Ethiopian

Preview:

DESCRIPTION

 

Citation preview

Ethiopian Region

Ethiopian Region

•Africa South of Atlas Mts. and Sahara•Southern corner of Arabia•Land connection with Northern Neighbour•Otherwise isolated by sea•Has big rivers, Tropical evergreen forests, mountains and grassy plains like neotropical region but does not reach far into the southern temperate zone.•Large Madagascar island with its small neighbours is often included.

Ethiopian Region

Climate

• Mainly tropical• Large block of rain forests- equatorial west Africa• Many small patches of rainforests elsewhere• Rest of Africa covered by dry or seasonal thorn scrub or grassland

grading into desert northward and southwest ward.• Southern tip- warm temperate with complexly mixed vegetations

Ethiopian region

Mammals

Ethiopian Region

Mammals• Most varied with 38 fam. excluding bats• In no. of unique fam. it rank second to

Neotropical• Apart from Twelve exclusive fam. , rest of

families shared with either palearctic or oriental region

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- widely distributed• With a wide distribution:-– Shrews – Cricetid mice– Murid mice– Dogs– Mustelids

• Badgers, Otters etc.

– Cats – Bovids (hollow-horned ruminants)

• Mostly antelopes, Cape buffaloes etc.

Badger (Mustelid)

Cape Buffaloes

Shrews

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Palearctic & Oriental Fam.

• Fam. Shared with both palearctic and Oriental Regions– Hedgehogs– Porcupines– Civets– Hyenas– Pigs

Hedgehog

African Civet

Hyenas

Porcupines

Ethiopian Region

Mammals-Palearctic fam. • Fam. Shared with Palearctic– Dormice– Jerboas (Dipodidae)– Coneys

• (e.g. Hyrax called as Dassie in S. Africa)

– Wild Horses

DormiceJerboas

Rock Hyrax

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Difference with Palearctic

• Palearctic fam. not represented in Ethiopian region– Moles– Beavers– Bears– Camels (camels seen in Africa are domesticated)

Eurasian Mole Eurasian Beaver

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Oriental Fam. • 8 families- 3 primates and two large ungulates• Pangolins or scaly anteaters, only genus

shared by both regions, but all other shared fam. are different at generic level in the two regions. Scaly Anteater

Ethiopian Region

Loxodonta, the African ElephantHuge ears and long tusks

Elephas, the Indian Elephant, a smaller animal

Mammals- Oriental Fam.

Ethiopian Region

White and black African Rhinoceros each with two nasal horns (2)

Two oriental genera, one of which two-hornedIndian Rhinoceros, Rhinoceros unicornis 1Javan Rhinoceros, Rhinoceros sondaicus 1Sumatran Rhinoceros, Dicerorhinus sumatrensis 2

Mammals- Oriental Fam. African Black Rhino

African White Rhino

Sumatran Rhino

Ethiopian Region

Primate-Pottos (Tailless ape) Galagos (Bush babies, Nagapies, Little night monkeys) lives in Africa

Lorisidae- Slender lorises in Oriental

Mammals- Oriental Fam. Pottos

GalagosSlender lorises

Ethiopian Region

Old World Monkeys- More diverse and variedMacaques, drills, baboons, mangabeys, guenons and geladas Less divers- small no. of oriental langurs

Mammals- Oriental Fam.

DrillBaboons

Mangabeys

Guenons

Geladas

Golden Langur

Hanuman Langur

Ethiopian Region

Apes- Gorilla, Chimpanzee in Western and Central Africa

Apes- Orangutan and Gibbon in Oriental region

Mammals- Oriental Fam.

Gorilla

Orangutan

GibbonChimpanzee

Ethiopian Region

Mammals• No mammal fam. exclusively in common with

either nearctic or neotropical• Herds of large herbivorous animals on open

plains, zebras, loping giraffes, leaping and springing antelopes, rhinoceros, elephants along with lions and other members of the cat family are commonly seen

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Exclusive Fam.• 12 unique fam.• Giraffe• Hippopotamuses and aardvarks• 3 fam. of insectivores• 6 fam. Of rodents (interesting

comparison with neotropical whose rodents are also diverse and restricted).

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Exclusive fam.• Giraffe fam. two genera

OkapiGiraffe

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Exclusive fam.• Amphibious hippopotamus fam. 2 genera

Choeropsis liberiensis or Hexaprotodon liberiensis (Pygmy Hippopotamus) Hippopotamus amphibius

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Exclusive fam.• Aardvarks- *Order Tubulidentata – only 1

genus• (Cape anteater- size of a small pig with a highly curved back, long snout and long

tongue, on the four digits of its front feet and the five of its hind there are sharp hoofs for digging through termites nests)

*Exclusive Order

Aardvark

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Exclusive fam.• Endemic insectivores– Otter shrews– Golden moles– Elephant shrews

Elephant shrews

Golden Mole Otter Shrews

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Exclusive fam.• Endemic rodents

– Anomaluridae (anomalures or scaly-tailed flying squirrels) Three genera: Anomalurus (Scaly-tailed Flying Squirrels), Idiurus (Flying

Mice), Zenkerella (Cameroon Scaly-tail or Flightless Scaly-tailed Squirrel)

• some are squirrel like but others are more like mice• some are gliders like, the gliding Idiurus and the african flying

squirrel, Anomalurus but some are not.

Zenkerella

IdiurusAnomalurus

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Exclusive fam.• Endemic rodents– Fam. Pedetidae• Pedetes capensis <Spring Haas /Spring Hare (the sole

representative)>Pedestes (Spring Haas)

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Exclusive fam.• Other Endemic rodents– Cave rats and Rock rats

(affinities with old world procupines)

– Gundis and Blesmols (Mole Rats)

Blesmol Naked Mole Rat

Blesmol (Mole Rat)

Gundis

Rock Rat

Cave Rat

Ethiopian Region

Mammals- Overview• Diverse mixture of widely distributed fam.• Fam. shared with oriental regions • Exclusive fam. • A few fam. with other relationships

Oriental Relationships are relatively stronger than shown for many Ethiopian genera and even some species of mammals also occur in Oriental Region or have some close relatives there

Ethiopian Region

Birds

Ethiopian Region

Birds• Numerous having strong affinities with

Oriental Region• 67 fam., 53 occur all or much of the world• Six exclusive fam.• Three – honey guides, broad bills and bulbuls

shared only or mainly with oriental region• Five –crab plover, sand grouse, hoopoes, a

doubtful bomby cillid and a doubtful honey eaters have special or doubtful relationship

Ethiopian Region

Birds- common• Cuckoos• Woodpeckers• Hornbills• Sunbirds• Orioles• Many birds of prey• Few pigeons, parrots and pheasants

Red crested sun bird

Wood pecker

Hornbill

Oriole

Ethiopian Region

Birds- widely distributed fam.• Hawks• Owls• Herons• Storks• Kingfisher• Larks• Swallow• Thrushes

Heron Storks

Thrushes

Lark

Swallow

Kingfisher

Ethiopian Region

Birds- Old world fam.• Bustards• Rollers• Bee eaters• O.world flycatchers• Warblers• Weaver birds• Starlings

Kori Bustard

StarlingsWarblers

Roller

Weaver Bird

Bee eater Blue Fly catcher

Ethiopian Region

Birds- Tropical/ Old world tropical fam.

• Trogons• Hornbills• Barbets• Honey guides• Pittas• Bulbuls• Sunbirds

Barbet

HoneyguideTrogon

Pitta

Ethiopian Region

Birds- Exclusive• Ostriches• Secretary birds

Ostrich is the only member of a unique order, doubtfully related to other large flightless birds in other parts of the southern hemisphere

Secretary Birds

Ostriches

Ethiopian Region

Birds- Exclusive• Hammer-heads• Crested touracos

Crested Touracos Hammer-head

Ethiopian Region

Birds- Exclusive• Mouse birds• Helmet shrikes

Helmet Shrikes

Mouse Birds

Ethiopian Region

Birds- exclusive subfam. Or nearly so• Guinea fowls• Tree hoopoes• Bush shrikes• Buffalo weavers• Widow birds• Tick bird

Tick bird

Buffalo weavers

Tree hoopoes

Guinea Fowl Widow bird

Bush shrike

Ethiopian Region

Birds- overview• Less distinctive• Strongly oriental in their main relationships• Few exclusive groups

Ethiopian Region

Reptiles

Ethiopian Region

Reptiles-Snakes• Many snakes– Constricting pythons– Biting poisonous vipers

Viper Python

Ethiopian Region

Reptiles - Lizards• Exclusive fam.- Cordylidae or spinytailed

lizards or girdle-tailed lizards Spiny-tailed Lizard

Ethiopian Region

Reptiles - Lizards• Chameleon fam – nearly exclusive, only 4 of 50 sp. found

outside Africa and only one lizard lives as far as India.• A few agamid (Agama sp.) and lacertid (wall lizard/ True

Lizard) lizards• No Iguanids

AgamaChameleon

Ethiopian Region

Reptiles• Crocodiles and turtles abound• Pelmedusid turtle- side necks (Neotropical) (Pelomedusa

and Pelusios) • Trionychids• Testudinine land tortoises• An emydine in northwestern Africa

Pelomedusa

Pelusios

Ethiopian Region

Amphibians

Ethiopian Region

Amphibians• Less distinctive• Widespread frogs and toads• Pipid fam. represented by

Xenopus, the African clawed toad or Platanna (like neotrop relative aquatic)

• Hylid tree frogs absent • Polypedatids tree frog

present • No tailed amphibians

Xenopus

Ethiopian Region

Fish

Ethiopian Region

Fishes- common• Diverse – Carps– Old world cat fishes– Characins– Lung fishes

Ethiopian Region

Fishes - Endemic• Mormyrids

• Characin

From their electric organs in their tails, the mormyrids generate an electric field and they are made aware of prey in their muddy pools when this field is distorted. Not related to electric eels of Amazon

A fam. Shared by Ethiopian and Neotropical

MormyridsCharacins

Ethiopian Region

Fishes - Endemic• Lung fish Protopterus Related to Neotropical

Lung fish Lepidosiren

Protopterus

Ethiopian Region

Overview

Ethiopian Region

Overview• Most varied fauna of all region• In no of endemic fam. Second to neotropical region• In fish, amphibia, reptiles it resembles both

neotropical and oriental region• In mammals and birds has strong affinity with

oriental region.• Similarities with both neotropical and oriental

regions because all three have a tropical climate• Stronger similarities with oriental because its

similarities are much more stronger with the tropics of the old world than those of the new world

Ethiopian Region

Overview• As a whole, vertebrate fauna is most like the

Oriental one– the two are roughly similar in size and in

composition– they share many fam., v. many genera and some sp.

• Parts of the fauna have close relationships with Palearctic – principally by northward extension of tropical

groups including many migratory birds and certain fam., genera and species of other vertebrates

Ethiopian Region

Overview• Some parts of fuana more distantly related to

Neotropical region– Include several imp grps of fishes, certain

amphibians and reptiles but v few birds and mammals

• Hardly any direct relationships – b/w Ethiopian and Australian region – b/w Ethiopian and Nearctic region.

Ethiopian Region

Overview• Fauna is richest and most varied in more tropical

areas.• A strong general reduction of fauna northward into

Sahara and less strong reduction and some differentiation southward into South Africa.

• Some differentiation of a west African wet forest and an east African open forest and steppe fauna, although the two overlap and mix complexly.

• These general differences led Wallace to divide the region into 3 subregions: West Africa, East Africa and South Africa

Recommended