ANIMAL LIFE OF THE SAVANNA

The savanna, particularly in Africa, is the home of wild animals. It is known as the 'big game country' and thousands of animals are trapped or killed each year by people from all over the world. Some of the animals are tracked down for their skins, horns, tusks, bones or hair, others are captured alive and sent out of Africa as zoo animals, laboratory specimens or pets. There is such a wealth of animal life in Africa that many of the animal films are actually taken in the savanna. There are, in fact, two main groups of animals in the savanna, the herbivorous animals and the carnivorous animals. The herbivorous animals are often very alert and move swiftly from place to place in search of green pastures. The leaf and grass eating animals include the zebra, antelope, giraffe, deer, gazelle, elephant and okapi. The carnivorous animals like the tiger, lion, leopard, hyena, panther, jaguar, jackal, lynx and puma have powerful jaws and teeth for attacking other animals.