neotropical Accipitriformes: Current Knowledge and Research Priorities
    Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia 26(2): 151–186. ARTICLE June 2018 Breeding biology of Neotropical Accipitriformes: current knowledge and research priorities Julio Amaro Betto Monsalvo1,3, Neander Marcel Heming2 & Miguel Ângelo Marini2 1 Programa de Pós-graduação em Ecologia, IB, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, DF, Brazil. 2 Departamento de Zoologia, IB, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, DF, Brazil. 3 Corresponding author: [email protected] Received on 08 March 2018. Accepted on 20 July 2018. ABSTRACT: Despite the key role that knowledge on breeding biology of Accipitriformes plays in their management and conservation, survey of the state-of-the-art and of information gaps spanning the entire Neotropics has not been done since 1995. We provide an updated classification of current knowledge about breeding biology of Neotropical Accipitridae and define the taxa that should be prioritized by future studies. We analyzed 440 publications produced since 1995 that reported breeding of 56 species. There is a persistent scarcity, or complete absence, of information about the nests of eight species, and about breeding behavior of another ten. Among these species, the largest gap of breeding data refers to the former “Leucopternis” hawks. Although 66% of the 56 evaluated species had some improvement on knowledge about their breeding traits, research still focus disproportionately on a few regions and species, and the scarcity of breeding data on many South American Accipitridae persists. We noted that analysis of records from both a citizen science digital database and museum egg collections significantly increased breeding information on some species, relative to recent literature. We created four groups of priority species for breeding biology studies, based on knowledge gaps and threat categories at global level.
    [Show full text]
  • Malawi: Miombo Magic September 1-18, 2020 ©2019
    MALAWI: MIOMBO MAGIC SEPTEMBER 1-18, 2020 ©2019 Sable Antelope © Dion Hobcroft Malawi: Miombo Magic, Page 2 This little-known country is emerging as one of the birding and wildlife gems of the amazing African continent. Best known for the great lake that dominates the east of the country, Malawi, with its low population and relatively large areas of varied habitats, ensures a spectacular list of many African birds difficult to see in more familiar African tourist destinations like South Africa, Uganda and Tanzania. Combined with some amazing conservation efforts and the development of superb accommodations and national park infrastructure the tourists are starting to arrive in numbers. It is a good opportunity to visit before this well-kept secret becomes widely known. On this tour we will visit the montane Nyika National Park, Dzalanyama Forest, the lush lowlands of Liwonde National Park, Lake Malawi itself in the region of Chintheche and both the Viphya Plateau and Zomba Massif. All of these locations offer different habitats from the famously bird rich Miombo and Mopane woodlands, cloud forest, stunning wetlands, floodplains and excellent rolling montane grasslands. Birding is outstanding and we expect a list of between 300-350 species including several Southern Rift endemics. Some of the special birds we will be searching for include Denham’s Bustard, Dickinson’s Kestrel, Boehm’s Bee-eater, Schalow’s Turaco, Pel’s Fishing-owl, Rwenzori Nightjar, Montane Blue Swallow, Babbling Starling, Boulder Chat, Yellow-throated Apalis, Red-tufted Sunbird, Locust Finch and Peter’s Twinspot to mention a few. Beyond the birds we can expect to see a good cross-section of mammals: African Elephant, Crayshaw’s Zebra, Eland, Roan and Sable Antelope, Waterbuck, Bushbuck, Klipspringer Grey Duiker, Cape Buffalo, Hippopotamus, Yellow Baboon, Samango Monkey, Thick-tailed Galago, Spotted Hyaena, Lion, Serval and leopard are all possible.
    [Show full text]
  • Systems Underlying Human and Nonhuman Primate Communication: One, Two, Or Infinite
    Systems underlying human and nonhuman primate communication: One, two, or infinite Frontiers Pscyhology, 03 Septmeber 2019 Shigeru Miyagawa and Esther Clarke MIT U. Durham/MIT October 2019 The source of infinity • What is the source of infinity observable in human language? • Can we learn anything from looking at the communication system of primates? Miyagawa July 2019 2 Evolution of the neural language network Fitch & Hauser (2004) compared artificial grammar learning between human and nonhuman primates using FSG and PSG grammar types. Testing cotton-top tamarins and human adults in a behavioral grammar learning study, they found that humans were able to learn both grammar types easily, whereas the monkeys were only able to learn the FSG. Miyagawa July 2019 3 Neuroanatomical difference A functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study in human adults using the same type of grammars was conducted (FNG vs PSG). The data revealed different activation patterns for the processing of (AB)n sequences and AnBn sequences (Friederici et al., 2006). Sequences of the PSG activated the posterior portion of Broca’s area (Brodmann area [BA 44]) and the frontal operculum, whereas sequences of the FSG only activated the frontal operculum. Because the frontal operculum is a phylogenetically older brain region (Amunts & Zilles, 2012; Sanides, 1962), the fMRI results in humans may reflect an evolutionary trait. Miyagawa July 2019 4 Miyagawa July 2019 5 Brodmann’s Area 44 Brodmann area 44, or BA44, is part of the frontal cortex in the human brain. Together with left-hemisphere BA 45, the left hemisphere[1] BA 44 comprises Broca's area, a region involved in semantic tasks.
    [Show full text]
  • Hornbills Can Distinguish Between Primate Alarm Calls Hugo J
    Received 5 September 2003 Accepted 17 October 2003 Published online 2 March 2004 Hornbills can distinguish between primate alarm calls Hugo J. Rainey1*, Klaus Zuberbu¨ hler2 and Peter J. B. Slater1 1School of Biology, Bute Medical Buildings, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9TS, UK 2School of Psychology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9ZU, UK Some mammals distinguish between and respond appropriately to the alarm calls of other mammal and bird species. However, the ability of birds to distinguish between mammal alarm calls has not been investi- gated. Diana monkeys (Cercopithecus diana) produce different alarm calls to two predators: crowned eagles (Stephanoaetus coronatus) and leopards (Panthera pardus). Yellow-casqued hornbills (Ceratogymna elata) are vulnerable to predation by crowned eagles but are not preyed on by leopards and might therefore be expected to respond to the Diana monkey eagle alarm call but not to the leopard alarm call. We compared responses of hornbills to playback of eagle shrieks, leopard growls, Diana monkey eagle alarm calls and Diana monkey leopard alarm calls and found that they distinguished appropriately between the two pred- ator vocalizations as well as between the two Diana monkey alarm calls. We discuss possible mechanisms leading to these responses. Keywords: interspecific communication; anti-predator behaviour; Ivory Coast; primates; associative learning; habituation 1. INTRODUCTION As eagles prey on hornbills, we predicted that hornbills would respond to their calls. Similarly, as leopards are not Some mammals have been found to obtain information thought to prey on hornbills, the birds should not respond from the vocalizations of other species.
    [Show full text]
  • Campbell's Monkeys Concatenate Vocalizations Into Context-Specific
    Campbell’s monkeys concatenate vocalizations into context-specific call sequences Karim Ouattaraa,b,c, Alban Lemassona,1, and Klaus Zuberbu¨ hlerd,1 aLaboratoire EthoS ‘‘Ethologie Animale et Humaine,’’ Unite´Mixte de Recherche 6552, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Universite´de Rennes 1, Station Biologique, 35380 Paimpont, France; bCentre Suisse de Recherches Scientifiques, Taï Monkey Project, 01 BP1303, Abidjan 01, Coˆte d’Ivoire; cLaboratoire de Zoologie et de Biologie Animale, Universite´de Cocody, 10 BP770, Abidjan 10, Coˆte d’Ivoire; and dSchool of Psychology, University of St. Andrews, KY16 9JP Saint Andrews, Scotland Edited by Charles G. Gross, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, and approved October 26, 2009 (received for review July 20, 2009) Primate vocal behavior is often considered irrelevant in modeling some cases, these structures possess hierarchical organization, human language evolution, mainly because of the caller’s limited although very little is known about the relationship between vocal control and apparent lack of intentional signaling. Here, we acoustic structure and communicative function. A typical finding present the results of a long-term study on Campbell’s monkeys, is that if the structure of a sequence is artificially altered, for which has revealed an unrivaled degree of vocal complexity. Adult example by changing the composition or order of elements, the males produced six different loud call types, which they combined signal tends to loose its communicative function (28–30). An- into various sequences in highly context-specific ways. We found other relevant point is that nonhuman primates are perfectly stereotyped sequences that were strongly associated with cohe- capable of discriminating human speech composed in different sion and travel, falling trees, neighboring groups, nonpredatory ways [e.g., tamarins (31)] and of comprehending simplified animals, unspecific predatory threat, and specific predator classes.
    [Show full text]
  • Accipitridae Species Tree
    Accipitridae I: Hawks, Kites, Eagles Pearl Kite, Gampsonyx swainsonii ?Scissor-tailed Kite, Chelictinia riocourii Elaninae Black-winged Kite, Elanus caeruleus ?Black-shouldered Kite, Elanus axillaris ?Letter-winged Kite, Elanus scriptus White-tailed Kite, Elanus leucurus African Harrier-Hawk, Polyboroides typus ?Madagascan Harrier-Hawk, Polyboroides radiatus Gypaetinae Palm-nut Vulture, Gypohierax angolensis Egyptian Vulture, Neophron percnopterus Bearded Vulture / Lammergeier, Gypaetus barbatus Madagascan Serpent-Eagle, Eutriorchis astur Hook-billed Kite, Chondrohierax uncinatus Gray-headed Kite, Leptodon cayanensis ?White-collared Kite, Leptodon forbesi Swallow-tailed Kite, Elanoides forficatus European Honey-Buzzard, Pernis apivorus Perninae Philippine Honey-Buzzard, Pernis steerei Oriental Honey-Buzzard / Crested Honey-Buzzard, Pernis ptilorhynchus Barred Honey-Buzzard, Pernis celebensis Black-breasted Buzzard, Hamirostra melanosternon Square-tailed Kite, Lophoictinia isura Long-tailed Honey-Buzzard, Henicopernis longicauda Black Honey-Buzzard, Henicopernis infuscatus ?Black Baza, Aviceda leuphotes ?African Cuckoo-Hawk, Aviceda cuculoides ?Madagascan Cuckoo-Hawk, Aviceda madagascariensis ?Jerdon’s Baza, Aviceda jerdoni Pacific Baza, Aviceda subcristata Red-headed Vulture, Sarcogyps calvus White-headed Vulture, Trigonoceps occipitalis Cinereous Vulture, Aegypius monachus Lappet-faced Vulture, Torgos tracheliotos Gypinae Hooded Vulture, Necrosyrtes monachus White-backed Vulture, Gyps africanus White-rumped Vulture, Gyps bengalensis Himalayan
    [Show full text]
  • Taphonomic Aspects of Crowned Hawk-Eagle Predation on Monkeys
    Journal of Human Evolution 44 (2003) 87–105 Taphonomic Aspects of Crowned Hawk-Eagle Predation on Monkeys William J. Sandersa*, Josh Trapania,b, John C. Mitanic a Museum of Paleontology, University of Michigan, 1109 Geddes Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1079, USA b Department of Geological Sciences, University of Michigan, 2534 C.C. Little Building, 425 E. University, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1063, USA c Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, 500 South State Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1382, USA Received 24 January 2002; accepted 11 November 2002 Abstract This study provides a taphonomic analysis of prey accumulations of crowned hawk-eagles (Stephanoaetus coronatus) from Ngogo, Kibale National Park, Uganda, collected over 37 months from below nests of two eagle pairs. Crowned hawk-eagles are powerful predators capable of killing animals much larger than themselves, and are significant predators of cercopithecoid monkeys in forest habitats throughout sub-Saharan Africa. At Ngogo, 81% of the individuals in the kill sample are monkeys. Redtail monkeys (Cercopithecus ascanius) are particularly well represented in the sample, making up 66% of monkeys identified to species. Despite an impressive killing apparatus, crowned hawk-eagles are fastidious eaters that inflict far less damage to bone than mammalian predators. Examination of skeletal material from the Ngogo kill sample reveals that crania, hindlimb elements, and scapulae survive predation better than do other bones. Crania of adults are typically complete and accompanied by mandibles, while crania of young individuals are usually dissociated from mandibles and lack basicrania and faces. Long bones are often whole or show minimal damage. Thin bones, such as crania and innominates, are marked by numerous nicks, punctures, and “can-opener” perforations.
    [Show full text]