This term is used to refer to the five animals that are considered the most difficult and dangerous animals to hunt on the foot in Africa. These animals include the Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Rhino, and Buffalo. Each of them displays unique outstanding characters that make them stand out in the wilderness.
1. Lion
You can call him the king of the jungle, that’s a way of bringing out his character traits. It is the most powerful predator in Africa. This magnificent carnivore has always fascinated man because of its distinctive character.
Lion is more diurnal than other big cats but when persecuted it adapts to being active at night and twilight. The lion is indeed a good hunter, they pull prey down by the rump by a strangling bite to the throat and also kill them by enclosing its mouth and nostrils with their jaws.
Variations in intensity and pitch appear to be central to communication. They also growl, snarl, meow, purr, and roar. Roaring is used to advertise its presence. They tend to do so at night often which can be heard from a distance of 8 km.
2. Leopard
For most of us we really get a hard time differentiating a leopard and a cheetah, today we will clear the air and have all the facts crystal clear. Leopard is a member of the big five but the cheetah does not belong to the club it is just a wild cat.
The leopard is a solitary and territorial animal. They spend most time alone and leave scratches on trees urine scents and even poop just to warn other leopards to keep off! Adults associate in mating season then they part their ways. Females continue to interact with their offspring providing for them until they are around 2-3 years.
Leopard growls, snarls, purrs, and meows. They are nocturnal and have an acute sense of hearing and a great vision for hunting. They open up the throat of their prey and leave their nails on them. Leopards are skilled climbers; they can carry heavy prey into the trees so that pesky scavengers do not get a chance to steal their meals.
The physical and behavioral differences between a leopard and a cheater are as follows;
| LEOPARD | CHEETAH |
| +They do not have tear marks + They are bigger in size and a bit heavier + Their tails have a black tip + Have rosette spots + They are nocturnal hunters + They eat their carrion | + They have tear marks around their eyes + They have slim bodies and light weighed + Their tails have a white tip + Bodies are covered with black solid spots + They hunt during the day thus they are diurnal + They do not eat carrion |
3. Elephant
The world’s largest land animals have a lot of similarities with us human beings. Just like humans they mourn the dead, they are strongholds of family, they comfort upset friends, they babysit; that is female elephants help look after each other’s calves, they like to look at themselves in a mirror, they enjoy hugging and much more similarities.
They use infrasound vibration to communicate with others over long distances. They spend most time eating; at least 5% of their body weight. Their skin is sensitive so they use mud as sunscreen during scorching hot sunny days and also to protect from insect bites. Their large ears are used for temperature regulation. The life span of the elephant is determined by its teeth! That’s shocking right? After 30-35 years, the last set of teeth stop growing.
4. Rhino
The black and white Rhino are both in the big five clubs. If you think you can differentiate the two species by the color of their skin, you are wrong… both are grey in color! Have a close and keen observation for both of them and identify them by their physical and behavioral characteristics.
| BLACK RHINO | WHITE RHINO |
| + The hump is absent + They have pointed lip + They are aggressive and can charge up to 50km\h + Black Rhino are solitary + They are browsers | + It has a hump + The lips are square + They are quiet and rarely charges + WHITE Rhino are social + They are grazers |
Rhinos communicate by different funny noises and sounds; during confrontations, they growl and make ‘trumpet calls’, snort while angry, make sneeze-like calls like alarms, scream while scared, and ‘mmwonk’ when relaxed.
They also communicate through their poo and urine. When rhino poo in the same place as other Rhinos an area known as a latrine. They can also smell the poo and urine and know the individual rhino that is in the area.
Something that you should know, the rhino horn is made up of keratin; the same protein which forms the basis of our hair and nails so there is really nothing special about their horn to make poachers go around hunting them down.
#SAVETHERHINO
5. Buffalo
One of the big five animals that’s is commonly known as ‘the Black Death’ or ‘the widow maker. It is the most dangerous animal and likes to stay alone. These great distractors are large, heavy cow-like animals. They vary greatly not only in size but in the shapes of their horns and their coloring. Adults are usually dark gray or black (or even look red or white if they have been wallowing in mud of that color)
Both males and females have heavy, ridged horns that grow straight out from the head or curve downward and then up. The horns are formidable weapons against predators and are used when jostling for space within the herd; males use the horns in fights for dominance.
They can run up to 37 miles per hour and because of this, they are considered price trophies by big-game hunters.
