Animals that should be on your Bucket-list

Aardwolf

The aardwolf is a yellowish animal with vertical stripes usually black in colouration and a fuzzy black-tipped tail. Its Afrikaans title means “earth wolf.” It stands less than half a meter tall at the shoulder and measures 55 to 80 cm (22 to 31 inches) in length, excluding the 20 to 30-cm (8 to 12-inch) tail. The weight ranges from 8 to 12 kilograms (18 to 26 pounds). It has a long rough ridge of erectile hairs running the length of its back, strong shoulders, and larger front legs than rear legs, much like the hyena. The aardwolf, on the other hand, is a slower runner and has five toes rather than four toes on its front paws.

While the skull is not as solid as a hyena’s, the sharp canine teeth and powerful jaws are preserved and used in violent interactions. The cheek teeth, on the other hand, are merely pegs for chomping its insect diet, that is almost entirely made up of harvester termites. Through its acute pointed ears, the aardwolf senses termites or detects the rustle of dozens of them in the vegetation and sweeps them up with its sticky tongue.

Serval

The serval, Leptailarus Serval, is a medium-sized wild cat that is the biggest of Africa’s wild canids. Tierboskat (Afrikaans) means “tiger-forest-cat,” bush cat, and giraffe cat are some names given to this carnivorous mammal. The serval is a notoriously secretive species that can be found in all forms of African serengeti south of the Sahara favoring tall grass as well as plenty of water. The serval cat is characterized by its long neck and legs, slender body, and large ears. It is closely related with the caracal. Of all the cat species, servals are perhaps the most active hunters. Whereas lions and leopards only succeed three to four times out of ten times while chasing prey, these small cats succeed 50 percent of the time. They are crepuscular, meaning they hunt at dusk as well as at night.

Servals have a variety of adaptations that have allowed them to become outstanding hunters. They have large ears that function as antennae, and their hearing is so sensitive that they can track their prey underground. Their long necks allow them to see through tall grass; they can leap 2 to 3 meters in the air and run up to 80 kilometers per hour.

Bat-eared fox

The bat-eared fox gets its name from its large ears, which measure 114 – 135 mm in length. The outsides of its ears, raccoon-like “face-mask,” lower legs, feet, and tails tip are black, while the neck and underparts are yellow-brown. Except for its large paws, the bat-eared fox is differentiated from other foxes by its distinct dentition. The bat-eared fox has at least 3 top and bottom lower molars, while all other canids have only two top and three bottom molars. A large step-like protrusion on the bottom jaw anchors the broad digastric muscle, which is used for quick insect grazing. The legs aren’t very long.

Bat-eared foxes live in dry pastures and savannas, favoring areas of short grass. They are skilled diggers who live in dens created by foxes or abandoned by other creatures such as aardvarks. Dens have many exits, chambers, and tunnels that stretch for several meters. In its natural range, a family can have many dens.