NAME: ZIYANDA.Q
SURNAME: NANGU
STUDENT NUMBER: 201502675
DUE DATE: 21-09-17
MAMMAL ORDER ASSIGNMENT
ZOO 222
INTRODUCTION
All species existence continues through reproduction. Without reproduction, life on earth would be terminated, every species would have been extinct by now. It is also said that reproduction is the basis and purpose of all life (Savage, 2016).For a species to continue to exist, it must reproduce. Along with growth and survival, reproduction is one of the primary things that organisms do. Reproduction is the process by which new organisms are produced from existing organisms (Barlow, 2014).
Reproduction is not only important for the survival of an individual but the survival of every population
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May to June is their preferred mating season. Whilst (Schlitter, 2015) states that they prefer autumn and summer seasons for mating. Male pangolins use urine to attract the female pangolin the urine a strong smell which the females can locate using its good sense of smell, though it does not occur frequently in the wild, two male pangolins within the same area may fight over a female in the mating season. Mating period generally lasts for three to five days. Female pangolins have two to five oestrous cycles during the mating season, and each will last for 11-26 days, until pregnancy (Cen et al. 2010). Different species of pangolins have different gestation however they are most relatively 120 to 150 days long. African pangolins typically have just a single offspring at a time, but Asian species may have up to three
Weight at birth is usually 80 to 450g and average length 150mm. their scales are initially soft and pale but harden and become darker as days go by. Pangolin young are nursed by their mothers in nesting burrows, when older the young ride at the back of the mothers tail as they move about foraging. A mother will roll around her baby to protect it when sleeping or if threatened. Weaning takes place for about three months, at this stage they also begin to eat insects in addition to the nursing. At about two years the young is old enough and ready to reproduce
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More work is needed to improve the livability, growth rate and reproduction rate of the captive pangolins (Savage, 2016).
REFERENCES
1. Savage, R. J. G. and M. R. Long. 2016. Mammal Evolution, an Illustrated Guide. Facts of File Publications, New York. 259 pp.
2. Barlow, J. C. 2014. Xenarthrans and pholidotes. Pp. 219-239 in Anderson, S. and J. K. Jones, Jr. Orders and Families of Recent Mammals of the World. John Wiley and Sons, N.Y.686 pp.
3. Feldhamer, G. A., L. C. Drickamer, S. H. Vessey, and J. F. Merritt. 2010. Mammalogy. Adaptation, Diversity, and Ecology. WCB McGraw-Hill, Boston.563pp
4. Myers, P., R. Espinosa, C. S. Parr, T. Jones, G. S. Hammond, and T. A. Dewey. 2017. The Animal Diversity Web (online). Accessed at http://animaldiversity.org.
5. Cen S, Liu N, Ma G, Tang M, Chen H, Xu Z.2010.A current situation of ecology study on pangolins. Chinese Journal of Zoology 39: 46–52.
6. Schlitter (2013) Tree pangolin. http://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/tree-pangolin [accessed