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The duck There are many breeds of ducks. In our area the most common
and also most well-known breed is the Mallard. When “diving”
they submerge their head and throat into the water in order to
reach their food, the water plants.The trunk and tail show
upwards.
Elephantastic!
Ducklings are nidifugous because immediately after hatching they
can run and swim.
The elephant Elephants are herbivores and feed mainly on grass, leaves, fruits
and roots.
The trunk is the nose of the elephant but is also a special kind of
hand. With the trunk they do many things: caress their little ones,
break off branches, dig holes and also drink.
Elephantastic!
One single toe-nail of an elephant is as big a childs’ hand.
The trunk holds a volume of 15-20 liters of water which the
elephant can squirt into its own throat. Of course, the elephant is
very good at splashing themselves or others!
The fish Fish live in the water and have fins instead of arms and legs. Most
fish have scales. The scales are covered by a thin upper skin which
continuously secretes a form of mucous. The mucous covers the
entire fish and makes them “slippery as an eel”.
There are approximately 25.000 kinds of fish. Amongst them there
are pure herbivores, but most fish also eat meat.
Elephantastic!
Some fish can swim really fast. Tuna and swordfish are the
absolute record-holders as their maximum speed can reach up to
67 m/hour hour (109 km/h).
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The cow The generic term for these species is cattle. After their first calving,
female “cattle” are called cows.
Cattle are herbivores and ruminants.
Ruminants have two digestive systems. They first swallow large
quantities of food without chewing it. Then they later bring it up
again in order to chew it over thoroughly.
Elephantastic!
Wild animals produce milk only as long as their little ones are
suckling. Milk production can be maintained for up to approxima-
tely 300 days after calving if the cow is milked twice a day. A cow
can produce up to 20 liters of milk a day!
The dog All domestic dogs are descendants of the wolf and are carnivores.
The sense of smell is the strongest sense of dogs, followed imme-
diately by a very good sense of hearing. Dogs can smell 40 times
better than human beings.
Dogs sweat differently from people in that they pant: they breathe
through their open mouth, hanging their tongue out, in order to
cool down their body after lots of exercise or if they are in high
temperatures.
Elephantastic!
Dogs are fast and untiring runners. Greyhounds can run up to a
speed of 40mph (65 km/h). Some dogs are trained to be police
dogs or guide-dogs.
The domestic pig
There are many species of domestic pigs that each originally de-
rive from the wild boar.
Pigs are omnivores and mainly dig out their food from the earth in
the open countryside. They can also smell very well. Roots or
larvas in the soil are found without a problem and immediately
dug up.
Elephantastic!
Pigs are intelligent! Piglets brought up by human beings can learn
nearly as many things as a dog and are equally devoted and
faithful.
