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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
