2. Habits: Partly social, partly
solitary and territorial
Behaviour: The Indian Rhino does not spend
much time defending its territory, although
males, adult females and females with calves
each establish their own feeding area and
sleeping place. If another animal wanders into
one of these areas, the owner drives the
intruder away.
The rhino shares ‘public places, such as paths
through the grass, bathing pools and wallows.
New arrivals are challenged by those already
there, answering grunt with grunt until they are
permitted to join the group.
The Rhino spends the afternoon in the shade,
moving into its more open feeding areas at
dusk and grazing there until midnight.
3. Warning display
The unexpected
appearance of a strange
male in the group may
cause the silverback to
mount an elaborate
display. This starts with
a series of hoots which
become progressively
louder as he works
himself up into a state of
excitement. Eventually
he produces and almost
unbroken flood of
sound, which culminates
in an ear-splitting roar.
He then may take a few
steps towards the
intruder, growling and
gnashing his teeth
Right: The
gorilla
walking on
all fours by
so called
‘knuckle-
walking’
A change of leadership in a social group
does not involve a struggle between
rival silverbacks. When the leader is
past his prime, he simply stands down
to the next most senior candidate.
Each evening, gorillas build up a nest
for the night. Youngsters share a nest
with their mother until the age of
around 3.
4. Habits – The humpback whale’s movements tend to follow set patterns.
The humpback breeds in warm coastal waters, but spends most of the
year in colder regions. It’s migration between the two follows customary
routes and there is little mixing between different stocks.
Humpbacks are often seen in clusters, frequently accompanying a female
and her calf at the breeding area. These clusters are believed to be
males vying for the female’s attention, with one whale at a time taking
on the role of ‘escort’
Threat displays of the humpback whale include blowing a screen of
bubbles, lashing the tail sideways through the water, and crashing the
tail or the whole rear end of the body loudly on the water’s surface.
Call: Complex songs lasting 6-35
minutes and the other sporadic sounds.
Frequencies from 40-5000Hz
Habit: Social and migratory
5. Behaviour
The Bengal Tiger is a solitary
animal that will not tolerate other tigers in
its territory. It marks its boundaries with
strong-smelling secretions and urine
which give a pungent warning to other
tigers. It also leaves visual signals by
shredding the bark of trees within its
territory.
It usually has several dens in its
home range and uses whichever one is
most convenient, leaving it at dusk to
prowl the forest at night.
Habit: Solitary and night-active
