Everyone
knows how much I love the flora and fauna of Australia. Well, if I had to reveal
my second favorite place, it would be Madagascar. You also know that I am
fascinated by the wildlife, and dedicated to speaking about the endangered life
forms of Australia. Madagascar is another place that contains a myriad (myriad means innumerable, many)
of contrasting environments and unusual life forms. That next book that is
percolating in my imagination is going to have to take place on the island of
Madagascar.
Today we are going to discuss the Fossa. As you can see from the picture below, the Fossa is very
photogenic. It’s actually a very ‘pretty,’ mammal, if I may use that word to
describe her. (I’m going to refer to the Fossa, in this post, as a ‘her’
because I think they are so pretty-OK?)
The Fossa is endemic
to Madagascar. I hope you remember what the word endemic means from our
previous blog posts. It means that the Fossa, or any animal being referred to
as endemic, is restricted to one place. The island of Madagascar is home to
many unusual animals that are only found there.
So let’s take a look at Madagascar, where it is and what the environment
is like there.
Madagascar is a land whose geography ranges from Jungles…
…to dry lands,
and much in-between. There are rocky regions, and swampy
areas, and the life forms there are just as diverse (different). The forth-largest island in the world (not
counting continents), Madagascar is located off the southeastern tip of Africa.
As I said above, the Fossa is found nowhere else on earth.
At one point in time, it could be found throughout Madagascar. However, now it
is restricted to certain areas as a result of human encroachment and
deforestation.
It looks very much like an elongated cat and it is related
to the Civet, which is a species of mammal found in parts of Africa and Asia.
This is a Civet:
You can see from the picture above and the picture below how
similar in build these two animals are.
The Fossa is also related to the Mongoose, Lemur and the
Aye-Aye. We have seen and talked about the Lemur and the Aye-Aye in previous
posts. Scientists believe that the Fossa arrived in Madagascar from Africa
about 20 million years ago. They also feel that she is more closely related to
the Mongoose than the Civet. You can decide.
This is a Mongoose:
The Fossa is the largest carnivore (meat eater) on Madagascar. She will eat a variety of
small prey, like birds, frogs and reptiles. She is also capable of hunting
Lemurs. The Fossa’s long tail is used for balance as they pursue prey through
the trees, and although they are considered solitary animals, they have been known
to cooperate while hunting.
The Fossa is reddish-brown in color, with a short, dense
coat. They have retractable claws that make it easy for them to climb trees and
a round head topped with rounded, short ears. They can be as long as six feet
in length from the tip of their nose to the tip of the tail, the tail and body being
equal in length.
According to the IUCN*, the Fossa is Vulnerable. That means it is endangered. Why is it endangered? As I said above, it’s
mostly due to deforestation and human encroachment. Scientists believe that there are less than
2500 of these beautiful creatures left on the island.
I have found a wonderful video for you that I know you will
enjoy and learn from.
If you would like to learn more, click on the links below.
As always, my sincere thanks to Arkive for their information
and pictures.
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to
comment below or contact me at Jeanne.rogers22@gmail.com. I will be happy to help if I can.
Best wishes going out to all the kids in classrooms that
follow my blog, and my sincere thanks to you for your interest in endangered
animals! (The Animals thank you too!)
Enjoy!
J.E. Rogers, Author
Award Winning Middle Grade Fantasy:
The Sword of Demelza
animalsbirds.com/camel-animals-photos-images-pictures-full-hd-wallpaper-gallery/
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