Trivia

This page is devoted to Trivia bits about our animals, flowers, trees, insects, birds as well as items of interest in South Africa.

This Page will be updated  so check back often and expand your knowledge in a short fun time.


Sept 19, 2016

 The Wildebeest during migration will  pause briefly in the fall for the females to give birth to their calves.

 

Despite their size, elephants can be turned off by the smallest of critters. One study found that they avoid eating a type of acacia tree that is home to ants. Underfoot, ants can be crushed, but an elephant wants to avoid getting the ants inside its trunk, which is full of sensitive nerve endings

 In Africa, the Equator runs along for almost 2500 miles passing through 6 countries. Gabon, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Kenya and Somalia

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Sept 16, 2016

In the language of the Masai people, Serengeti means 'endless plain'. The Serengeti stretches for endless miles across the East African landscape. A world where over two million animals play out a daily drama of life and death.

Sept 16, 2016

Aardvark means "earth pig" in Afrikaans. It has a distinctive shape, having a long narrow snout and short legs, with strong claws. They use these claws to dig into anthills and termite mounds, and then use their long tongues to penetrate further. Their very sticky saliva enables them to capture insects on their tongues, before pulling them back to eat their meal.

Sept 16, 2016
Millions of years before modern day animals roamed Africa dinosaurs lived there. In Tanzania, a country in East Africa, the oldest dinosaur bones ever discovered were unearthed. This dinosaur, named Nyasasaurus parringtoni, roamed the earth around 240 million years ago 

A wonky beast about the size of a Labrador retriever with a long neck and lengthy tail may be the world's earliest known dinosaur, say researchers who analyzed fossilized bones discovered in Tanzania in the 1930s. 

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Sept 6, 2016

 Rusk- Is a traditional breakfast meal or snack. They have been dried in South Africa since the late 1690s as a way of preserving bread, especially when traveling long distances without refrigeration. Their use continued through the Great Trek and the Boer Wars through to the modern day. Rusks are typically dunked in coffee or tea before being eaten

Mongoose are Creative hunters. they are known to break open bird eggs by throwing them with their forepaws toward a solid object.

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Sept 5, 2016

 Braai -  Barbeque cooked on an open fire

A lion’s heels don’t touch the ground when it walks

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Sept 04, 2016

 The world’s first heart transplant was done in South Africa in 1967 by South African Dr Chris Barnard.

The Word Antelope means "Bright Eyed"
The oversized eyes, set to the sides of the head, provide full wide-angle vision for the antelopes

Like human toddlers, great apes, magpies and dolphins, elephants have passed the mirror test—they recognize themselves in a mirror.

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Sept 03, 2016

Stories of African elephants getting drunk from the fermented fruit of the marula tree are not true, a study concluded. The animals don’t eat the fruit off the ground where it ferments, the fresh fruit doesn’t stay in the elephant’s digestive tract long enough to ferment, and even if an elephant did eat the fermented fruit, it would take 1,400 pieces to get one drunk.

 A lion’s heels don’t touch the ground when it walks.

Walt Disney serves South African wine exclusively at its 73-acre Animal Kingdom Lodge in the United States

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Sept 02, 2016

 Each Zebra has a different strip pattern unique to itself. When a baby zebra is born, it has only a couple of days to memorize it's mothers stripe pattern in order to be able to locate her should they become separated.

The annual Wildebeest migration is always done in a clockwise rotation.

Milo is a chocolate and malt powder that is mixed with hot or cold water or milk to produce a beverage popular in many parts of the world.

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Sept 01, 2016

The River Nile drains north-eastern Africa, and at 6,650 km (4,132 miles), is the longest river in Africa and in the world. It is formed from the Blue Nile, which originates at Lake Tana in Ethiopia, and the White Nile, which originates at Lake Victoria. The Nile River lays in 10 different Countries..

Lions normally walk 4 km/h (2.4 mph), but can run 48-59 km/h (29-35 mph). They are also able to leap distances of up to 12m (36 feet)!

 Elephants drink up to 160 liters of water per day

The Dwarf Blue Butterfly has a wingspan of only 1.25cm and is the smallest butterfly is in the world and is found in South Africa. 

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 August 31, 2016

The Leopard Orchid is also known as  a "trash basket" orchid due to its odd habit of creating a makeshift container of aerial roots to catch falling leaf litter for nutrients. It is commonly found attached to branches of tall trees.

A Leadwood tree can live over 1000 years ] and can subsequently remain standing for many years after the tree has died.

The Jackalberry  fruit  is edible for humans. It's flavor has been described as lemon-like, with a chalky consistency. They are sometimes preserved, can be dried and ground into a flour, and are often used for brewing beer and brandy

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