Asian Lion / Panthera leo persica

Nearly all wild lions live in sub-Saharan Africa, but one small population of Asian lions exists in India's Gir Forest. Asian lions and African lions are subspecies of the same species.

 Lions in a group are called a pride, All lions eat meat as you may already know, these are called carnivores, and they give birth to live young so are classed as mammals. 

Sadly these amazing cats are an endangered species and there are not many around in the wild, An additional 200 Asian lions live in zoo's! Asian Lions only live for as long as a pet dogs, the average 15 - 18 years, which is quite surprising as they are large animals of prey.
Lions are the only cats that live in groups, called prides. Prides are family units that may include up to three males, a dozen or so females, and their young.

Only male lions boast manes, the impressive fringe of long hair that encircles their heads. Males defend the pride's territory. They mark the area with urine, roar menacingly to warn intruders, but the female on the other hand work as a team to take out large prey for the families to feast on, females are the primary hunters of the pride.

Average size to a 6ft man :


                                                   Lion king clip ( actually African lions though)

Asian Elephant / Elephas maximus

 

Asian elephants, smaller than their African cousins, are highly endangered. The subspecies shown here is found only on Borneo and faces threats from the conversion of their forest habitat to agricultural use.

The elephant is Earth's largest land animal, although the Asian elephant is slightly smaller than its African cousin. Asian elephants can be identified by their smaller, rounded ears.

Elephant ears radiate heat to help keep these large animals cool, but sometimes that isn't enough. Elephants are fond of water and enjoy showering by sucking water into their trunks and spraying it all over themselves.

An elephant's trunk is actually a long nose with many functions. It is used for smelling, breathing, trumpeting, drinking, and also for grabbing things

Elephants use their tusks to dig for roots and water, strip bark from trees, and even fight each other. Elephants eat roots, grasses, fruit, and bark, and they eat a lot of these things. An adult elephant can consume up to 300 pounds in a single day!

These animals only give birth to live young, which means they are called mammals, they only eat plants and vegetation, called herbivores.

The elephants live up to approximately 60 years.

In a group elephants are classed as a herd.

The Asian elephants are an endangered species

Size relative to a 6-ft (2-m) man:

Armadillo / Dasypodidae

An armadillo roots around the forest floor looking for its food, they have very long, sharp nails for digging.

The word armadillo in Spanish means 'little armoured one'. Of the 20 varieties of armadillo, all but one live in Latin America. 

These creatures are covered in hard bony plated, all over their legs, heads and tails.Closely related to anteaters and sloth's, armadillos generally have a pointy or shovel-shaped snout and small eyes, Contrary to popular belief, not all armadillos are able to encase themselves in their shells. In fact, only the three-banded armadillo can, curling its head and back feet and contorting its shell into a hard ball that confounds would-be predators.

Population numbers of nearly all species are threatened by habitat loss and over-hunting. Many cultures in the Americas consume armadillo flesh.

Armadillos are Mammals and eat meat and vegetation, they can live for around 12 - 15 years and are now under threat, of poaching. 

The size of an armadillo compared with man:

Arctic Skua / Stercorarius parasiticus

Not many people have heard of an Arctic skua, but if you were wondering what they look like...


Arctic skuas, also called parasitic Jaeger's, have a well-earned reputation as avian pirates, stealing much of their food from other birds.  These aggressive sea birds are sometimes referred to as avian pirates. The name is well earned. Skuas steal much of their food from terns, puffins, and other birds that are carrying fish or other prizes back to their nests and young, they strike other birds while airborne.

These birds are devious Carnivores.

Did you know?
The word “skua” comes from the Old Norse term for seagull.
Size relative to a 6-ft (2-m) man:



They are similar to the size of a duck.

Arctic skuas live most of their lives at sea, and come ashore only to breed in the Arctic summer. "Kleptoparasitism" is the term for stealing food from other species, while "jaeger" is derived from the German  word "hunter."

These birds are not endangered.

Arctic Hare / Lepus arcticus

ARCTIC HARE

















The Arctic hare is one of the many rodents hunted by the Arctic fox, they are also white to blend with their surroundings and also have very, very thick fur.
They have shortened ears and thick, white fur that Arctic hares have adapted to survive in the harsh, frozen tundra.

The hares are mammals and eat meat and plants (Omnivore), Scientists are unsure of the life span of an Arctic hare, Hares are a bit larger than rabbits, and they typically have taller hind legs and longer ears. Like other hares and rabbits, Arctic hares are fast and can bound at speeds of up to 40 miles an hour.

It is very astounding how in spring time, the hare's colours change to blue-Gray in approximation of local rocks and vegetation. Arctic hares are sometimes loners but they can also be found in groups of dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of individuals. Unlike many mammals, Arctic hare groups disperse rather than form during mating season.

Females give birth to one litter per year, in spring or early summer. Two to eight young hares grow quickly and by September resemble their parents.
Food can be scarce in the Arctic and hard for the hares to find, but the hares survive by eating woody plants, mosses, and lichens (which they may dig through the snow to find in winter). In other seasons they eat buds, berries, leaves, roots, and bark.

Size relative to a 6ft man...

Arctic Fox / Alopex lagopus

The lush white coat of the Arctic fox provides both warmth and camouflage in winter, 

during the rough snowy months.

The Arctic fox is a Mammal, so only gives birth to live young.

It is an Omnivore, so hunts for hares, and other live animals/ pray.

An average fox lives for 3 to 6 years

In a group, Arctic foxes are called Skulks or a leash

 

An Arctic fox compared with adult man (6ft)

It is like a normal foxes size or even a dog!

Being white helps the fox to hunt as you know already, these colorings help foxes to 

effectively hunt rodents, birds, and even fish. 

But in winter prey can be scarce on the ground.

The arctic fox is an incredibly hardy animal that can survive 

frigid Arctic temperatures as low as –58°F (-50°C) in the treeless lands where it makes its home.

Like a cat's, this fox's thick tail aids its balance. 

But for an arctic fox the tail (or "brush") is especially useful as warm cover in cold weather.

Female arctic foxes give birth each spring to a large litter of up to 14 pups.

Arabian (Dromedary) Camel / Camelus dromedarius

One hump or two? The dromedary, or Arabian, camel distinguishes itself from its Bactrian relatives by its single hump.

The ancient camel question is: One hump or two? Arabian camels, also known as dromedaries, have only one hump, but they employ it to great effect. Mammal and is a Herbivore.

In a group they are called a Flock or Caravan 

Did you know? Unlike many other animals, camels move both legs on one side of the body at the same time! .

Size relative to a 6-ft ,man:

When camels do refill, however, they soak up water like a sponge. A very thirsty animal can drink 30 gallons (135 liters) of water in only 13 minutes.

Other adaptations help dromedaries thrive in desert conditions. Their nostrils close to keep sand at bay, and they have bushy eyebrows and two rows of long eyelashes to protect their eyes. Large, tough lips enable them to pick at dry and thorny desert vegetation. Big, thick footpads help them navigate the rough rocky terrain and shifting desert sands.

Ant / Formicidae

The Ant 

One of 10,000 species of ants, this leaf-cutter ant hauls a leaf more than three times its size back to the nest.

Ants are common insects, but they have some unique capabilities.

They are especially prevalent in tropical forests, where they may be up to half of all the insects 

living in some locations.

This bug / ant is an omnivore and lives from several weeks to years,

in a group ants are called army's or colony's

also ants may look small but they are actually quite strong,

they can lift and carry more than three times their own weight.

 Ant compared with paper clip:

Carpenter ants nest in wood and can be destructive to buildings. 

These insects belong to the order Hymenoptera, which includes wasps and bees.

Ankylosaurus Magniventris / Ankylosaurus magniventris

These dinosaurs were the prehistoric tanks of their time. They were covered with hard, bony plates that offered superb protection, although this animal is very large it actually has  a very small brain and wasn't very intelligent. Obviously this dinosaur is now extinct and has been for a long time now.

Predators would have had to flip the squat, four-legged animal over, exposing its unprotected underbelly, to find a weak spot. 

Scientists say that the Ankylosaurus had a beak and small teeth, which it used to browse the large quantities of plants necessary to sustain a three - to four-ton body. 

The dinosaur is the size of a bus ...

Anglerfish / Lophius piscatorius

 

This sci-fi looking fish is a nasty carnivore and lures food towards 

it with its glowing light above its head.

 It is quite possibly the ugliest animal on the planet, and it lives in what is easily 

Earth's most inhospitable habitat: the lonely, light-less bottom of the sea.

Generally dark grey to dark brown in colour, they have huge heads and enormous 

crescent-shaped mouths filled with sharp, translucent teeth. 

Surprisingly a female angler fish is larger than a male, but the 

regular size is relative to a tea cup.

When the angler fish is in a group it is called a school.

Andean Condor / Vultur gryphus....

 

This bird only produces one chick every other year, survival is hard for the endangered 

Andean condor it relies on captive breeding programs.

This bird is a scavenger and is a carnivore like a vulture, the andean condor, has the biggest wing

span for a bird ....

These condors are mostly black, but males have a distinctive white "collar" around their necks and some white markings on their wings as well. Like their relatives, the California condors, 

Andean condors have bald heads.

Condors are vultures, so they keep their sharp eyes peeled for the carrion that makes up most of 

their diet.

These long-lived birds have survived over 75 years in captivity, but they reproduce slowly. A mating pair produces only a single offspring every other year, and both parents must care for their young for a full year.