Africa

Africa - Introduction

Australopithecus boisei, an early hominoid, lived in Africa until about 1.2 million years ago during the Pleistocene epoch and is an ancestral link to modern Homo sapiens. The remains were uncovered by archaeologist Mary Leakey at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, a site serving as a treasure trove of other findings. Fossil records and genetic evidence increasingly and strongly suggest Africa as the birthplace of modern humans. Africans have the greatest genetic diversity, implying they have the longest lineage while strong genetic similarities in non-African people point to a more common and recent point of origin. Fossil discoveries, such as Australopithecus boisei, along with new findings and advanced scientific technology, provides us with clear and compelling evidence in the ancestral roots of describing how and when modern human beings emerged out of Africa.

Sandstone Art - Algeria

When South Sudan gained its independence from the Sudan in 2011, Algeria became the largest territorial country in Africa and 10th largest in the world. With four-fifths of Algeria consisting of arid deserts, it is easy to understand why over 90% of the country’s population lives in the cities fronting the cool Mediterranean coast.

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Sandstone Art - A rock painting of a cattle herding scene found in the Tassili n’Ajjer area of southeastern Algeria provides ample evidence of the northern area of the Sahara Desert once having sufficient rainfall to support a wide variety of wild animals: hippopotamus, giraffe, and buffalo. This environment also allowed the establishment of thriving communities able to raise domesticated animals and crops. The desertification of Africa is a continuing process stemming from mismanagement of land and global climate change.

Flesh Flies - Algeria

There are 108 genera within the family Sarcophagidae, containing about 2,500 species of flesh flies. Distributed throughout the world, flesh flies differ from most other flies such as house flies; they are ovoviviparous. Instead of depositing eggs, flesh flies deposit hatched or hatching maggots directly onto carrion, dung, open animal wounds or decaying material. Flesh flies are known to carry the leprosy bacilli, but cannot pass it onto humans directly; as adults, flesh flies do not bite.

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The Phoenicians and Carthaginians were the first to leave their mark on Algeria. With the defeat of Carthage, Numidia sprang forth. The Romans had a strong alliance with Numidia and converted it into a province remaining under Rome’s control for several centuries. The eventual decline of the Roman Empire opened Northern Africa to the Ottoman Turks, who retained the area from 1517 until losing Algeria to the French in 1830. The French stayed until independence was achieved in 1962.

Hedgehogs of Africa

The family Erinaceindae contains hedgehogs and is divided into two sub-families: Erinaceinae, the spiny hedgehogs and Galericinae, the hairy hedgehogs. There are 16 known species of the spiny variety and 8 of the hairy type. Aside from the absence of spines, hairy hedgehogs have longer muzzles and slightly longer legs. The hairy hedgehogs are primarily found in the high wooded areas of Southeast Asia; an area void of the spiny variety. There are no species of hedgehogs native to Australia or the Americas.

Despite their awkward appearance, hedgehogs are versatile. They are able to climb fences and walls with relative ease and speed. With five clawed toes, they are efficient diggers; several species dig nest burrows. Hedgehogs are also competent swimmers; African species found in arid regions without rivers have shown remarkable abilities when crossing water.

As insectivores, hedgehogs feed on beetles, caterpillars, earthworms, and earwigs, but they are not picky in their foraging habits. 

The hedgehogs depicted are the Algerian hedgehog, Atelerix algirus, the Southern African hedgehog, Atelerix frontalis and the Ethiopian hedgehog also known as the desert hedgehog, Paraechinus aethiopicus.

Giraffe - Angola

The current flag of Angola is stylized after the hammer and sickle flag of the former Soviet Union. The machete has replaced the hammer and the machine cog takes the place of the sickle. Both flags feature a gold star. The Angolan flag was adopted in November 1975, when the country achieved its independence.

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Giraffa giraffa - During the tertiary period, the Giraffidae family was represented by several species spread over Africa, Europe, and Asia. The giraffe and the okapi are the two remaining species from the family and their habitat is limited to Africa. Giraffes are the tallest animal; a mature bull can measure 6 meters. Being the tallest animal does provide access to soaring tree canopies, but makes it difficult to drink from a watering hole. The giraffe’s long legs can spread far enough to bring the long neck into contact with water.

Giraffe - Angola

Giraffes, with their long necks, long legs, and distinctive patterns, are one of the easiest animals to recognize. Male and female giraffes have “horns” protruding from their heads. These are called ossicones, formed through the ossification of cartilage. The appearance of the horns can determine the sex of an adult giraffe; females have tufts of hair sprouting from the ossicones tips and males do not. The males lose these tufts of hairs from the constant head butting between rivals during mating battles.

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Angola’s name is derived from the Bantu language. The term “Ngola” was the title given to the rulers of Ndongo, a kingdom centered in the northern highlands of present day Angola. The kingdom flourished from the 14th to the 17th century. The coastal areas began to fall under Portuguese control beginning in the 17th century and remained under Portuguese rule until independence was granted in 1975. From 1975 until 2002, when a peaceful settlement was negotiated, Angola suffered a long and brutal civil war.

Giraffes

There is ongoing debate in the taxonomy of the giraffe; taxonomy is the scientific classification of organisms. In 1758, Swedish botanist and zoologist Carl Linnaeus placed all extant giraffes within one species and labeled them as Cervus camelopardalis. Giraffes form two distinct groups; northern giraffes have three “horns” and southern giraffes have two. Four subspecies are proposed for the northern giraffe; the Nubian, Kordofan, Rothschild’s, and the West African giraffe. Four subspecies are also considered for the southern variety; the Angolan, South African, Masai, and Thornicroft’s giraffe. The reticulated giraffe, having three horns, is considered as a separate subspecies not related to either northern or southern variety. The color and shape of the polygonal markings are one item used to separate each group. Less than 100,000 giraffes of all varieties are estimated to be living in the wild.

Spotted Hyena - Benin

Benin, formerly known as Dahomey, was a West African kingdom emerging in 1600 to became a regional power. It survived for 3 centuries; 1600 to 1904. France began to take control in the 1850’s and by 1904, had included the former kingdom within its French West Africa colonies. Benin achieved independence in 1960.

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Crucuta crucuta - Hyenas were the dominate animal in the carnivore niche. Their fossil remains have been found in North America, Europe, and Asia. Four species, limited to Africa and Asia, remain in existence today. They range from 1 to 1.4 meters in length and weigh 30 to 80 kilos. Usually dismissed as opportunistic scavengers, hyenas are one of the most adaptable and skillful carnivores. The spotted hyena has the highest population of the larger carnivores in Africa and can be found throughout the regions of sub-Saharan Africa.

Mound Building Termites - Benin

Mound building termites can be found in Africa, Australia, and South America. Using grains of sand mixed with saliva, mound building termites are able to construct impressive colonies towering up to 5 meters over the African savannah. A typical mound requires 4 to 5 years of construction and can host over 2 million termites. Termites share a common feature with ants, bees, and wasps; their colonies are divided into castes consisting of workers, soldiers, drones, and the queen.

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The Dahomey Kingdom existed from 1600 until 1900. The kingdom was founded in the Abomey Plateau area by the Fon people, a prominent tribe of Western Africa. During the reign of Houegbadja, 1645 to 1685, the kingdom began to expand beyond its original borders and became more centralized. The kingdom continued to prosper and reached its zenith under King Agaja, Houegbadja’s grandson. By the 1870’s, France had begun to take control of the kingdom’s coastal areas and Dahomey fell into decline.

African Barred Owl - Botswana

The Kalahari Desert, covering an area of over 900,000 square kilometers, is the 5th largest desert in the world. It is located between Southwestern Botswana and Northern South Africa. The Kalahari Desert is home to the Khoi-San people, whose language is characterized through labial or bilabial clicking sounds.

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Glaucidium capense - The African barred owl is sometimes referred to as an “owlet” because of its diminutive size; 20 centimeters in length and weighing 80 to 140 grams. There is little sexual dimorphism between the female and male. The female is slightly larger, but has the same plumage coloring of the male. The African barred owl feeds primarily on insects, but during the breeding season, it will include smaller rodents and birds. The common owl features of ear tufts, nape spots, and false eyes are absent in the African barred owl.

Wattled Crane - Botswana

Bugeranus carunculatus - The wattled crane is the largest and rarest crane in Africa and the second largest crane in the world. Cranes and herons are similar in appearance, but they are unrelated and easy to distinguish; cranes fly with necks outstretched, herons fly with necks pulled back. The wattled crane relies more on wetlands for nesting sites and food sources than the other crane species. The largest concentration of wattled cranes can be found in Botswana’s Okavango Delta.

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Drought and desertification are two important issues confronting the people of Botswana on a daily basis. Surface water in the form of lakes and rivers are sparse in Botswana. The people are overly dependent on ground water as their primary source for personal consumption and farming needs. Approximately 71% of the country’s land is used for raising cattle. This places a heavy strain on water resources and causes depletion of ground water, desertification of the land, and soil erosion.

Rhinoceros of Africa

In evolutionary terms, the rhinoceros is a surviving member of one branch of an ancient line of animals, the ungulates, the first animals to develop hooves. The rhinoceros belongs to a group of ungulates known as the perissodactyls or odd-toed ungulates; this group also includes the horse and tapir. There are currently five extant species of rhinoceros in the world. Of these five, four are under severe threat of facing extinction. There are efforts underway to help preserve the rhinoceros, but those efforts may lack the time and resources necessary to insure their survival. The two species found in Africa are the white and the black rhinoceros. They are respectively classified as Ceratotherium simum and Diceros bicornis. The two African species are easily recognized by the differences in their lips; the white rhinoceros is square-lipped, the black rhinoceros is hooked-lipped.

Common Warthog - Burkina Faso

As a French colony, Burkina Faso was known as “Haute-Volta,” French for Upper Volta. This name was a reflection of the country’s position above the Volta River. Prior to French colonial control, it had existed as a powerful East African state known as The Mossi Empire. The Mossi Empire was founded in the 11th century.

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Phacochoerus africanus - The common warthog is found in open or lightly forested areas. It is black or brown in color and sparsely haired, except for a thick coarse mane running from the neck to the middle of the back. Warthogs, as the name implies, have three pairs of facial warts; they are more prominent on the males. The warts serve as fat reserves, but are also used during battles between males during the mating season. Both sexes have tusks to assist in digging up roots or tubers and to serve as defensive weapons against predators.

Great Snipe - Burkina Faso

Gallinago media - The great snipe is a shorebird. The common feature of these birds are their long legs and bills. The great snipe is migratory; it breeds throughout Scandinavia and Northern Russia and winters in Africa. They are exceptional in their abilities to endure long flights. They are not aerodynamically designed; their wings lack pointed tips and they have a stocky body, but they can attain speeds of 97 km/h and easily cover a course stretching for over 6,700 kilometers.

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Burkina Faso became independent in 1958 and officially changed its name from Upper Volta to Burkina Faso in 1984. The name Upper Volta was derived from three rivers flowing through the area from north to south. Of the three rivers, the Black Volta, with a length of 1,352 kilometers, is the longest. The rivers serve an important agricultural role for Burkina Faso. The Black Volta and Red Volta eventually join the White Volta in Ghana to form Lake Volta, a large reservoir held behind the Akosombo Dam.