Dorcas gazelle is the animal most adapted to life in the desert. Dorcas gazelle - an animal that can do without water all its life Unpronounceable consonant sounds in the words of the Russian language

Dorcas gazelle is a frisky and hardy animal that can reach speeds of almost 100 kilometers per hour. These gazelles live in deserts from Africa to China.

Appearance of gazelle-dorcas

Dorcas gazelle is slender and small in size. The color of the back of the gazelle is fawn, and the lower part of the body is lighter. There is a pattern of light and dark stripes on the head, one longitudinal strip runs along the sides, and the tip of the tail is black.

The body length of the Dorcas gazelle ranges from 90-110 centimeters, and the weight reaches 15-20 kilograms.

In males, skin folds may form on the bridge of the nose with age. Lyre-shaped horns are usually present in both sexes. Their surface is with transverse annular ledges. In length, the horns of males reach 25-38 centimeters, while in females they are thinner, straighter, their surface is not so ribbed, and they do not exceed 15-25 centimeters in length.

Continuation of the genus of gazelles-dorcas

Pregnancy in female gazelle-dorcas lasts 6 months. More often 1 baby is born, but sometimes there can be twins. After 2-3 months, the cubs stop eating milk. In females, puberty occurs at 9 months, males mature later - at 18 months. Dorcas gazelles live up to 12.5 years.

Adaptability of dorcas gazelles to difficult desert conditions

These gazelles are one of the most adapted to life in the harsh conditions of the desert: they can not drink water at all, but get moisture from plant foods. They eat various herbs, flowers, leaves and shoots.

They are able to survive at very high temperatures. On too hot days, they are active in the morning or during the night.

In search of food, dorcas gazelles have to travel long distances, they gather in those places where a large amount of rainfall has contributed to the growth of greenery.

Dorcas gazelles lifestyle

Males mark their territory with dung heaps, leaving them around the perimeter and wetting them with urine.

If the gazelles are in danger, they make sounds reminiscent of the quacking of ducks. They make such sounds with their noses, Speke's gazelles use similar signaling methods, but they are less successful.

Dorcas gazelles live in families. In mixed herds, up to 100 heads can graze, and in same-sex herds, up to 40 individuals.

Dorcas gazelle (Gazella dorcas)- a relatively small mammal from the genus of gazelles, a member of the bovid family, originally from North Africa.

Description

Dorcas gazelles are generally similar in appearance to the common gazelle, but smaller in size. Their ears are longer and their horns are more curved. The horns of males are 250-280 mm long, and the number of rings on them is from 20 to 24. The horns of the female are smaller (170-190 mm), and the rings are 16-18 pieces. Adult males, on average, weigh 16.5 kg, while females weigh 12.6 kg. Depending on the location, the color of the Gazelle Dorcas varies. Most of the body is covered with sandy hair, the underbelly is white, and there are two brown stripes on the sides. In northern Sahara, dorcas gazelles are golden with darker flank stripes. Near the Red Sea, the color of the coat is reddish-brown with barely visible side stripes. The head is darker than the rest of the body.

area

Dorcas gazelles live in the northern part of Ethiopia and in the southwest of the Palearctic. These gazelles inhabit part of northern Africa, the Sahara and Negev deserts, including: Morocco, Rio de Oro, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Chad, Somalia, Ethiopia, parts of Israel and Sinai in the Middle East.

natural habitat

Dorcas gazelle is one of the most. Gazelles are found in a variety of places: savannas, semi-deserts, small fields of sand dunes, where various plant species are present. Dorcas gazelles can go their whole lives without drinking water, as they get all the necessary liquid from the plants included in the diet. However, they will drink water if it is available. This species is able to live in very high ambient temperatures, but during extreme heat, they are active mainly at dawn, evening and night. In areas where dorcas gazelles are persecuted, they are active at night to minimize the risk of attacks. Under difficult conditions, gazelles live in pairs, and under favorable conditions, they are found in family herds with one adult dominant male, several females and cubs.

reproduction

The mating season lasts from September to November. At this time, males guard the territory and mark it with their own excrement. Depending on the local climate, a group of dorcas gazelles will consist of one or two males, with a harem of females, or just a pair of male and female. In extreme climatic conditions, with limited resources, gazelles primarily create pairs. The mating system of dorcas gazelles is polygynous.

Females are ready to breed at the age of two. In captivity, pregnancy can occur as early as six months of age. About 90% of females in the wild become pregnant. In almost all cases, one cub is born in one litter. Pregnancy lasts about six months, and the baby is born covered in hair and eyes open. The first weeks of life, the offspring spend hiding in the shade. After that, they begin to follow the mother and look for solid food. Males do not participate in the upbringing of the young.

Females feed offspring for one to two minutes, several times a day, for about 3 months. In the first two weeks of the baby's life, the mother gazelle grazes and sleeps far from him, but leaves him in a relatively safe place. As they grow, young gazelles join their group.

Lifespan

In captivity, dorcas gazelles can live up to 15 years. The average lifespan in the wild is unknown, and may vary between populations.

Nutrition

Dorcas gazelles feed on the flowers, leaves, and pods of the acacia tree in many habitats. Fruits, leaves and various shrubs are also consumed. In the Negev desert, dorcas gazelles feed on the zikenberger plant (Pancratium sickenbergeri). Depending on the season, the ways of obtaining food change. In the summer, gazelles dig holes in the sand to obtain stalks and bulbs of pancratium zikenberger. After winter rains, dorcas gazelles eat fresh sprouted leaves. Methods of obtaining food, provide maximum energy consumption with minimal effort.

Behavior

Gazelles have a distinctive alarm sounding like a short bark and use a louder call in case of extreme danger or pain. Females have a low grunt, with which they call cubs and other individuals of the subspecies. If danger comes from a predator, dorcas gazelles may make a long growling sound signaling danger.

Predation

The population of dorcas gazelles is preyed upon by many predators. , lions, wolves, and hyenas attack gazelles, regardless of the size and age of the animal. The young may be killed by smaller predators such as foxes, eagles, and jackals. Many of these predators have been extirpated from areas where gazelles currently live. Humans, wolves and lynxes continue to be major threats to dorcas gazelles. To observe predators, gazelles use keen eyesight.

Role in the ecosystem

Along with some other ungulates, dorcas gazelles spread the seeds of various plants of the genus Acacia between the Red Sea and Israel.

Economic value to humans: Positive

For centuries, people have hunted dorcas gazelles for their meat and skin.

Economic value to humans: Negative

Dorcas gazelles are better adapted to life in the Negev desert around Israel than other herbivores. They displace other herbivores, such as sheep and goats, which are used for economic purposes.

conservation status

The species is critically endangered and classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN. The main threats to this species include: habitat destruction and illegal hunting.

Video

To quote the great Ian Malcolm, it's worth noting that "life will always find a way." Nature is full of examples of evolution providing a survival mechanism for the flora and fauna that inhabit the Earth. Below are ten animals and plants that have evolved specific characteristics or abilities that allow them to survive or even thrive in their environment.

10. Gazelle Dorcas (Dorcas Gazelle)

Because it is endemic to the Middle East and North Africa, dorcas gazelles have had to develop a number of traits over the course of evolution that would allow them to survive in the almost complete absence of drinking water. First, they can go their whole lives without drinking water, surviving only on the liquid they get from eating plants. In addition, when liquid is nearly impossible to find, dorcas gazelles can conserve water by concentrating their uric acid, removing it from the body as granules rather than liquid. During such periods, they also significantly reduce the amount of liquid in their droppings.

9. Crossbills


Crossbills include a number of passerine species that have adapted to consuming the main product on their menu, pine cones, with great efficiency. Due to the fact that it is very difficult to reach the seeds inside the prickly cones with a normal beak, crossbills have developed a beak, the ends of which intersect, which allows them to quickly open the scales of pine cones and get to the seeds.

They also have very strong tongues that can reach between pine cone scales with their beak open and get seeds. They also feed on insects and fruits, but their beaks have specifically evolved to feed on pine cones, which are much more readily available.

8. Bamboo


This particular plant, like a small number of other plant species, has developed a specific schedule for planting its seeds. Bamboo does not bloom or produce seeds for many years, then a huge number of seeds are released and distributed at once. In mainland China, it is believed that bamboo blooms only once every 120 years, covering the ground with seeds like a blanket.

Scientists have put forward a number of theories as to why bamboo evolved this ability, and one of the most plausible hypotheses is that the plants do this so that the animals that feed on their seeds cannot eat all the seeds. The only disadvantage of such a system is that mature plants often die if a huge number of young shoots begin to grow around them.

7Panamanian Golden Frog


Driven almost to extinction due to habitat loss, the Panamanian golden frog lives exclusively in the rainforests of Panama, mostly near fast-flowing rivers and waterfalls. Because of the great noise in their natural habitat, they have developed an ability that is very rare in the animal kingdom: they use a semaphore.

A rudimentary form of sign language, which is the semaphore, is used by frogs to convey basic messages, such as a desire to mate or a warning of the approach of natural enemies. The males of these frogs also make whistling sounds, despite the fact that these sounds are practically useless due to the fact that this type of frog does not have eardrums.

6. Phallostethus Cuulong


Photo: L.X. Tran
Found as recently as 2009 to be precise, a fish species called Phallostethus cuulong is one of the very few fish species in which eggs are fertilized in the body of a female. In order to facilitate this process, males have developed a penis, which is located on their head. At its end is a saw-like hook that males attach to females during mating.

To keep up with males, females have developed their reproductive organs in their mouths, at the back of their throats. The hook used by males is very useful, as it greatly increases the chances of successful fertilization.

5. Bearded man (Lammergeier)


The name of this species is translated from German as "lamb hawk", which is quite appropriate, given the myths and legends about the ferocity with which they hunt small animals, and even children (although this is most likely fiction). One happy, or vice versa, unfortunate bird, depending on whether you like ancient Greek plays, contributed to the death of Aeschylus (Aeschylus). One of their main sources of nutrition is bone marrow, a food that is incredibly difficult to obtain.

In order to get precious food from the bones of corpses, bearded men throw bones from a height of approximately 80 meters, in the hope that they will hit stones and break.

4. Marcgravia Evenia


'Marcgravia evenia' is a flowering climbing plant that is mainly found in the Cuban rainforest and is pollinated mostly by bats. Due to the poor vision of bats over long distances, this plant has developed a specific trait that helps it stand out to its pollinators. The saucer-shaped leaves that grow above the flowering part of the plant serve as a sort of radar antenna reflector to echolocate the bats, allowing the bats to find them much faster.

Due to the rarity of this plant, as well as the fact that individual plants are scattered over a large area, any reduction in the time it takes bats to find a plant is very beneficial to it. Scientists used leaves from the vine of this plant to test bats and their ability to find hidden food, and found that the leaves reduced search time by 50 percent. In comparison, a regular sheet reduced this time by only 6 percent.

3 Spotted Salamander


A relatively widespread and unassuming animal, the spotted salamander has one of the most unique characteristics in the animal kingdom: it is the first vertebrate known to science that can use photosynthesis. For many years, scientists believed that algae, which have a symbiotic relationship with spotted salamander embryos, were responsible for the chlorophyll that was found in the bodies of the lizards.

However, Canadian researchers recently discovered that the pigments needed for photosynthesis were actually inside the cells of the spotted salamander. What's more, they found that the embryos that interacted with the algae were much more likely to survive and grew much faster.

2 Cassowary Plum


Endemic to New Guinea and the Australian tropics of North Queensland, the cassowary plum is a small tree that grows a highly toxic fruit that is dangerous to almost all animals, including humans. There is only one creature that can eat cassowary plums, and you probably already guessed from the name of the plant that this creature is the cassowary, a large flightless bird. As with most fruits, the seeds of the fruit are encased in a fleshy pulp and they pass through the digestive system of cassowaries without problems due to the fact that the digestive system of these birds is very short and quickly digests food.

In addition, the enzymes contained in the intestines of this bird neutralize the toxicity of the seeds. There is another small rodent that can eat cassowary plum fruit, but it also eats the seeds, which does not help the plant spread. Unfortunately, at the moment, the cassowary itself and the cassowary plum are on the verge of extinction. They may soon disappear if appropriate measures are not taken to protect their habitat.

1London Underground Mosquito


The London Underground system is a breeding ground for an entirely new type of mosquito that branched off from its land-based relatives in a process that took only a hundred years (much less than the thousands of years that evolution usually takes). During the construction of the subway, mosquitoes now known as "Culex Pipiens molestus" entered the tunnels and began to gradually become a separate species.

First, the original version of this mosquito fed exclusively on the blood of birds, but this new species also feeds on rodents and humans. In addition, they have changed their breeding process to better adapt to their new habitat. Normal mosquitoes need to feed on blood first to lay their eggs, but London Underground mosquitoes lay eggs first, as food is hard to come by. Finally, and worst of all for humans, they are active all year round, unlike most mosquito species that hibernate during the winter. Luckily, they cannot interbreed with their surface ancestors, so they mostly stay in the subway system.

• Class: Mammalia Linnaeus, 1758 = Mammals
• Infraclass: Eutheria, Placentalia Gill, 1872 = Placental, higher animals
• Superorder: Ungulata = Ungulates
• Order: Artiodactyla Owen, 1848= Artiodactyls, artiodactyls
• Suborder: Ruminantia Scopoli, 1777 = Ruminants
• Family: Bovidae (Cavicornia) Gray, 1821 = Bovids

Species: Gazella dorcas Linnaeus = Gazelle-dorcas

Gazelle dorcas (Photo by F.Charmoy)

Gazelle Dorcas is a small slender animal with a fawn back and a lighter underside, with the so-called. a facial pattern of dark and light stripes on the head, a dark longitudinal stripe on the sides and a black end of the tail. In older males, skin folds may appear on the bridge of the nose.

Lyre-shaped horns, usually present in both sexes, are covered with annular transverse projections, especially pronounced at the base. In males, they curve back at an acute angle and curve slightly upward at the ends, reaching 25-38 cm in length. In females, the horns are much thinner and more straight, with less ribbed lengths up to 15-25 cm.

Body length: 90-110 cm, withers height: 55-65cm, tail length: 15-20 cm, weight: 15-20 kg. Pregnancy period: About 6 months. In litter 1, rarely 2 cubs, which after 2-3 months stop feeding on milk. Puberty in the female occurs at 9 months, in the male at 18 months.

Life span: up to 12.5 years. One of the most adapted gazelles to life in the desert, Dorcas gazelles can live their whole lives without drinking water, getting all the moisture they need from the plant foods they eat. They can withstand very high temperatures, although during the hot season they are active at dawn, dusk, and all night. Herds of gazelles travel long distances in search of food and congregate in areas where the amount of rainfall has stimulated vegetation growth.

Adult males mark the territory with dung heaps along the perimeter, on which he also urinates. The alarm call of Dorcas gazelles, similar to the quacking of a duck, is made by the animal's nose, which inflates during the process. Speke's gazelles use a similar method, although not so successfully. Dorcas gazelles live in family groups. Same-sex animals graze in herds of up to 40 animals, mixed herds of up to 100.

These are very frisky antelopes, reaching speeds of almost 100 km / h. They live in deserts and semi-deserts from North Africa to China. Food for gazals is grasses, leaves, flowers, fleshy shoots.

Main enemies: cheetah, lion, leopard, hyena, python.

Based on materials from the site http://www.ultimateungulate.com/gazelledorc.html