Change the world
Centre for African Conservation Ecology
The earliest written records, supported by selected archaeological and palaeontological records, indicate that at the start of the historical period – around 1600 – the geopolitical areas that now constitute the countries of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland (hereafter referred to, for convenience, as ‘South Africa’), together held a spectacular array of larger mammals. Here, the term ‘larger mammals’, is broadly defined as referring to those medium- to large-sized mammals that have a mass of more than about 4-5 kilograms.
Perusal of the book The Mammals of the Southern African Subregion by JD Skinner and CT Chimimba (2005) reveals that some 68 larger mammal species existed in 'South Africa' at this point in time. These are listed below:
Return to the main menu.
Where in ' South Africa' did the larger mammals live?