Klippegrevlinger
Klippegrevlinger er en liten pattedyrgruppe som er i nær slekt med elefanter og sjøkyr. I motsetning til disse to gruppene er klippegrevlingene forholdsvis små, rundt 30 til 50 cm, og ligner litt på gnagere.
Når de beiter, benytter de hovedsakelig jekslene, en lite effektiv metode sammenlignet med hva vi finner hos mer moderne hovdyr og gangere. Deres metabolisme er lav, og de klarer seg dermed med fhv. lite næring. Fremre del av kjeven har tenner som minner og kraftige huggtenner, og som i øvre kjevehalvdel vokser hele livet. Disse antas å være rudimentære støttenner.
Hodet, ørene, bena og halen er korte og kompakte. De har hover på den første og tredje tåa av bakbeina. På grunn av spesielt myke «puter» under føttene, som sammen med muskler og svettekjertler fungerer som sugekopper, er de glimrende klatrere.
De fleste artene lever i klipper og fjell, men noen arter er også nattaktive trebeboere (tregrevlinger, Dendrohyrax).
Øynenes blinkhinne er modifisert til å fungere som «solbriller», så de kan holde utkikk etter rovfugler selv i sterkt solskinn.
Dagens arter er siste rest av en gruppe dyr som en gang utviste langt større variasjon i henhold til både form og størrelse. Det fantes kjemper så store som neshorn og langbeinte arter tilpasset løping. Nåtidens arter har mer eller mindre trukket seg tilbake til leveområder hvor det er liten konkurranse om ressursene klippegrevlingene er avhengige av.
Klippegrevlinger i Bibelen
Ifølge Loven om rene og urene dyr i Bibelens Tredje mosebok kapittel 11 vers 1-40 må ikke klippegrevlinger spises: «Herren talte til Moses og Aron og sa til dem: (...) 4 Av drøvtyggere og klovdyr er det bare disse dere ikke må spise: (...) 5 og klippegrevlingen, for den tygger drøv, men har ikke klover; den skal dere holde for uren; (...) 40 Den som spiser av dyret, skal vaske sine klær, og han er uren til kvelden.»
Fra Wikipedia, den frie encyklopedi
Procavia capensis syriaca 'Syrisk klippegrevling' Kapernaum, Israel 21.12.2010
Procavia capensis syriaca 'Syrian Rock Hyrax' Capernaum, Israel 21.12.2010
Rock hyrax
The rock hyrax (Procavia capensis) or Cape hyrax, is one of the four living species of the order Hyracoidea, and the only living species in the genusProcavia. Like all hyraxes, it is a medium-sized (~4 kg) terrestrial mammal, superficially resembling a guinea pig with short ears and tail. The closest living relatives to hyraxes are the modern day elephants and sirenians. The rock hyrax is found across Africa and the Middle East, in habitats with rock crevices in which to escape from predators. Hyraxes typically live in groups of 10–80 animals, and forage as a group. Their most striking behaviour is the use of sentries: one or more animals take up position on a vantage point and issue alarm calls on the approach of predators.
The rock hyrax has incomplete thermoregulation, and is most active in the morning and evening, although their activity pattern varies substantially with season and climate.
Over most of its range, the rock hyrax is not endangered, and in some areas is considered a minor pest. In Ethiopia, Israel and Jordan, they have been shown to be a reservoir of the leishmaniasis parasite.
Characteristics
The rock hyrax is squat and heavily built, adults reaching a length of 50 cm (20 in) and weighing around 4 kg (8.8 lb), with a slight sexual dimorphism; males being approximately 10% heavier than females. Their fur is thick and grey-brown color, although this varies strongly between different environments; from dark brown in wetter habitats, to light gray in desert living individuals. Hyrax size (as measured by skull length and humerus diameter) is correlated to precipitation, probably because of the effect on preferred hyrax forage.
Prominent in and apparently unique to hyraxes is the dorsal gland, which excretes an odour used for social communication and territorial marking. The gland is most clearly visible in dominant males.
The head of the rock hyrax is pointed, having a short neck with rounded ears. They have long black whiskers on their muzzles. The rock hyrax has a prominent pair of long, pointed tusk-like upper incisors which are reminiscent of the elephant, to which the hyrax is distantly related (see below). The forefeet are plantigrade, and the hindfeet semi-digitigrade. The soles of the feet have large, soft pads that are kept moist with sweat-like secretions. In males, the testes are permanently abdominal, another anatomical feature that hyraxes share with their relatives elephants and sirenians.
Thermoregulation in the rock hyrax has been subject to much research, as their body temperature varies with a diurnal rhythm. However, animals kept in constant environmental conditions also display such variation and this internal mechanism may be related to water balance regulation.
Distribution
The rock hyrax occurs across sub-Saharan Africa, with the exception of the Congo basin and Madagascar. A larger, longer-haired subspecies is abundant in the glacial moraines in the alpine zone of Mount Kenya. The distribution continues into northern Algeria, Libya and Egypt, and the Middle East, with populations in Israel, Jordan, Syria, the Arabian peninsula and eastern Turkey.
Ecology and behaviour
Hyraxes live in herds of up to 80 individuals. These herds are subdivided into smaller flocks consisting of a few families. These families consist of 3 to 15 related adult females, a dominant male, and several young. The dominant male defends and watches over the group. The male also marks its territory to avoid any altercations.
In Africa, hyraxes are preyed on by leopards, Egyptian cobras, puff adders, caracals, wild dogs, and eagles. Verreaux's Eagle in particular is a specialist hunter of hyrax. In Israel, the rock hyrax is reportedly rarely preyed upon by terrestrial predators, as their system of sentries and their reliable refuges provide considerable protection. Hyrax remains are almost absent from the droppings of wolves in the Judean Desert.
Feeding and foraging
Hyraxes feed on a wide variety of different plants, including both grasses and broad leafed plants. They also have been reported to eat insects and grubs. The rock hyraxes forage for food up to about 50 metres from their refuge, usually feeding as a group and with one or more acting as sentries from a prominent lookout position. On the approach of danger, the sentries give an alarm call, and the animals quickly retreat to their refuge. They are able to go for many days without water due to the moisture they obtain through their food. Despite their seemingly clumsy build, they are able to climb trees, and will readily enter residential gardens to feed on the leaves of citrus and other trees.
Reproduction
Rock hyraxes give birth to two or three young after a 6–7 month gestation period. The young are well developed at birth with fully opened eyes and complete pelage. Young can ingest solid food after two weeks and are weaned at ten weeks. Young are sexually mature after 16 months, reach adult size at three years, and typically live about ten years. During seasonal changes, the weight of male reproduction organs (testis, seminal vesicles) changes due to sexual activity. Hyraxes were examined and it was found that between May and January, the males were inactive sexually. From February onward, there was a dramatic increase to the weight of these organs, and the males are able to copulate.
Social behaviour
Rock hyraxes are very noisy and sociable. Adults make use of at least 21 different vocal signals. The most familiar signal is a high trill, and is given in response to perceived danger. Rock hyrax calls are referred to as “songs.” Hyrax songs can provide important biological information such as size, age, social status, body weight, condition, and hormonal state of the singer, as determined by measuring their song length, patterns, complexity, and frequency.
The rock hyrax also makes a loud grunting sound while moving its jaws as if chewing, and this behaviour may be a sign of aggression. Some authors have proposed that observation of this behavior by ancient Israelites gave rise to the misconception given in Leviticus 11:4-8 that the hyrax chews the cud; in fact, hyraxes are not ruminants.
The rock hyrax spends approximately 95% of its time resting. During this time, they can often be seen basking in the sun, which is thought to be an element of their complex thermoregulation.
Dispersal
Males have been categorised into four classes: territorial, peripheral, early, and late dispersers. The territorial males are the most dominant. Peripheral males are more solitary and sometimes take over a group when the dominant male is missing. Early peripheral males are juveniles that leave the birth site around 16 to 24 months of age. Late dispersers are also juvenile males, but they leave the birth site much later; around 30 or more months of age.
Names
They are known as dassies in South Africa, and sometimes rock rabbits. The Swahili names for them are pimbi, pelele and wibari, though the latter two names are nowadays reserved for the tree hyraxes. The Dutch name is klipdas. This species has many subspecies, many of which are also known as Rock or Cape Hyrax, although the former usually refers to African varieties. In Arabic, the rock hyrax is called الوبر ("wabr") or طبسون ("tabsoun"). In Hebrew, the rock hyrax is called שפן סלע (shafan sela), meaning rock "shafan", where the meaning of shafan is obscure. Gerald Durrell wrote that in Bafut, in Cameroon, the locals call the rock hyrax the n'eer.
Pharmaceutical use
Rock Hyraxes produce large quantities of hyraceum—a sticky mass of dung and urine that has been employed by people in the treatment of several medical disorders, including epilepsy and convulsions. Hyraceum is now being "rediscovered" by intrepid perfumers who tincture it in alcohol to yield a natural animal musk.
Culture
Rock Hyraxes are classified as non-kosher in the Old Testament/Jewish Torah. Nonetheless, they are also included in Proverbs 30:26 as one of a number of remarkable animals for being small but exceedingly wise, in this case because "the rock badgers are a people not mighty, yet they make their homes in the cliffs".
In Joy Adamson's books and the associated movie Born Free, a rock hyrax that she called Pati-Pati was her companion for six years before Elsa and her siblings came along and took the role of nanny and watched over them with great care.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rock hyrax
The rock hyrax (Procavia capensis) or Cape hyrax, is one of the four living species of the order Hyracoidea, and the only living species in the genusProcavia. Like all hyraxes, it is a medium-sized (~4 kg) terrestrial mammal, superficially resembling a guinea pig with short ears and tail. The closest living relatives to hyraxes are the modern day elephants and sirenians. The rock hyrax is found across Africa and the Middle East, in habitats with rock crevices in which to escape from predators. Hyraxes typically live in groups of 10–80 animals, and forage as a group. Their most striking behaviour is the use of sentries: one or more animals take up position on a vantage point and issue alarm calls on the approach of predators.
The rock hyrax has incomplete thermoregulation, and is most active in the morning and evening, although their activity pattern varies substantially with season and climate.
Over most of its range, the rock hyrax is not endangered, and in some areas is considered a minor pest. In Ethiopia, Israel and Jordan, they have been shown to be a reservoir of the leishmaniasis parasite.
Characteristics
The rock hyrax is squat and heavily built, adults reaching a length of 50 cm (20 in) and weighing around 4 kg (8.8 lb), with a slight sexual dimorphism; males being approximately 10% heavier than females. Their fur is thick and grey-brown color, although this varies strongly between different environments; from dark brown in wetter habitats, to light gray in desert living individuals. Hyrax size (as measured by skull length and humerus diameter) is correlated to precipitation, probably because of the effect on preferred hyrax forage.
Prominent in and apparently unique to hyraxes is the dorsal gland, which excretes an odour used for social communication and territorial marking. The gland is most clearly visible in dominant males.
The head of the rock hyrax is pointed, having a short neck with rounded ears. They have long black whiskers on their muzzles. The rock hyrax has a prominent pair of long, pointed tusk-like upper incisors which are reminiscent of the elephant, to which the hyrax is distantly related (see below). The forefeet are plantigrade, and the hindfeet semi-digitigrade. The soles of the feet have large, soft pads that are kept moist with sweat-like secretions. In males, the testes are permanently abdominal, another anatomical feature that hyraxes share with their relatives elephants and sirenians.
Thermoregulation in the rock hyrax has been subject to much research, as their body temperature varies with a diurnal rhythm. However, animals kept in constant environmental conditions also display such variation and this internal mechanism may be related to water balance regulation.
Distribution
The rock hyrax occurs across sub-Saharan Africa, with the exception of the Congo basin and Madagascar. A larger, longer-haired subspecies is abundant in the glacial moraines in the alpine zone of Mount Kenya. The distribution continues into northern Algeria, Libya and Egypt, and the Middle East, with populations in Israel, Jordan, Syria, the Arabian peninsula and eastern Turkey.
Ecology and behaviour
Hyraxes live in herds of up to 80 individuals. These herds are subdivided into smaller flocks consisting of a few families. These families consist of 3 to 15 related adult females, a dominant male, and several young. The dominant male defends and watches over the group. The male also marks its territory to avoid any altercations.
In Africa, hyraxes are preyed on by leopards, Egyptian cobras, puff adders, caracals, wild dogs, and eagles. Verreaux's Eagle in particular is a specialist hunter of hyrax. In Israel, the rock hyrax is reportedly rarely preyed upon by terrestrial predators, as their system of sentries and their reliable refuges provide considerable protection. Hyrax remains are almost absent from the droppings of wolves in the Judean Desert.
Feeding and foraging
Hyraxes feed on a wide variety of different plants, including both grasses and broad leafed plants. They also have been reported to eat insects and grubs. The rock hyraxes forage for food up to about 50 metres from their refuge, usually feeding as a group and with one or more acting as sentries from a prominent lookout position. On the approach of danger, the sentries give an alarm call, and the animals quickly retreat to their refuge. They are able to go for many days without water due to the moisture they obtain through their food. Despite their seemingly clumsy build, they are able to climb trees, and will readily enter residential gardens to feed on the leaves of citrus and other trees.
Reproduction
Rock hyraxes give birth to two or three young after a 6–7 month gestation period. The young are well developed at birth with fully opened eyes and complete pelage. Young can ingest solid food after two weeks and are weaned at ten weeks. Young are sexually mature after 16 months, reach adult size at three years, and typically live about ten years. During seasonal changes, the weight of male reproduction organs (testis, seminal vesicles) changes due to sexual activity. Hyraxes were examined and it was found that between May and January, the males were inactive sexually. From February onward, there was a dramatic increase to the weight of these organs, and the males are able to copulate.
Social behaviour
Rock hyraxes are very noisy and sociable. Adults make use of at least 21 different vocal signals. The most familiar signal is a high trill, and is given in response to perceived danger. Rock hyrax calls are referred to as “songs.” Hyrax songs can provide important biological information such as size, age, social status, body weight, condition, and hormonal state of the singer, as determined by measuring their song length, patterns, complexity, and frequency.
The rock hyrax also makes a loud grunting sound while moving its jaws as if chewing, and this behaviour may be a sign of aggression. Some authors have proposed that observation of this behavior by ancient Israelites gave rise to the misconception given in Leviticus 11:4-8 that the hyrax chews the cud; in fact, hyraxes are not ruminants.
The rock hyrax spends approximately 95% of its time resting. During this time, they can often be seen basking in the sun, which is thought to be an element of their complex thermoregulation.
Dispersal
Males have been categorised into four classes: territorial, peripheral, early, and late dispersers. The territorial males are the most dominant. Peripheral males are more solitary and sometimes take over a group when the dominant male is missing. Early peripheral males are juveniles that leave the birth site around 16 to 24 months of age. Late dispersers are also juvenile males, but they leave the birth site much later; around 30 or more months of age.
Names
They are known as dassies in South Africa, and sometimes rock rabbits. The Swahili names for them are pimbi, pelele and wibari, though the latter two names are nowadays reserved for the tree hyraxes. The Dutch name is klipdas. This species has many subspecies, many of which are also known as Rock or Cape Hyrax, although the former usually refers to African varieties. In Arabic, the rock hyrax is called الوبر ("wabr") or طبسون ("tabsoun"). In Hebrew, the rock hyrax is called שפן סלע (shafan sela), meaning rock "shafan", where the meaning of shafan is obscure. Gerald Durrell wrote that in Bafut, in Cameroon, the locals call the rock hyrax the n'eer.
Pharmaceutical use
Rock Hyraxes produce large quantities of hyraceum—a sticky mass of dung and urine that has been employed by people in the treatment of several medical disorders, including epilepsy and convulsions. Hyraceum is now being "rediscovered" by intrepid perfumers who tincture it in alcohol to yield a natural animal musk.
Culture
Rock Hyraxes are classified as non-kosher in the Old Testament/Jewish Torah. Nonetheless, they are also included in Proverbs 30:26 as one of a number of remarkable animals for being small but exceedingly wise, in this case because "the rock badgers are a people not mighty, yet they make their homes in the cliffs".
In Joy Adamson's books and the associated movie Born Free, a rock hyrax that she called Pati-Pati was her companion for six years before Elsa and her siblings came along and took the role of nanny and watched over them with great care.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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