How much can a black wildebeest weigh?
Black wildebeest
The black wildebeest or white-tailed gnu ("Connochaetes gnou") is one of the two closely related wildebeest species. It is a member of the genus "Connochaetes" and family Bovidae. It was first described in 1780 by Eberhard August Wilhelm von Zimmermann. The black wildebeest is typically in head-and-body length, and the typical weight is . Males stand about at the shoulder, while the height of the females is . The black wildebeest is characterised by its white, long, horse-like tail. It also has a dark brown to black coat and long, dark-coloured hair between its forelegs and under its belly.
Black wildebeest
However, black wildebeest can also affect human beings negatively. Wild individuals can be competitors of commercial livestock, and can transmit fatal diseases such as rinderpest, and cause epidemics among animals, particularly domestic cattle. They can also spread ticks, lungworms, tapeworms, flies, and paramphistome flukes.
Black-breasted buzzard
Intermediate in body size between the well-known larger wedge-tailed eagle ("Aquila audax)" and the smaller little eagle ("Hieraaetus morphnoides"), the black-breasted buzzard is one of Australia’s largest birds of prey. An adult buzzard measures 51–61 cm in height including its short square tail. The buzzard’s outstretched wingspan measures 147–156 cm, rendering the bird distinctive in flight as its wings are conspicuously long relative to its stout body and tail. Buzzards appear sexually monomorphic (identical in physical appearance), although the adult female is slightly larger, weighing approximately 1330 g compared to the 1196 g of the adult male. It is most closely related to the Square-tailed kite ("Lophoictinia isura").
Honey badger
Honey badgers are the largest terrestrial mustelids in Africa. Adults measure in shoulder height and in body length, with the tail adding another . Females are smaller than males. In Africa, males weigh while females weigh on average. The mean weight of adult honey badgers from different areas has been reported at anywhere between , with a median of roughly , per various studies. This positions it as the third largest known badger, after the European badger and hog badger, and fourth largest extant terrestrial mustelid after additionally the wolverine. However, the average weight of three wild females from Iraq was reported as , about the typical size of the males from largest-bodied populations of wolverines or from male European badgers in late autumn, indicating that they can attain much larger than typical sizes in favorable conditions. Skull length is in males and for females.
Cape wild dog
The Cape wild dog is the largest subspecies, weighing . It is much more colourful than the East African subspecies, though even within this single subspecies there are geographic variations in coat colour: specimens inhabiting the Cape are characterised by the large amount of orange-yellow fur overlapping the black, the partially yellow backs of the ears, the mostly yellow underparts and a number of whitish hairs on the throat mane. Those in Mozambique are distinguished by the almost equal development of yellow and black on both the upper and underparts of the body, as well as having less white fur than the Cape form.
Black-footed cat
The black-footed cat is the smallest wild cat in Africa and rivals the rusty-spotted cat as the world's smallest wild cat. Males reach a head-to-body length of with tails long. Females are smaller with a maximum head-to-body-length of and tails long.
Adult resident males weigh on average and a maximum of . Adult resident females weigh on average and a maximum of .
The shoulder height is about .
Black wildebeest
More than 18,000 individuals are now believed to remain, 7,000 of which are in Namibia, outside their natural range, and where they are farmed. Around 80% of the wildebeest occurs in private areas, while the other 20% is confined in protected areas. The population is now trending upward (particularly on private land) and for this reason the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), in its Red List of Threatened Species, rates the black wildebeest as being of "Least Concern". Its introduction into Namibia has been a success and numbers have increased substantially there from 150 in 1982 to 7,000 in 1992.
Wildebeest
Wildebeest inhabit the plains and open woodlands of parts of Africa south of the Sahara. The black wildebeest is native to the southernmost parts of the continent. Its historical range included South Africa, eSwatini, and Lesotho, but in the latter two countries, it was hunted to extinction in the 19th century. It has now been reintroduced to them and also introduced to Namibia, where it has become well established. It inhabits open plains, grasslands, and Karoo shrublands in both steep mountainous regions and lower undulating hills at altitudes varying between . In the past, it inhabited the highveld temperate grasslands during the dry winter season and the arid Karoo region during the rains. However, as a result of widespread hunting, it no longer occupies its historical range or makes migrations, and is now largely limited to game farms and protected reserves.
Whiptail wallaby
It is distinguished by its paler colouring and white stripe under its face. Their faces have a chocolate-brown fur covering their muzzle. They are black and white on its chest and the rest is grey to brown fur. Males weigh from 14 to 26 kilograms and stand at a height from 70 to 93 cm. Females weigh from 7 to 15 kilograms and stand at a height from 65 to 75 cm.
Black vulture
The black vulture is a fairly large bird of prey, measuring in length, with a wingspan. Weight for black vultures from North America and the Andes ranges from but in the smaller vultures of the tropical lowlands it is . 50 vultures in Texas were found to average while 119 birds in Venezuela were found to average . The extended wing bone measures , the shortish tail measures and the relatively long tarsus measures . Its plumage is mainly glossy black. The head and neck are featherless and the skin is dark gray and wrinkled. The iris of the eye is brown and has a single incomplete row of eyelashes on the upper lid and two rows on the lower lid. The legs are grayish white, while the two front toes of the foot are long and have small webs at their bases. The feet are flat, relatively weak, and are poorly adapted to grasping; the talons are also not designed for grasping, as they are relatively blunt.
Grizzly bear
Most adult female grizzlies weigh , while adult males weigh on average . Average total length in this subspecies is , with an average shoulder height of and hindfoot length of . Newborn bears may weigh less than . In the Yukon River area, mature female grizzlies can weigh as little as . One study found that the average weight for an inland male grizzly was around 272 kilograms (600 lb) and the average weight for a coastal male was around 408 kilograms (900 lb). For a female, these average weights would be 136 kilograms (300 lb) inland and 227 kilograms (500 lb) coastal, respectively. On the other hand, an occasional huge male grizzly has been recorded which greatly exceeds ordinary size, with weights reported up to . A large coastal male of this size may stand up to tall on its hind legs and be up to at the shoulder.
Woolly mammoth
The woolly mammoth was roughly the same size as modern African elephants. Males reached shoulder heights between and weighed up to . Females reached in shoulder heights and weighed up to . A newborn calf weighed about . The woolly mammoth was well adapted to the cold environment during the last ice age. It was covered in fur, with an outer covering of long guard hairs and a shorter undercoat. The colour of the coat varied from dark to light. The ears and tail were short to minimise frostbite and heat loss. It had long, curved tusks and four molars, which were replaced six times during the lifetime of an individual. Its behaviour was similar to that of modern elephants, and it used its tusks and trunk for manipulating objects, fighting, and foraging. The diet of the woolly mammoth was mainly grass and sedges. Individuals could probably reach the age of 60. Its habitat was the mammoth steppe, which stretched across northern Eurasia and North America.
Black wildebeest
The black wildebeest inhabits open plains, grasslands, and Karoo shrublands in both steep mountainous regions and lower undulating hills. The altitudes in these areas vary from . The herds are often migratory or nomadic, otherwise they may have regular home ranges of . Female herds roam in home ranges around in size. In the past, black wildebeest occurred in the highveld temperate grasslands during the dry winter season and the arid Karoo region during the rains. However, as a result of massive hunting of the animal for its hide, they vanished from their historical range, and are now largely limited to game farms and protected reserves in Southern Africa. In most reserves, the black wildebeest shares its habitat with the blesbok and the springbok.
Largest organisms
The heaviest living animals are all cetaceans, and thus also the largest living mammals. Since no scale can accommodate the whole body of a large whale, most whales have been weighed by parts.The following is a list of the heaviest wild land animals, which are all mammals. The African elephant is now listed as two species, the African bush elephant and the African forest elephant, as they are now generally considered to be two separate species.
Temeraire (series)
Much more common than heavyweights, these dragons make up the bulk of any country's aerial forces. Middleweights range in weight from 10 tons to 20 tons. Yellow Reapers can weigh as little as 10 tons (with a maximum weight of 17 tons), making them one of the smallest middleweights. British Parnassians are said to be large middleweights, weighing around 18 tons on average, very close to the minimum weight of a heavyweight dragon. Middleweights are much more likely to show special offensive capabilities, such as spitting acidic venom (Longwings), or breathing fire ("Flamme-de-Gloire") than heavyweights. Middleweights tend to be faster and more agile than heavyweights, although if lacking special abilities, they are unlikely to be able to match any heavyweight in a fight.
Hartebeest
The hartebeest (; "Alcelaphus buselaphus"), also known as kongoni, is an African antelope. Eight subspecies have been described, including two sometimes considered to be independent species. A large antelope, the hartebeest stands just over at the shoulder, and has a typical head-and-body length of . The weight ranges from . It has a particularly elongated forehead and oddly shaped horns, short neck, and pointed ears. Its legs, which often have black markings, are unusually long. The coat is generally short and shiny. Coat colour varies by the subspecies, from the sandy brown of the western hartebeest to the chocolate brown of the Swayne's hartebeest. Both sexes of all subspecies have horns, with those of females being more slender. Horns can reach lengths of . Apart from its long face, the large chest and the sharply sloping back differentiate the hartebeest from other antelopes.
Blue wildebeest
The blue wildebeest exhibits sexual dimorphism, with males being larger and darker than females. The blue wildebeest is typically in head-and-body length. The average height of the species is . While males weigh up to , females seldom exceed . A characteristic feature is the long, black tail, which is around in length. All features and markings of this species are bilaterally symmetrical for both sexes. The average life span is 20 years in the wild, and 21 years in captivity. The oldest known captive individual lived for 24.3 years.
Bengal tiger
The heaviest wild tiger was disputably a huge male killed in 1967 by David Hassinger at the foothills of the Himalayas. It weighed after eating a buffalo calf, and measured in total length between pegs, and over curves. Without eating the calf beforehand, it would have likely weighed at least . This specimen is on exhibition in the Mammals Hall of the Smithsonian Institution.
Blue wildebeest
The gestation period is about 8.5 months, and between 80 and 90% of the calves are born within a 3-week time period. Female wildebeest give birth in the middle of a herd rather than alone, and typically in the middle of the day. This allows time for the newborn to become steady on its feet before night falls and the predators become more active. Calves weigh about at birth, and can usually stand on their own within a few minutes of birth. To escape predation, calves remain close to their mothers for a significant time, and may continue suckling until the next year's calf is nearly due. Some calves leave their mother at about 8 months and form herds with other juveniles. In large female herds, 80% of the wildebeest offspring survive the first month, compared to a 50% survival rate in smaller herds.
Alaska Peninsula brown bear
Alaska Peninsula brown bears are the second largest type of brown bear in the world, only after the giant bears of Kodiak Island. They usually measure 8 feet (2.4 m) in length, usually have a shoulder height of about 4-4-1/2 feet (1.2-1.4 m), and a hindfoot length of 11 in (28 cm). One study found that the average weight for a coastal male was around 408 kilograms (900 lb). For a female, this average weight would be 227 kilograms (500 lb). On the other hand, an occasional huge male brown has been recorded which greatly exceeds ordinary size, with weights reported up to . A large coastal male of this size may stand up to tall on its hind legs and be up to at the shoulder. The biggest individual on record was shot in 1948 near Cold Bay. Its weight was estimated at to . This bear just came out of hibernation and carried little or no fat; that means the animal would have weighed around at the end of the summer. Although variable from blonde to nearly black, grizzly bear fur is typically brown in color with white tips. A pronounced hump appears on their shoulders; the hump is a good way to distinguish a black bear from a grizzly bear, as black bears do not have this hump.
Western capercaillie
Cocks typically range from in length with wingspan of and an average weight of . The largest wild cocks can attain a length of and weight of . The largest specimen recorded in captivity had a weight of . The weight of 75 wild cocks was found to range from . The body feathers are dark grey to dark brown, while the breast feathers are dark metallic green. The belly and undertail vary from black to white depending on race (see below).
Ol Pejeta Conservancy
Poaching and habitat loss are depleting rhino and elephant populations all over Africa. The African elephant is listed as "Vulnerable" on the IUCN list, the white rhino is "Near Vulnerable" and the black rhino is "Critically Endangered". Rhino horn is erroneously believed to have medicinal properties by many people in Asia, and is used as traditional dagger handles in Yemen. As of January 2014, it can fetch US$60,000–100,000. One kilogram of ivory can fetch US$1,000–3,000. With the tusks of an adult elephant weighing up to 50 kg, potential profits for poachers and traders are huge.
The trade in rhino horn and ivory is so lucrative that, increasingly, poachers are gaining access to automatic weapons, silencers and night-vision to carry out their work. Protecting wildlife from these criminals is an expensive business. Convention has it that the cost of protecting wildlife habitat doubles with the presence of black rhino. Currently, it costs approximately US$17,300 per square kilometre (US$70 per acre) to secure the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, who have a number of security and anti-poaching measures.
Wild boar
Newborn piglets weigh around 600–1,000 grams, lacking underfur and bearing a single milk incisor and canine on each half of the jaw. There is intense competition between the piglets over the most milk-rich nipples, as the best fed young grow faster and have stronger constitutions. The piglets do not leave the lair for their first week of life. Should the mother be absent, the piglets lie closely pressed to each other. By two weeks of age, the piglets begin accompanying their mother on her journeys. Should danger be detected, the piglets take cover or stand immobile, relying on their camouflage to keep them hidden. The neonatal coat fades after three months, with adult colouration being attained at eight months. Although the lactation period lasts 2.5–3.5 months, the piglets begin displaying adult feeding behaviors at the age of 2–3 weeks. The permanent dentition is fully formed by 1–2 years. With the exception of the canines in males, the teeth stop growing during the middle of the fourth year. The canines in old males continue to grow throughout their lives, curving strongly as they age. Sows attain sexual maturity at the age of one year, with males attaining it a year later. However, estrus usually first occurs after two years in sows, while males begin participating in the rut after 4–5 years, as they are not permitted to mate by the older males. The maximum lifespan in the wild is 10–14 years, though few specimens survive past 4–5 years. Boars in captivity have lived for 20 years.
Mexican black kingsnake
In the wild, most kingsnakes are moderately sized, reaching an average length of 90-120 Centimeters (3–4 feet), and tend to be plump and stocky in girth. However, in captivity, some kingsnakes can exceed 1,5 Meters (5 feet). This is most likely attributed to the larger and more stable diet they receive in captivity, compared to what they might receive in the wild. These snakes can weigh up to 1,3 Kg (3lbs). as they reach adulthood (dependant on their size), and can live anywhere between 20 and 30 years.
Black mamba
The black mamba is a long, slender, cylindrical snake with a "coffin-shaped" head with a somewhat pronounced brow ridge and a medium-sized eye. The adult snake's length typically ranges from but specimens have grown to lengths of . It is the second-longest venomous snake species, exceeded in length only by the king cobra. The black mamba is a proteroglyphous (front-fanged) snake, with fangs up to in length, located at the front of the maxilla. The tail of the species is long and thin, making up 17–25% of its body length. Black mambas weigh about on average.
Verreaux's eagle
Of the two species regularly taken, the yellow-spotted rock hyrax can weigh from with an average of , although specimens from Zimbabwe are noticeably heavier and larger than specimens from Serengeti National Park. Cape hyrax, weighing from with average of around , can be even larger than the Verreaux's eagles themselves, so can be more difficult to kill. Yellow-spotted rock hyraxes are more often taken in the Matobo Hills, perhaps because of their smaller size or its more diurnal habits. Adult rock hyraxes were disproportionately selected, perhaps due to being out in the open more regularly. In Cape hyraxes, 1 to 2 year old males are particularly vulnerable, since they are forced to disperse at sexual maturity. Juvenile hyraxes constituted from 11-33% of prey remains in the Western Cape while 18% of hyraxes killed were juveniles in Matobo Hills. Because of their greater weight, Cape hyraxes are frequently either consumed at the kill site (putting the eagle at risk of losing prey to competing predators or to attack by large mammalian carnivores) or are decapitated and brought to the nest or perch. Fewer skulls or jaws of Cape hyraxes have been found at nest sites than yellow-spotted rock hyrax skulls. However, the Cape hyrax has a wider distribution than the yellow-spotted and the Verreaux's eagle may hunt the Cape hyrax almost exclusively outside of the long band of eastern Africa where the smaller species is distributed. In comparison to the golden eagle, Verreaux's eagle has a foot pad that's about 20% wider, which is possibly an adaptation to taking the bulky and broad-backed rock hyrax. The foot of the Verreaux's eagle is reportedly even larger than a human hand. In South Africa, where the Cape hyrax is the main prey species, the estimated mean size of prey taken to the nest is around , perhaps twice as heavy as prey taken by some nesting golden eagles. However, the mean size of prey taken by Verreaux's eagle in the Matobo Hills, with more yellow-spotted rock hyrax, was around , around the same estimated weight as prey taken by golden eagles in Europe and smaller than the average estimated mass of prey taken to golden eagle nests in some regions, like Scotland or Mongolia.
Black wildebeest
Though they are not present in their natural habitat in such large numbers today, black wildebeest were at one time the main herbivores in the ecosystem and a main prey item for large predators such as the lion. Now, they are economically important for human beings, as they are a major tourist attraction, as well as providing animal products such as leather and meat. The hide makes good quality leather and the flesh is coarse, dry and rather hard. Wildebeest meat is dried to make biltong, an important part of South African cuisine. The meat of females is more tender than that of males, and is at its best during the autumn season. The wildebeest can provide 10 times as much meat as Thomson's gazelle. The silky, flowing tail is used to make fly-whisks or "chowries".
Black-and-white owl
The black-and-white owl is a medium-sized owl with a round head and no ear tufts. It is between 35–40 cm in length and weigh between 400-535 grams. It has a striped black-and-white breast, belly, and vent. With the exception of a black-and white striped collar, the upperparts from the crown to the tail are a sooty black. The facial disc is mostly sooty black, with white “eyebrows” that extend from the bill to the collar. The beak is a yellow-orange colour, and the eyes are a reddish brown.
Captive white tigers
Mohini, a daughter of Mohan, was officially presented to President Eisenhower by John W. Kluge, in a ceremony at the White House on December 5, 1960, and went to live at the Lion House, in the National Zoo, in Rock Creek Park. A reporter for The New York Times described the meeting of Mohini and President Eisenhower: "The President shied noticeably when the beast roared and leaped in his direction inside the traveling cage drawn up on the White House south driveway. An eloquent "Well!" was the President's only comment for the next few seconds." T.H. Reed, the director of the National Zoo, gave this description of Mohini: "Her stripes were black, shading into brown, but her main coat was eggshell white instead of the normal rufous orange. Exotic coloring and magnificent physique made her a tiger without peer. For a two-year-old kitten she had tremendous growth-almost 190 pounds, three feet tall at the shoulders, and eight feet from nose to tail." White tigers are larger and heavier than regular orange tigers. The average length of a white tiger at birth is 53 cm, compared to 50 cm for a normal orange cub. Shoulder height is 17 cm (normal 12 cm), weight 1.37 kg (normal 1.25 kg). Dalip and Krishna, two white tigers at New Delhi Zoo, weighed 139 kg and 120 kg respectively, at two years of age. Ram and Jim, two normal colored tigers at the same zoo, weighed 106 kg and 119 kg, at the same age. Raja, the white tiger, had a shoulder height of 100 cm, at ten years of age, while Suraj, an orange tiger, had a shoulder height of only 90 cm, at 12 years of age, according to New Delhi Zoo director K.S. Sankhala. Ratna and Vindhya, orange tigresses "from the white race", who carried the white gene as a recessive (both were fathered by Mohan), were higher at the shoulder than average, measuring 87 and 88 cm, compared to a normal orange tigress named Asharfi, who measured 82 cm at the shoulder. White tigers also grow faster than orange tigers. This would have given them an advantage in the wild.
Blackburnian warbler
Blackburnian warblers are small passerines and average-sized wood-warblers. They measure around long, with a wingspan, and weigh . The average mass of an adult bird is , although is slightly higher in fall due to fat reserves, averaging . Among standard measurements, the wing chord is , the tail is , the bill is and the tarsus is . In summer, male Blackburnian warblers display dark gray backs and double white wing bars, with yellowish rumps and dark brown crowns. The underparts of these birds are white, and are tinged with yellow and streaked black. The head is strongly patterned in yellow and black, with a flaming-orange throat. It is the only North American warbler with this striking plumage. Other plumages, including the fall male and adult female, are washed-out versions of the summer male, and in particular lack the bright colors and strong head pattern. The Blackburnian warbler is practically unmistakable if seen well, even the female due her dull-yellow supercilium, contrasting with greyish cheeks and yellow throat contrasting with the dark streaky sides and back. The only other wood-warbler with an orange throat is the flame-throated warbler of Central America and is very distinctive, lacking the contrasting blackish streaking about the head and whitish underside of a male Blackburnian. Basic plumages show weaker yellows and gray in place of black in the breeding male. Blackburnian warblers' songs are a simple series of high "swi" notes, which often ascend in pitch. Transliterations have included "zip zip zip zip zip zip zip zip", "titititi tseeeeee" or "teetsa teetsa teetsa teetsa". Their call is a high "sip". Genetic research has shown that their closed living relative is the bay-breasted warbler, the latter species perhaps specialized to forage in the same coniferous trees at lower levels. Hybridization in the wild has been recorded once each with a bay-breasted warbler (in West Virginia, with a black-and-white warbler (in Pennsylvania) and possibly a wintering hybrid with a Kirtland's warbler (in Hispaniola).
Florida black bear
Florida black bears are typically large-bodied with shiny black fur, a short tail and many have brown fur on their muzzles. Pelage color is consistently black in Florida, but summer molting of guard hair may cause them to look brown. A white chest patch, called a blaze, is found in about 30% of the population. It is Florida's largest terrestrial mammal, with an average male weight of ; the largest known male weighed and was found in Seminole County and the largest known female was and found in Liberty County. Females generally weigh about half as much as males. Average adults have a length of between and , standing between and high at the shoulder. Their feet have short, curved, non-retractable claws on each of the five digits. Black bears walk with the entire sole of their feet touching the ground. Bears use a pacing stride, where both legs on the same side move together so that the hind foot is placed in or slightly in front of the track of the forefoot; the smaller (inner) toe occasionally does not register in the track. Eyes are small, and ears are round and erect.
Bald uakari
The bald uakari weighs between 2.75 and 3.45 kg (6.1 and 7.6 lb), with head and body lengths average 45.6 cm (18.0 in) (male) and 44.0 cm (17.3 in) (female). In general, the bald uakari has a long, shaggy coat ranging from white in color to red and its head is bald. The tail is bob-like and rather short for a New World monkey (about ), at only half the length of the body and head combined. Its scarlet red face is due to the lack of skin pigments and plentiful capillaries that run under its facial tissue.
Great grebe
This is a very large grebe, with proportions more like a goose or a cormorant then a typical grebe. They range in length from 67–80 cm (26-32 inches) and usually weigh about 1600 grams (3.5 lb), but can scale to at least 2 kg (4.4 lb). They are buffy-rufous on the neck and chest, blackish on the back and have a whitish belly. The head is sooty gray with a reddish-brown eye. Due to its size and unique coloration, the great grebe is unlikely to be confused with any other bird, including other grebes.
Largest organisms
The African bush elephant ("Loxodonta africana"), of the order Proboscidea, is the largest living land animal. A native of various open habitats in sub-Saharan Africa, this elephant is commonly born weighing about . The largest elephant ever recorded was shot in Angola in 1974. It was a male measuring from trunk to tail and lying on its side in a projected line from the highest point of the shoulder to the base of the forefoot, indicating a standing shoulder height of . This male had a computed weight of 12.25 tonnes.
Great Indian bustard
The great Indian Bustard ("Ardeotis nigriceps") or Indian bustard is a bustard found on the Indian subcontinent. A large bird with a horizontal body and long bare legs, giving it an ostrich like appearance, this bird is among the heaviest of the flying birds. Once common on the dry plains of the Indian subcontinent, as few as 150 individuals were estimated to survive in 2018 (reduced from an estimated 250 individuals in 2011) and the species is critically endangered by hunting and loss of its habitat, which consists of large expanses of dry grassland and scrub. These birds are often found associated in the same habitat as blackbuck. It is protected under Wildlife Protection Act 1972 of India.
Eastern chimpanzee
Adult chimpanzees in the wild weigh between . Males can measure up to and females up to in height. The chimpanzee's body is covered with coarse black hair, except for the face, fingers, toes, palms of the hands and soles of the feet. Both of its thumbs and its big toes are opposable, allowing a precision grip.
Black wildebeest
Black wildebeest are mainly active during the early morning and late afternoon, preferring to rest during the hottest part of the day. The animals can run at speeds of . When a person approaches a herd to within a few hundred metres, the wildebeest snort and run a short distance before stopping and looking back, repeating this behaviour if further approached. They communicate with each other using pheromones detected by flehmen and several forms of vocal communication. One of these is a metallic snort or an echoing "hick", that can be heard up to 1.5 km (1 mi) away. They are preyed on by the lion, spotted hyena, Cape hunting dog, leopard, cheetah, and crocodile. Of these, the calves are targeted mainly by the hyenas, while lions attack the adults.
Northwestern wolf
Northwestern wolves are one of the largest subspecies of wolves. In British Columbia, Canada, five adult females averaged and ten adult males averaged , with a weight range for all adults of . In Yellowstone National Park, adult females were reported to average and adult males averaged reportedly , with a mean adult body mass in winter of . Based on known reported adult average body masses, this would make the northwestern wolf the largest-bodied wolf subspecies, in comparison the mean adult weights of its two nearest rivals in size, the Eurasian wolf ("C. l. lupus") and the Interior Alaskan wolf ("C. l. pambasileus"), was reported as and , respectively. Sir John Richardson described the northwestern wolf as having a more robust build than the European wolf, with a larger, rounder head and a thicker, more obtuse muzzle. Its ears are also shorter, and its fur bushier.
Black eagle
The black eagle is a large but slender eagle, at about in length and in wingspan. Despite its large appearance (it is one of the largest eagles in its range), known weights are relatively modest, at between , about half the weight of the partially sympatric mountain hawk-eagle, the latter being of a similar total length. Adults have all-black plumage, with a yellow bill base (cere) and feet. The wings are long and pinched in at the innermost primaries giving a distinctive shape. The tail shows faint barring and upper tail covers are paler. When perched the wing tips reach till or exceed the tail tip. The wings are held in a shallow V (wings just above the horizontal plane) in flight. Seen on hot afternoons, scouring the treetops for a nest to maraud, this bird is easily spotted by its jet black colour, large size, and a characteristic slow flight, sometimes just above the canopy.
Black wildebeest
The black wildebeest is known to hybridise with its taxonomically close relative, the blue wildebeest. Male black wildebeest have been reported to mate with female blue wildebeest and vice versa. The differences in social behaviour and habitats have historically prevented interspecific hybridisation between the species, but hybridisation may occur when they are both confined within the same area. The resulting offspring is usually fertile. A study of these hybrid animals at Spioenkop Dam Nature Reserve in South Africa revealed that many had disadvantageous abnormalities relating to their teeth, horns, and the wormian bones in the skull. Another study reported an increase in the size of the hybrid as compared to either of its parents. In some animals, the auditory bullae are highly deformed, and in others, the radius and ulna are fused.
Big cat
Male and female lions typically weigh and respectively, and male and female tigers and respectively. Exceptionally heavy male lions and tigers have been recorded to exceed in the wilderness, and weigh around in captivity.
Black-tailed jackrabbit
The black-tailed jackrabbit does not migrate or hibernate during winter and uses the same habitat of 0.4 to 1.2 mi (1–3 km) year-round. Its diet is composed of various shrubs, small trees, grasses, and forbs. Shrubs generally comprise the bulk of fall and winter diets, while grasses and forbs are used in spring and early summer, but the pattern and plant species vary with climate. The black-tailed jackrabbit is an important prey species for raptors and carnivorous mammals, such as eagles, hawks, owls, coyotes, foxes, and wild cats. The rabbits host many ectoparasites including fleas, ticks, lice, and mites; for this reason, hunters often avoid collecting them.
Like other jackrabbits, the black-tailed jackrabbit has distinctive long ears, and the long powerful rear legs characteristic of hares. Reaching a length about , and a weight from , the black-tailed jackrabbit is the third-largest North American hare, after the antelope jackrabbit and the white-tailed jackrabbit. The black-tailed jackrabbit's dorsal fur is agouti (dark buff peppered with black), and its undersides and the insides of its legs are creamy white. The ears are black-tipped on the outer surfaces, and unpigmented inside. The ventral surface of the tail is grey to white, and the black dorsal surface of the tail continues up the spine for a few inches to form a short, black stripe. The females are larger than males, with no other significant differences.
Wild boar
The wild boar is a bulky, massively built suid with short and relatively thin legs. The trunk is short and massive, while the hindquarters are comparatively underdeveloped. The region behind the shoulder blades rises into a hump, and the neck is short and thick, to the point of being nearly immobile. The animal's head is very large, taking up to one third of the body's entire length. The structure of the head is well suited for digging. The head acts as a plough, while the powerful neck muscles allow the animal to upturn considerable amounts of soil: it is capable of digging into frozen ground and can upturn rocks weighing . The eyes are small and deep-set, and the ears long and broad. The species has well developed canine teeth, which protrude from the mouths of adult males. The middle hooves are larger and more elongated than the lateral ones, and are capable of quick movements. The animal can run at a maximum speed of 40 km/h and jump at a height of . Sexual dimorphism is very pronounced in the species, with males being typically 5–10% larger and 20–30% heavier than females. Males also sport a mane running down the back, which is particularly apparent during autumn and winter. The canine teeth are also much more prominent in males, and grow throughout life. The upper canines are relatively short and grow sideways early in life, though gradually curve upwards. The lower canines are much sharper and longer, with the exposed parts measuring in length. In the breeding period, males develop a coating of subcutaneous tissue, which may be thick, extending from the shoulder blades to the rump, thus protecting vital organs during fights. Males sport a roughly egg-sized sack near the opening of the penis, which collects urine and emits a sharp odour. The function of this is not fully understood.
Adult size and weight is largely determined by environmental factors; boars living in arid areas with little productivity tend to attain smaller sizes than their counterparts inhabiting areas with abundant food and water. In most of Europe, males average in weight, in shoulder height and in body length, whereas females average in weight, in shoulder height and in body length. In Europe's Mediterranean regions, males may reach average weights as low as and females , with shoulder heights of . In the more productive areas of Eastern Europe, males average in weight, in shoulder height and in body length, while females weigh , reach in shoulder height and in body length. In Western and Central Europe, the largest males weigh and females . In North-Eastern Asia, large males can reach brown bear-like sizes, weighing and measuring in shoulder height. Some adult males in Ussuriland and Manchuria have been recorded to weigh and measure in shoulder height. Adults of this size are generally immune from wolf predation. Such giants are rare in modern times, due to past overhunting preventing animals from attaining their full growth.
Black-bearded flying fox
Adults weigh approximately .
It is one of the heavier species of its family, based on the few individuals that have been weighed.
The fur is dark red on its brow, face, between the eyes, and under the jaw.
On its head, neck, shoulders, and ventral side, it is bright reddish brown.
Individual hairs are bicolored, with the base of the hair pale and yellowish while the tip is darker.
Its dorsal surface is dark brown, with bright yellow hairs sparsely throughout.
The uropatagium is covered with long, dark brown fur.
Its forearm is approximately long.
Its ears are shorter than its muzzle.
While in many species of bats the wings attach to the sides of the body, in this species, the wings attach closer to the spine.
The legs and forearms lack fur.
The baculum is long.
It has a robust skull compared to other members of its genus.
African leopard
The African leopard is sexually dimorphic; males are larger and heavier than females. Between 1996 and 2000, 11 adult leopards were radio-collared on Namibian farmlands. Males weighed only, and females . The heaviest known leopard weighed about , and was recorded in South West Africa.
Common blackbird
The common blackbird of the nominate subspecies "T. m. merula" is 23.5 to 29 centimetres (9.25 to 11.4 in) in length, has a long tail, and weighs 80–125 grams (2.8 to 4.4 oz). The adult male has glossy black plumage, blackish-brown legs, a yellow eye-ring and an orange-yellow bill. The bill darkens somewhat in winter. The adult female is sooty-brown with a dull yellowish-brownish bill, a brownish-white throat and some weak mottling on the breast. The juvenile is similar to the female, but has pale spots on the upperparts, and the very young juvenile also has a speckled breast. Young birds vary in the shade of brown, with darker birds presumably males. The first year male resembles the adult male, but has a dark bill and weaker eye ring, and its folded wing is brown, rather than black like the body plumage.
Black phoebe
The black phoebe is a medium-sized flycatcher, being in length and weighing . It has predominantly black plumage, with white on its belly and undertail coverts. The white forms an inverted "V" in the lower breast. The sexes are identical and plumage does not vary seasonally. Juveniles have browner plumage, cinnamon-brown feather tips on their body, and brown wing-bars. The bird has brown irises and black legs, feet, and beak.
Black hawk-eagle
The black hawk-eagle is 58–70 cm (23–28 in) long and weighs about 900-1,300 grams (2-2.9 lbs). It has black plumage with varying patterns on its wings and body, and white speckling in places. It has barred wings, slightly elliptical in shape, and a long, narrow tail which is rarely fanned. The four grey bars on the tail are distinctive to the black hawk-eagle, as is the white line seen slightly above the bird's eye.
While flying, the broadness and shortness of the wings become apparent. While in flight, the bird's tail is typically kept closed.
Western brush wallaby
Although quite small, the western brush wallaby's coloring resembles the larger kangaroos of the region. The western brush wallaby's head and body length usually falls around 1.2 m. Their tail length, which ranges from 54–97 cm, is proportionally long to their smaller body size. The adult western brush wallaby weighs anywhere from 7.0-9.0 kg. Their coloring consists of a pale to mid gray coat with a distinct white facial stripe. Other distinct features include black and white ears, black hands and feet, and crest of black hairs on the tail. The size of the male and female are quite similar.
Wildebeest
Not all wildebeest are migratory. Black wildebeest herds are often nomadic or may have a regular home range of . Bulls may occupy territories, usually about apart, but this spacing varies according to the quality of the habitat. In favourable conditions, they may be as close as , or they may be as far apart as in poor habitat. Female herds have home ranges of about in size. Herds of nonterritorial bachelor males roam at will and do not seem to have any restrictions on where they wander.
Blue wildebeest
In terms of skull length, the smallest subspecies of the blue wildebeest is the western white-bearded wildebeest. It is also the darkest subspecies; the eastern white-bearded wildebeest is the lightest race. Both subspecies possess a creamy white beard, whereas the beard is black in both the Nyassaland wildebeest and the common wildebeest. The longest muzzles are found in the Nyassaland wildebeest, and the shortest in female western white-bearded wildebeest.
Swift fox
The swift fox has a dark, grayish, tan coloration that extends to a yellowish tan color across its sides and legs. The throat, chest, and belly range from pale yellow to white in color. Its tail is black-tipped, and it has black patches on its muzzle. Its ears are noticeably large. It is about 12 inches (30 cm) in height, and 31 inches (79 cm) long, measuring from the head to the tip of the tail, or about the size of a domestic cat. Its weight ranges from around five to seven pounds. Males and females are similar in appearance, although males are slightly larger.
Interior Alaskan wolf
The wolf has a height of 85 cm (33.5 in) with an average male weight of and for females . Individual weights can vary from to . In Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve male wolves average 50.3 kg (111 lb) and females 44 kg (97 lb); in Denali National Park and Preserve male wolves average 47.6 kg (105 lb). One specimen weighed . It was killed on 70 Mile River in east-central Alaska on July 12, 1939. One wolf was purported to weigh , however large Alaskan wolves are known to hold up to of moose meat in their stomachs. The most common color for this subspecies is tawny grey or tan, but can also range from white to black. The lifespan ranges from 4 to 10 years, the oldest being 12 years.
Black Forest Horse
The Black Forest Horse, also called the Black Forest cold blood or "Schwarzwälder Kaltblut", is a rare draft horse breed originating in southern Germany.
Features of the Black Forest Horse include a dark chestnut coat with a flaxen mane and tail, a short head, strong neck, well laid back shoulders, wide croup (hindquarters) and expansive gaits. It stands from and weighs approximately 650 kg. It has very strong hooves and joints.
Wildebeest
The estrous cycle is about 23 days and the gestation period lasts 250 to 260 days. The calves weigh about at birth and scramble to their feet within minutes, being able to move with the herd soon afterwards, a fact on which their survival relies. The main predator of the calves is the spotted hyena. The calving peak period lasts for 2–3 weeks, and in small subpopulations and isolated groups, mortality of calves may be as high as 50%. However, in larger aggregations, or small groups living near large herds, survival rates may be over 80%.
Great Plains wolf
The Great Plains wolf's distribution once extended throughout the Great Plains from southern Manitoba and Saskatchewan southward to northern Texas. They are described as a large, light-colored wolf but with black and white varying between individual wolves, with some all white or all black. The body length is with a weight of the male averaging and the heaviest recorded at . The Indians of North Dakota told of how only three of these wolves could bring down a buffalo, include a large old bull.
Wolf
The gray wolf is the largest extant member of the Canidae, excepting certain large breeds of domestic dog. Gray wolf weight and size can vary greatly worldwide, tending to increase proportionally with latitude as predicted by Bergmann's Rule, with the large wolves of Alaska and Canada sometimes weighing 3–6 times more than their Middle Eastern and South Asian cousins. On average, adult wolves measure in length and in shoulder height. The tail measures in length. The ears are in height, and the hind feet are . The mean body mass of the extant gray wolf is , with the smallest specimen recorded at and the largest at . Gray wolf weight varies geographically; on average, European wolves may weigh , North American wolves and Indian and Arabian wolves . Females in any given wolf population typically weigh less than males. Wolves weighing over are uncommon, though exceptionally large individuals have been recorded in Alaska, Canada, and the forests of western Russia. The heaviest recorded gray wolf in North America was killed on 70 Mile River in east-central Alaska on July 12, 1939 and weighed .
African wild ass
The African wild ass is long and (12 to 14 hands) tall at the shoulders, with a tail long. It weighs between . The short, smooth coat is a light grey to fawn colour, fading quickly to white on the undersides and legs. There is a slender, dark dorsal stripe in all subspecies, while in the Nubian wild ass ("E. a. africanus"), as well as the domestic donkey, there is a stripe across the shoulder. The legs of the Somali wild ass ("E. a. somaliensis") are horizontally striped with black, resembling those of a zebra. On the nape of the neck, there is a stiff, upright mane, the hairs of which are tipped with black. The ears are large with black margins. The tail terminates with a black brush. The hooves are slender and approximately of the diameter as the legs.
Mangrove black hawk
The adult mangrove black hawk is 43–53 cm long and weighs around 930 g. It has very broad wings, and is mainly black with a brownish cast to the upper-wings. The short tail is black with a single broad white band and a white tip. The bill is black and the legs and cere are yellow.
Black wildebeest
The black wildebeest is a gregarious animal with a complex social structure comprising three distinct groups, the female herds consisting of adult females and their young, the bachelor herds consisting only of yearlings and older males, and territorial bulls. The number of females per herd is variable, generally ranging from 14 to 32, but is highest in the densest populations and also increases with forage density. A strong attachment exists among members of the female herd, many of which are related to each other. Large herds often get divided into smaller groups. While small calves stay with their mothers, the older ones form groups of their own within the herd. These herds have a social hierarchy, and the females are rather aggressive towards others trying to join the group. Young males are generally repelled by their mothers before the calving season starts. Separation of a young calf from its mother can be a major cause of calf mortality. While some male yearlings stay within the female herd, the others join a bachelor herd. These are usually loose associations, and unlike the female herds, the individuals are not much attached to each other. Another difference between the female and bachelor herds is the lesser aggression on the part of the males. These bachelor herds move widely in the available habitat and act as a refuge for males that have been unsuccessful as territorial bulls, and also as a reserve for future breeding males.
Bovini
Wild cattle are usually massive bovids that are stout-bodied with thick, short legs. Some species can reach impressive body-sizes such as wild water buffalo and gaur which can weigh between 700 and 1,200 kilograms. The latter species can reach a shoulder height at 2 meters. There even some breeds of domestic cattle that can be even larger than both wild species, one of them being the Chianina which can the bulls can weigh from 1,200 to 1,500 kilograms and reach a similar height to the gaur. There are, however, several species of buffalo that live on the various islands in Indonesia are dwarf species, such as the tamaraw and the anoa, that weigh between 200 and 300 kilograms. Furthermore, not all species of bovin look like cattle, such as the saola which looks more like antelope (a fact that caused some confusion among bovid biologists). What all bovins or wild cattle do have in common is both sexes have the presents of smooth horns, instead of annulated horns seen in most other bovids. In bovinans the horns are round, while in bubalinans they are flattened. Like the spiral-horned antelopes there is extreme sexual dimorphism in bovins, though it is emphasis on the body size and the size of the horns. Males are significantly larger than the females, which most of their features are exaggerated with massive humps, large necks, and in some species the presence of a dewlap. Males and females exhibit sexual monochromatism (with the exception of the banteng, where males are a dark chestnut while females are just chestnut), though the male coloration hues are darker than the females. Coloration can be uniform or with some white markings, from black to brown.
Elasmotherium
The white rhinoceros at an estimated weight of 2.3 tonnes has been photographed galloping at a speed of about . In a gallop, all feet are off the ground ("ballistic phase") twice a cycle, a feat that elephants, at 2.7–10 tonnes, cannot perform. They can walk up to ; however, their straight, relatively inflexible legs are those of striders, not the bent and spring-like legs of gallopers, which use haunches, ankle mobility and knee flexion to spring off the ground on alternative legs of a pair. "Elasmotherium" legs are sufficiently like those of the White Rhino to hypothesize a similar gait even though "Elasmotherium" weighed 4.5-5 ton.
Black-cheeked warbler
The black-cheeked warbler is 13-13.5 cm long and weighs 13 g. It has a rufous crown, long white supercilia and black cheeks. The upperparts are dull olive, the breast is olive-grey, and the belly is yellow-white. The sexes are similar, but the young bird is browner on the upperparts, has a dull supercilium, a greyer breast, and shows two cinnamon wingbars.
Tiger
The Bengal and Siberian tigers are amongst the tallest cats in shoulder height. They are also ranked with the Caspian tiger among the biggest cats that ever existed. However, on average, a wild adult male Siberian tiger at body weight is outweighed by an adult, male Bengal tiger at .
A well-known allele found only in the Bengal population produces the white tiger, a colour variant first recorded in the Mughal Empire in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Genetically, whiteness is recessive: a cub is white only when both parents carry the allele for whiteness. It is not albinism, pigment being evident in the white tiger's stripes and in their blue eyes. The causative mutation changes a single amino acid in the transporter protein SLC45A2. White tigers are more frequently bred in captivity, where the comparatively small gene pool can lead to inbreeding. This has given white tigers a greater likelihood of being born with physical defects, such as cleft palate, scoliosis (curvature of the spine), and strabismus (squint).
White rhinoceros
The white rhinoceros is the largest of the five living species of rhinoceros. By mean body mass, the white rhinoceros falls behind only the three extant species of elephant as the largest land animal and terrestrial mammal alive today. It weighs slightly more on average than a hippopotamus despite a considerable mass overlap between these two species. It has a massive body and large head, a short neck and broad chest.
The head and body length is in males and in females, with the tail adding another and the shoulder height is in the male and in the female. The male, averaging about is heavier than the female, at an average of about . The largest size the species can attain is not definitively known; specimens of up to are considered reliable, while larger sizes up to have been claimed but are not verified. On its snout it has two horn-like growths, one behind the other. These are made of solid keratin, in which they differ from the horns of bovids (cattle and their relatives), which are keratin with a bony core, and deer antlers, which are solid bone.
Royal White
The Royal White is a hair breed of sheep, and the aim is to have a sheep with good proportions where the body is close enough to the ground so that the animal loses little heat to the environment in inclement weather. The sheep is pure white with the ears held horizontally and is naturally polled. Rams weigh between 185 and 235 lb and ewes between 175 and 210 lb.
White-tailed jackrabbit
The white-tailed jackrabbit is a large species of hare and the largest species called "jackrabbit", although two larger hares (the Arctic and Alaskan hares) are found further north in North America. This jackrabbit has an adult length of , including a tail measuring , and a weight between . From winter to spring, weight tends to increase due to pregnancy in females, but decrease due to the stresses of reproductive competition in males. Thus, females in Iowa went from averaging in winter to in spring and males from averaging in winter to in spring. At the northern most extremity of its range, it can be almost twice as large as in the middle of its range. In Saskatchewan, rare specimens have been recorded over . It has distinctive, large, grey ears with black tips which are chestnut brown and white on the inside; and the long, powerful hind legs characteristic of hares. The back, flanks and limbs are dark brown or greyish-brown and the underparts are pale grey. The ear, from the notch, measures from and the hindfoot measures . The tail is white with a dark central stripe above. Females are slightly larger than males. In northern populations, this hare moults in the autumn and becomes white all over except for its ears. They generally make no sound, but will emit a shrill scream if they are injured or caught.
Gray fox
The gray fox is mainly distinguished from most other canids by its grizzled upper parts, black stripe down its tail and strong neck, while the skull can be easily distinguished from all other North American canids by its widely separated temporal ridges that form a U-shape. There is little sexual dimorphism, save for the females being slightly smaller than males. The gray fox ranges from in total length. The tail measures of that length and its hind feet measure . The gray fox typically weighs , though exceptionally can weigh as much as . It is readily differentiated from the red fox by the lack of "black stockings" that stand out on the latter and the stripe of black hair that runs along the middle of the tail as well as individual guard hairs being banded with white, gray, and black. The gray fox displays white on the ears, throat, chest, belly and hind legs. In contrast to all "Vulpes" and related (Arctic and fennec) foxes, the gray fox has oval (instead of slit-like) pupils.
American black bear
American black bear weight tends to vary according to age, sex, health and season. Seasonal variation in weight is very pronounced: in autumn, their pre-den weight tends to be 30% higher than in spring, when black bears emerge from their dens. American black bears on the East Coast tend to be heavier on average than those on the West Coast, although American black bears follow Bergmann's rule and bears from the Northwest are often slightly heavier than the bears from the Southeast. Adult males typically weigh between , while females weigh 33% less at .
Solitary eagle
The adult solitary eagle is uniformly dark gray, often appearing black, with white markings on the tail. It is 63–76 cm (25 to 30 inches) long, weighs 2.75 kg (6 lbs), and has a 152–188 cm (60 to 74 inch) wingspan. It appears very similar to the common black hawk and great black hawk, but is much larger and has significantly broader wings, extending nearly to the tip of the tail. The exceptionally broad wings are one of the prime distinguishing characteristics of this species. Its body also has quite a thickset appearance.
Black wildebeest
The black wildebeest is depicted on the coat of arms of the Province of Natal in South Africa. Over the years, the South African authorities have issued stamps displaying the animal and the South African Mint has struck a 5-rand coin with a prancing black wildebeest.
Whitefaced Woodland
The Whitefaced Woodland is one of the largest hill breeds, with ewes sometimes weighing more the 60 kg (132 lbs) when kept in lowland pastures. Unlike most Pennine breeds it has a white face and legs and short, fine wool. The staple length of the wool is between 10 cm (4.7 inches) to 15 cm (7.1 inches) with a spinning count of 50's to 54's. The average fleece weight is 2 kg (4.5 lb) to 3 kg (6.5 lb). Its main use has been as a meat breed. However, its wool is used in carpet. Both sexes are horned and the ram horns are heavily spiraled.
American black duck
The American black duck (Anas rubripes) is a large dabbling duck in the family Anatidae. It was described by William Brewster in 1902. It is the heaviest species in the genus "Anas", weighing on average and measuring in length with a wingspan. It somewhat resembles the female mallard in coloration, but has a darker plumage. The male and female are generally similar in appearance, but the male's bill is yellow while the female's is dull green with dark marks on the . It is native to eastern North America. During the breeding season, it is usually found in coastal and freshwater wetlands from Saskatchewan to the Atlantic in Canada and the Great Lakes and the Adirondacks in the United States. It is a partially migratory species, mostly wintering in the east-central United States, especially in coastal areas.
Edible dormouse
The edible dormouse is the largest of all dormice, being around in head-body length, plus an 11- to 13-cm-long tail. It normally weighs from , but may almost double in weight immediately prior to hibernation. It has a generally squirrel-like body, with small ears, short legs, and large feet. Its fur is grey to greyish-brown in colour over most of the body, while the underparts and the inner surface of legs are white to pale buff; the line of demarcation is rather well defined.
Black wildebeest
The black wildebeest has a dark brown or black coat, which is slightly paler in summer and coarser and shaggier in the winter. Calves are born with shaggy, fawn-coloured fur. Males are darker than females. They have bushy and dark-tipped manes that, as in the blue wildebeest, stick up from the back of the neck. The hairs which compose this are white or cream-coloured with dark tips. On its muzzle and under its jaw it has black bristly hair. It also has long, dark-coloured hair between its forelegs and under its belly. Other physical features include a thick neck, a plain back, and rather small and beady eyes.
Black colobus
The black colobus monkey is a large species with a head-body length of 50–70 cm and a long tail of around 80 cm. As in all "Colobus" species, the black colobus has a slender build and ischial callosities - tough pads of skin on the rump. There is little sexual dimorphism between the two sexes - adult males can weigh between 10–15 kg, whilst females weigh between 10–11 kg. The black colobus is covered in black fur apart from the ears and face, and has longer hairs on its cheeks and forehead. Unlike other species of colobus monkey, black colobuses have no white markings. The two subspecies of black colobus look very similar, although the fur of "Colobus s. satanas" is slightly longer and fluffier. There is currently not enough data to estimate the life expectancy of the species.
Harpy eagle
Female harpy eagles typically weigh . One source states that adult females can weigh up to . An exceptionally large captive female, "Jezebel", weighed . Being captive, this large female may not be representative of the weight possible in wild harpy eagles due to differences in the food availability. The male, in comparison, is much smaller and weighs only about . Harpy eagles are long and have a wingspan of . Among the standard measurements, the wing chord measures , the tail measures , the tarsus is long, and the exposed culmen from the cere is .
It is sometimes cited as the largest eagle alongside the Philippine eagle, which is somewhat longer on average, and the Steller's sea eagle, which is slightly heavier on average. The wingspan of the harpy eagle is relatively small, an adaptation that increases maneuverability in forested habitats and is shared by other raptors in similar habitats. The wingspan of the harpy eagle is surpassed by several large eagles who live in more open habitats, such as those in the "Haliaeetus" and "Aquila" genera. The extinct Haast's eagle was significantly larger than all extant eagles, including the harpy.
Black wildebeest
The black wildebeest is a herbivore, and almost the whole diet consists of grasses. Water is an essential requirement. The three distinct social groups are the female herds, the bachelor herds, and the territorial bulls. They are fast runners, and communicate using a variety of visual and vocal communications. The primary breeding season for the black wildebeest is from February to April. A single calf is usually born after a gestational period of about 8.5 months. The calf remains with its mother until her next calf is born a year later. The black wildebeest inhabits open plains, grasslands, and Karoo shrublands.
Wildlife of Alaska
The Alaskan subspecies of moose ("Alces alces gigas") is the largest in the world; adult males weigh 1,200 to 1,600 pounds (542–725 kg), and adult females weigh 800 to 1,300 pounds (364–591 kg) Alaska's substantial moose population is controlled by predators such as bears and wolves, which prey mainly on vulnerable calves, as well as by hunters.
Winter white dwarf hamster
The coat of the Winter white hamster is less woolly than that of Campbell's dwarf hamster, and apart from the normal colouring, they can be coloured sapphire, sapphire pearl, or normal pearl. The head length of the Winter white hamster is 70–90 mm, the length of the tail is 5–15 mm, and the hind legs are 11–15 mm. The body weight changes dramatically throughout the year. It is at its lowest during the winter. In males, the body weight ranges from , and in females, . In human care, they are slightly heavier. The average lifespan of the Winter white hamster is one to three years in captivity, though they can live longer. In the wild, they are known to live as little as one year.
Black wildebeest
The black wildebeest is native to southern Africa. Its historical range included South Africa, Swaziland, and Lesotho, but in the latter two countries, it was hunted to extinction in the 19th century. It has now been reintroduced to them and also introduced to Namibia, where it has become well established.
Black wildebeest
Where it lives alongside the blue wildebeest, the two species can hybridise, and this is regarded as a potential threat to the maintenance of the species. The black wildebeest was once very numerous and was present in Southern Africa in vast herds, but by the end of the 19th century, it had nearly been hunted to extinction and fewer than 600 animals remained. A small number of individuals was still present in game reserves and at zoos, and from these, the population was rescued.
Giant forest hog
The giant forest hog is, on average, the largest living species of suid. Adults can measure from in head-and-body length, with an additional tail length of . Adults stand in height at the shoulder, and can weigh from . Females are smaller than males. Females weigh a median of approximately , as opposed to males, which weigh a median of . The eastern nominate subspecies is slightly larger than "H. m. rimator" of Central Africa and noticeably larger than "H. m. ivoriensis" of West Africa, with the latter sometimes being scarcely larger than related species such as the bushpig with a top recorded weight of around . The giant forest hog has extensive hairs on its body, though these tend to become less pronounced as the animal ages. It is mostly black in colour on the surface, though hairs nearest the skin of the animal are a deep orange colour. Its ears are large and pointy, and the tusks are proportionally smaller than those of the warthogs, but bigger than those of the bushpig. Nevertheless, the tusks of a male may reach a length of .
Great bustard
The huge adult male great bustard is amongst the heaviest living flying animal. It is also arguably the most sexual dimorphic extant bird species, in terms of the size difference between males and females. Going on mass, the only known bird with a higher dimorphism is the green peafowl ("Pavo muticus") as the males are apparently near four times as heavy as the female. Among both bustards and all living birds, the upper reported mass of this species is rivaled by that of the kori bustard ("Ardeotis kori"), which, due to its relatively longer tarsi and tail, is both longer and taller on average and is less sexually dimorphic. In terms of weight ranges reported, the great Indian bustard ("Ardeotis nigriceps") also only lags slightly behind these species. A male is typically tall, with a length of around and has a wingspan. The male can range in weight from . Average male weights as reported have been fairly variable: in Russia, males weighed a median of ; in Spain, males weighed a mean of during breeding season and during non-breeding; in Germany, males weighed a mean of ; and the Guinness World Records has indicated that prior to their extirpation male bustards in Great Britain weighed an average of . Average weight of males is almost an exact match to that of male Kori bustards. Among all flying animals and land birds, male Andean condors ("Vultur gryphus") may match or exceed the mean body masses of these male bustards but not their maximum weights. Furthermore, male swans of the two largest species (trumpeter and mute) may attain a similar average mass depending on season and region. In a study in Spain, one male weighed as much as . The heaviest verified specimen, collected in Manchuria, was about . Larger specimens have been reported but remain unverified.
Black-faced grosbeak
The adult black-faced grosbeak is 16.5 cm long, weighs 36 g, and has a heavy, mainly black, bill. It has a black face, yellow head, neck and breast, and olive back, wings and tail. The rump and belly are grey. Immatures are duller and have duskier face markings. The vocalisations include sharp "chip" or "tweet" calls, buzzes and whistles, and the song is a musical whistled "cher chi weet, cher chir weet, cher chi chuweet".
Red hartebeest
"Alcelaphus buselaphus caama" is a large African antelope of the family Bovidae, one of ten subspecies; it is sometimes treated as a separate species, "A. caama". Commonly known as the red hartebeest, it is the most colorful hartbeest, with black markings contrasting against its white abdomen and behind. It has a longer face that other subspecies, with complex curving horns joined at the base. The average weight of a male is about 150 kg, and female is 120 kg. Their average shoulder height is 135 cm, and horns are 60 cm long. The life expectancy of a red hartebeest is around 19 years. Little sexual dimorphism is noted between males and females, showing no distinct identifiable physical features, but body size is slightly affected. Horn size, however, expresses more dimorphism between males and females, as males fight and defend themselves for sexual selection. Thus, male skull weight and circumference is slightly greater than that of the female.
Hartebeests have an excellent sense of hearing and smell, although their sense of sight is poor. When alarmed, hartebeests elude confusion before running, by which they can reach a maximum speed of 55 km/h. Their evasion tactic is to run in a zigzag pattern, making it difficult for predators to catch them.
Wild turkey
The record-sized adult male wild turkey, according to the National Wild Turkey Federation, weighed , with records of tom turkeys weighing over uncommon but not rare. While it is usually rather lighter than the waterfowl, after the trumpeter swan ("Cygnus buccinator"), the turkey has the second heaviest maximum weight of any North American bird. Going on average mass, several other birds on the continent, including the American white pelican ("Pelecanus erythrorhynchos"), the tundra swan ("Cygnus columbianus columbianus") and the very rare California condor ("Gymnogyps californianus") and whooping crane ("Grus americana") surpass the mean weight of turkeys. On one hand, none of these other species are as sexually dimorphic in size as the wild turkey, but on the other, they are also far less numerous and are not legally hunted unlike the turkey, thousands of which are weighed every year during hunting season.
White-tailed mongoose
The white-tailed mongoose attains a weight range of , with an average of approximately , has a head-and-body length of and a tail length of . On average it appears to be the longest and heaviest extant species of mongoose, although its linear and body mass parameters broadly overlap with other larger mongoose species, in particular, the marsh mongoose seems to most closely rival (and possibly match) in range of body masses reported if not average weight. Its legs are relatively long for a mongoose. The head is long and narrow. Its large, rounded ears are set low on the sides of the head. It has a yellow to tan coloration on its body, with long black guard hairs, giving it an overall grizzled grey appearance. Distal from the tibiofemoral joint, the legs are black. The base of the large, bushy tail is brownish yellow, and on its distal half, the tail is white . This appendage may comprise up to 40% of the creature's body length. This species lacks hair on its upper lip and on the forepaws. Females have four teats.
List of animals of Yellowstone
Bison are the largest grazing mammals in Yellowstone National Park. They are obligate herbivores, a grazer of grasslands and sedges in the meadows, the foothills, and even the high-elevation, forested plateaus of Yellowstone. Bison males, called bulls, can weigh upwards of 1,800 pounds. Females (cows) average about 1,300 pounds. Both stand approximately six feet tall at the shoulder, and can move with surprising speed to defend their young or when approached too closely by people. Bison breed from mid-July to mid-August, and bear one calf in April and May. Some wolf predation of bison is documented in Canada and has recently been observed in Yellowstone. Bison live an average lifespan of 20–25 years in the wild.
White-tailed jackrabbit
White-tailed jackrabbits influence the composition of the turf through their selective grazing activities. They are important prey species for various mammalian predators. Red ("Vulpes vulpes") and grey foxes ("Urocyon cinereoargenteus") occasionally capture one, though not many large adults. They are perhaps most important prey for mid-sized carnivores such as the American badger ("Taxidea taxus"), the coyote ("Canis latrans"), and the bobcat ("Lynx rufus") and small supplemental prey for larger ones such as the mountain lion ("Puma concolor") and the gray wolf ("Canis lupus"). Snakes sometimes attack them (usually young ones) and bird predators include eagles, hawks, and owls. Golden eagles ("Aquila chrysaetos") are the only avian predators large enough to regularly take full-grown white-tailed jackrabbits, though ferruginous hawks ("Buteo regalis") and great horned owls ("Bubo virginianus") may occasionally take an adult, though these latter two species and other largish raptorial birds typically attack young. They attempt to evade detection by crouching in the vegetation where their cryptic colouration makes them difficult to observe. They may slink away, but if detected, they bound away at speed, adopting a zigzag course. They can run up to 55 km/hr (34 mi/hr) and leap up to . They are also hunted and eaten by humans.
Sloth bear
Sloth bears adults are a medium-sized species though weight can range variously from in typically-sized females and from in typically-sized males. Exceptionally large specimens of females can scale up to and males up to . The average weight of sloth bears from the nominate subspecies in Nepal was in females and in males. Nominate bears in India were found to weigh average in males and per one study. Specimens from Sri Lanka ("M. u. inornatus") may weight up to in females and in males. However six Sri Lankan male sloth bears averaged only and was the average for four females, so Sri Lankan bears could be up to at least 30% lighter in body mass than nominate race bears and with apparent far more pronounced size sexual dimorphism. They are high at the shoulder, and have a body length of . Besides being smaller than males, females reportedly typically have more fur between their shoulders.
Black lemur
The black lemur is between 90 and 110 centimeters in length, of which 51-65 centimeters are tail. Weight typically ranges between 1.8 and 2.0 kilograms. The black lemur displays sexual dimorphism in coloration. Males have black or dark chocolate fur, while females' fur is of a lighter brown color, generally medium brown, chestnut brown or even orange-brown. Males have large black ear tufts, while females have large white ear tufts.
Wildebeest
Aerial photography has revealed that a level of organisation occurs in the movement of the herd that cannot be apparent to each individual animal; for example, the migratory herd exhibits a wavy front, and this suggests that some degree of local decision-making is taking place. Numerous documentaries feature wildebeest crossing rivers, with many being eaten by crocodiles or drowning in the attempt. While having the appearance of a frenzy, recent research has shown a herd of wildebeest possesses what is known as a "swarm intelligence", whereby the animals systematically explore and overcome the obstacle as one. Major predators that feed on wildebeest include the lion, hyena, cheetah, leopard, and crocodile, which seem to favour the wildebeest over other prey. Wildebeest, however, are very strong, and can inflict considerable injury even to a lion. Wildebeest have a maximum running speed of around . The primary defensive tactic is herding, where the young animals are protected by the older, larger ones, while the herd runs as a group. Typically, the predators attempt to cut out a young or ill animal and attack without having to worry about the herd. Wildebeest have developed additional sophisticated cooperative behaviours, such as animals taking turns sleeping while others stand guard against a night attack by invading predators. Wildebeest migrations are closely followed by vultures, as wildebeest carcasses are an important source of food for these scavengers. The vultures consume about 70% of the wildebeest carcasses available. Decreases in the number of migrating wildebeest have also had a negative effect on the vultures. In the Serengeti ecosystem, Tanzania, wildebeest may help facilitate the migration of other, smaller-bodied grazers, such as Thomson's gazelles ("Eudorcas thomsonii"), which eat the new-growth grasses stimulated by wildebeest foraging.
Black flying fox
The black flying fox has short, black hair with a contrasting reddish-brown mantle, and a mean forearm length of 164 mm (6.46 in) and a mean weight of 710 g (1.57 lb). It is one of the largest bat species in the world, and has a wingspan of more than 1 m.
Dhole
In appearance, the dhole has been variously described as combining the physical characteristics of the gray wolf and the red fox, and as being "cat-like" on account of its long backbone and slender limbs. It has a wide and massive skull with a well-developed sagittal crest, and its masseter muscles are highly developed compared to other canid species, giving the face an almost hyena-like appearance. The rostrum is shorter than that of domestic dogs and most other canids. The species has six rather than seven lower molars. The upper molars are weak, being one-third to one-half the size of those of wolves and have only one cusp as opposed to between two to four, as is usual in canids, an adaptation thought to improve shearing ability, thus allowing it to compete more successfully with kleptoparasites. Adult females can weigh from , while the slightly larger male may weigh from . The mean weight of adults from three small samples was . Occasionally, dholes may be sympatric with the Indian wolf ("Canis lupus pallipes"), which is one of the smallest races of the gray wolf, but is still approximately 25% heavier on average. It stands 17–22 in (43–56 cm) at the shoulder and measures 3.0 ft (0.91 m) in body length. Like the African wild dog, its ears are rounded rather than pointed.
The general tone of the fur is reddish, with the brightest hues occurring in winter. In the winter coat, the back is clothed in a saturated rusty-red to reddish colour with brownish highlights along the top of the head, neck and shoulders. The throat, chest, flanks, and belly and the upper parts of the limbs are less brightly coloured, and are more yellowish in tone. The lower parts of the limbs are whitish, with dark brownish bands on the anterior sides of the forelimbs. The muzzle and forehead are greyish-reddish. The tail is very luxuriant and fluffy, and is mainly of a reddish-ocherous colour, with a dark brown tip. The summer coat is shorter, coarser, and darker. The dorsal and lateral guard hairs in adults measure 20–30 mm in length. Dholes in the Moscow Zoo moult once a year from March to May.
Black-tailed prairie dog
Black-tailed prairie dogs are generally tan in color, with lighter-colored bellies. They may have color variation in their pelt, such as dark fur on their back in black and brown tones. Their tails have black tips, from which their name is derived. Adults can weigh from , males are typically heavier than females. Body length is normally from , with a tail. The black-tailed have black long claws used for digging. The body of the black-tailed prairie dog is compact, and the ears are small and close to the head.
White-tailed deer
The white-tailed deer is highly variable in size, generally following Bergmann's rule that the average size is larger farther away from the Equator. North American male deer (also known as a buck) usually weigh , but in rare cases, bucks in excess of have been recorded. Mature bucks over have been recorded in the northernmost reaches of their native range, specifically, Minnesota and Ontario. In 1926, Carl J. Lenander, Jr., took a white-tailed buck near Tofte, MN, that weighed after it was field-dressed (internal organs and blood removed) and was estimated at when alive. The female (doe) in North America usually weighs from . White-tailed deer from the tropics and the Florida Keys are markedly smaller-bodied than temperate populations, averaging , with an occasional adult female as small as . White-tailed deer from the Andes are larger than other tropical deer of this species, and have thick, slightly woolly looking fur. Length ranges from , including a tail of , and the shoulder height is . Including all races, the average summer weight of adult males is and is in adult females.
Blackbuck
The blackbuck ("Antilope cervicapra"), also known as the Indian antelope, is an antelope found in India, Nepal and Pakistan. The blackbuck is the sole extant member of the genus "Antilope". The species was described and given its binomial name by Swedish zoologist Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized. It stands up to high at the shoulder. Males weigh , an average of . Females are lighter, weighing or on an average. The long, ringed horns, long, are generally present only on males, though females may develop horns as well. The white fur on the chin and around the eyes is in sharp contrast with the black stripes on the face. The coat of males shows two-tone colouration: while the upper parts and outsides of the legs are dark brown to black, the underparts and the insides of the legs are all white. On the other hand, females and juveniles are yellowish fawn to tan.
Black wildebeest
Both sexes have strong horns that curve forward, resembling hooks, which are up to long. The horns have a broad base in mature males, and are flattened to form a protective shield. In females, the horns are both shorter and narrower. They become fully developed in females in the third year, while horns are fully grown in males at age of four or five. The black wildebeest normally has 13 thoracic vertebrae, though specimens with 14 have been reported, and this species shows a tendency for the thoracic region to become elongated. The scent glands secrete a glutinous substance in front of the eyes, under the hair tufts, and on the forefeet. Females have two teats. Apart from the difference in the appearance of the tail, the two species of wildebeest also differ in size and colour, with the black being smaller and darker than the blue.
Kodiak bear
An average adult male measures in length, and stands tall at the shoulder. The largest recorded wild male weighed , and had a hind foot measurement of . A large male Kodiak bear stands up to tall at the shoulder, when it is standing on all four legs. When standing fully upright on its hind legs, a large male could reach a height of . The largest verified size for a captive Kodiak bear was for a specimen that lived at the Dakota Zoo in Bismarck, North Dakota. Nicknamed "Clyde," he weighed when he died in June 1987 at the age of 22. According to zoo director Terry Lincoln, Clyde probably weighed close to a year earlier. He still had a fat layer of when he died.
Black wildebeest
Black wildebeest are predominantly grazers, preferring short grasses, but also feeding on other herbs and shrubs, especially when grass is scarce. Shrubs can comprise as much as 37% of the diet, but grasses normally form more than 90%. Water is essential, though they can exist without drinking water every day. The herds graze either in line or in loose groups, usually walking in single file when moving about. They are often accompanied by cattle egrets, which pick out and consume the insects hidden in their coats or disturbed by their movements.