DEER

Scientific name: Cervidae

Deer (singular and plural) are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the fallow deer and the chital, and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer (caribou), the roe deer and the moose. Female reindeer, and male deer of all species (except the Chinese water deer), grow and shed new antlers each year. In this they differ from permanently horned antelope, which are in the same order, Artiodactyla.


The musk deer of Asia and water chevrotain (or mouse deer) of tropical African and Asian forests are not usually regarded as true deer and form their own families: Moschidae and Tragulidae, respectively.

Deer appear in art from Paleolithic cave paintings onwards, and they have played a role in mythology, religion, and literature throughout history, as well as in heraldry. Their economic importance includes the use of their meat as venison, their skins as soft, strong buckskin, and their antlers as handles for knives. Deer hunting has been a popular activity since at least the Middle Ages, and remains an important business today.

Pecora

Scientific name: Pecora 
The Pecora are an infraorder of even-toed hoofed mammals with ruminant digestion (Ruminantia, a clade within the Artiodactyla). Most members of Pecora have cranial appendages projecting from their frontal bones; only two extant genera lack them, Hydropotes and Moschus.The name “Pecora” comes from the Latin word pecus, which means “horned livestock”.[Although most pecorans have cranial appendages, only some of these are properly called “horns”, and many scientists agree that these appendages did not arise from a common ancestor, but instead evolved independently on at least two occasions.Likewise, while Pecora as a group is supported by both molecular and morphological studies, morphological support for interrelationships between pecoran families is disputed.


Moose
Scientific name: Alces alces
Height: 1.4 – 2.1 m (Adult, At Shoulder)
Lifespan: 15 – 25 years
Trophic level: Herbivorous Encyclopedia of Life
Mass: Male: 380 – 700 kg (Adult), Female: 200 – 360 kg (Adult)

The Moose (North America) or elk (Eurasia), Alces alces, is the largest extant species in the deer family. Moose are distinguished by the broad, flat (or palmate) antlers of the males; other members of the family have antlers with a dendritic ("twig-like") configuration. Moose typically inhabit boreal forests and temperate broadleaf and mixed forests of the Northern Hemisphere in temperate to subarctic climates. Hunting and other human activities have caused a reduction in the size of the moose's range over time. Moose have been reintroduced to some of their former habitats. Currently, most moose are found in Canada, Alaska, New England, Fennoscandia, Baltic states, and Russia. Their diet consists of both terrestrial and aquatic vegetation. The most common moose predators are the gray wolf along with bears and humans. Unlike most other deer species, moose are solitary animals and do not form herds. Although generally slow-moving and sedentary, moose can become aggressive and move quickly if angered or startled. Their mating season in the autumn features energetic fights between males competing for a female.




Elk
Scientific name: Cervus canadensis
Lifespan: 10 – 13 years (In the wild)
Gestation period: 240 – 262 days
Mass: Male: 320 – 330 kg (Mature), Female: 220 – 240 kg
Height: Male: 1.5 m (At Shoulder, Mature), Female: 1.3 m (At Shoulder)

The Elk, or wapiti (Cervus canadensis), is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, in the world, and one of the largest land mammals in North America and Eastern Asia. This animal should not be confused with the still larger moose (Alces alces) to which the name "elk" applies in British English and in reference to populations in Eurasia.

Elk range in forest and forest-edge habitat, feeding on grasses, plants, leaves, and bark. Male elk have large antlers which are shed each year. Males also engage in ritualized mating behaviors during the rut, including posturing, antler wrestling (sparring), and bugling, a loud series of vocalizations that establishes dominance over other males and attracts females.

Although they are native to North America and eastern Asia, they have adapted well to countries in which they have been introduced, including Argentina and New Zealand. Their great adaptability may threaten endemic species and ecosystems into which they have been introduced.

Elk are susceptible to a number of infectious diseases, some of which can be transmitted to livestock. Efforts to eliminate infectious diseases from elk populations, largely by vaccination, have had mixed success.

Some cultures revere the elk as a spiritual force. In parts of Asia, antlers and their velvet are used in traditional medicines. Elk are hunted as a game species. The meat is leaner and higher in protein than beef or chicken.

It was long believed to be a subspecies of the European red deer (Cervus elaphus), but evidence from a number of mitochondrial DNAgenetic studies beginning in 1998 show that the two are distinct species. Key morphological differences that distinguish C. canadensis from C. elaphus are the former's wider rump patch and paler-hued antlers.





Reindeer
Scientific name: Rangifer tarandus
Height: 85 – 150 cm (Adult, At Shoulder)
Speed: 60 – 80 km/h (Running, North America population)
Trophic level: Herbivorous Encyclopedia of Life
Mass: Male: 160 – 180 kg (Adult), Female: 80 – 120 kg (Adult)
The Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), also known as caribou in North America,is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to arctic, subarctic, tundra, boreal, and mountainous regions of northern Europe, Siberia, and North America.This includes both sedentary and migratory populations. Rangifer herd size varies greatly in different geographic regions. The Taimyr herd of migrating tundra reindeer (R.t. sibiricus) in Russia is the largest wild reindeer herd in the world,with numbers varying between 400,000 and 1,000,000. The second largest is the migratory woodland caribou (R.t. caribou) George River herd in Canada, with variations between 28,000 and 385,000.

Rangifer vary in colour and size from the smallest, the Peary caribou, to the largest, the boreal woodland caribou. The North American range of caribou extends from Alaska, through the Yukon, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, into the boreal forest and south through the Canadian Rockies and the Columbia and Selkirk Mountains. Barren-ground, Porcupine caribou and Peary caribou live in the tundra, while the shy woodland caribou prefers the boreal forest. Two major subspecies in North America, the Porcupine caribou and the barren-ground caribou, form large herds and undertake lengthy seasonal migrations from birthing grounds, to summer and winter feeding grounds in the tundra and taiga. The migrations of Porcupine caribou herds are among the longest of any terrestrial mammal.Barren-ground caribou are also found in Kitaa in Greenland, but the larger herds are in Alaska, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.

While overall widespread and numerous,some of its subspecies are rare and at least one has already become extinct, for example, the Queen Charlotte Islands caribou, Canada.Historically the range of the sedentary boreal woodland caribou covered over half of present-day Canada, and into the northern States in the U.S.. Woodland caribou have disappeared from most of their original southern range and were designated as threatened in 2002 by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC).Environment Canada reported in 2011 that there were approximately 34,000 boreal caribou in 51 ranges remaining in Canada.(Environment Canada, 2011b).Siberian tundra reindeer herd are in decline. For this reason, Rangifer tarandus is considered to be vulnerable by the IUCN.

Human dependence on caribou/wild reindeer began in the Middle Pleistocene period.Arctic peoples, such as the Caribou Inuit, the inland-dwelling Inuit of the Kivalliq Region in northern Canada, the Caribou Clan in the Yukon, Inupiat, Inuvialuit, Hän, Northern Tutchone, and the Gwich'in (who followed the Porcupine Caribou for millennia), have depended on them for food, clothing, and shelter. Hunting of wild reindeer and herding of semi-domesticated reindeer (for meat, hides, antlers, milk and transportation) are important to several Arctic and Subarctic peoples.

The Sami people,(Laplanders), who live in four countries but are one people,have also depended on reindeer herding and fishing for centuries. In Lapland, reindeer pull pulks.

Male and female reindeer can grow antlers annually, although the proportion of females that grow antlers varies greatly between population and season. Antlers are typically larger on males.

In traditional festive legend, Santa Claus's reindeer pull a sleigh through the night sky to help Santa Claus deliver gifts to children on Christmas Eve.




Roe Deer
Scientific name: Capreolus capreolus
Mass: 10 – 35 kg (Adult)
Gestation period: 290 days
Conservation status: Least Concern (Population increasing)
Higher classification: Capreolus

The European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), also known as the western roe deer, chevreuil, or simply roe deer or roe, is a Eurasian species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The roe deer is relatively small, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapted to cold environments. The species is widespread in Europe, from the Mediterranean to Scandinavia and from Britain to the Caucasus and east to northern Iran and Iraq. It is distinct from the somewhat larger Siberian roe deer.

White-tailed deer
Scientific name: Odocoileus virginianus
Gestation period: 201 days
Height: 80 – 100 cm (Adult, At Shoulder)
Trophic level: Herbivorous
Length: 95 – 220 cm
Mass: Male: 68 kg (Adult, In Summer), Female: 45 kg (Adult, In Summer)

The white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia.It has also been introduced to New Zealand, Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Bahamas, Lesser Antilles, and some countries in Europe, such as Finland, the Czech Republic, and Serbia.In the Americas, it is the most widely distributed wild ungulate.

In North America, the species is widely distributed east of the Rocky Mountains, but elsewhere, it is mostly replaced by the black-tailed or mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus). In western North America, it is found in aspen parklands and deciduous river bottomlands within the central and northern Great Plains, and in mixed deciduous riparian corridors, river valley bottomlands, and lower foothills of the northern Rocky Mountain regions from South Dakota and Wyoming to northeastern British Columbia, including the Montana Valley and Foothill grasslands.

The conversion of land adjacent to the northern Rockies into agriculture use and partial clear-cutting of coniferous trees (resulting in widespread deciduous vegetation) has been favorable to the white-tailed deer and has pushed its distribution to as far north as Fort St. John, British Columbia. Populations of deer around the Great Lakes have also expanded their range northwards, due to conversion of land to agricultural uses favoring more deciduous vegetation, and local caribou and moose populations. The westernmost population of the species, known as the Columbian white-tailed deer, once was widespread in the mixed forests along the Willamette and Cowlitz Rivervalleys of western Oregon and southwestern Washington, but today its numbers have been considerably reduced, and it is classified as near-threatened.




Red Deer
Scientific name: Cervus elaphus
Mass: 200 kg (Adult)
Gestation period: 236 days
Length: 2.1 m (Adult)
Trophic level: Herbivorous

The red deer (Cervus elaphus) is one of the largest deer species. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Asia Minor, Iran, parts of western Asia, and central Asia. It also inhabits the Atlas Mountains region between Morocco and Tunisia in northwestern Africa, being the only species of deer to inhabit Africa. Red deer have been introduced to other areas, including Australia, New Zealand, United States, Canada, Peru, Uruguay, Chile and Argentina.In many parts of the world, the meat (venison) from red deer is used as a food source.

Red deer are ruminants, characterized by a four-chambered stomach. Genetic evidence indicates the red deer as traditionally defined is a species group, rather than a single species, although it remains disputed as to exactly how many species the group includes.The closely related and slightly larger American elk or wapiti, native to North America and eastern parts of Asia, had been regarded as a subspecies of red deer, but recently it has been established as a distinct species. It is probable that the ancestor of all red deer, including wapiti, originated in central Asia and resembled sika deer.
Although at one time red deer were rare in parts of Europe, they were never close to extinction. Reintroduction and conservation efforts, such as in the United Kingdom and in Portugal, have resulted in an increase of red deer populations, while other areas, such as North Africa, have continued to show a population decline.




Fallow deer
Scientific name: Dama dama
Mass: 57 kg (Adult) Encyclopedia of Life
Family: Cervidae
Class: Mammalia
Gestation period: 230 days Encyclopedia of Life
The fallow deer (Dama dama) is a ruminant mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. This common species is native to Europe, but has been introduced to Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, South Africa, Fernando Pó, São Tomé, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mayotte, Réunion, Seychelles, Comoro Islands, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Cyprus, Israel, Cape Verde, Lebanon, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United States, the Falkland Islands, and Peru.Some taxonomers include the rarer Persian fallow deer as a subspecies (D. d. mesopotamica), while others treat it as an entirely different species (D. mesopotamica).




Muntiacini
Scientific name: Muntiacini
Genus: Muntiacus; Rafinesque, 1815
Higher classification: Cervinae
Phylum: Chordata
Order: Even-toed ungulate

Muntiacini is a tribe of deer, containing two genera
Elaphodus
Muntiacus

Muntiacini was considered to be a subfamily, Muntiacinae, but is now considered a tribe in Cervinae.




Pudú
Scientific name: Pudu
Higher classification: Capreolinae
Rank: Genus
The pudús (Mapudungun püdü or püdu,Spanish: pudú, Spanish pronunciation: [puˈðu]) are two species of South American deer from the genus Pudu, and are the world's smallest deer. The name is a loanword from Mapudungun, the language of the indigenous Mapuchepeople of central Chile and south-western Argentina.The two species of pudús are the northern pudú (Pudu mephistophiles) from Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, and the southern pudú(Pudu puda; sometimes incorrectly modified to Pudu pudu) from southern Chile and south-western Argentina. Pudús range in size from 32 to 44 centimeters (13 to 17 in) tall, and up to 85 centimeters (33 in) long.As of 2009, the southern pudu is classified as near threatened, while the northern pudu is classified as vulnerable in the IUCN Red List.







Sika deer
Scientific name: Cervus nippon
Higher classification: Cervus
Rank: Species
The sika deer (Cervus nippon) also known as the spotted deer or the Japanese deer, is a species of deer native to much of East Asia, and introduced to various other parts of the world. Previously found from northern Vietnam in the south to the Russian Far East in the north,it is now uncommon in these areas, excluding Japan, where the species is overabundant.








Mule deer
Scientific name: Odocoileus hemionus
Gestation period: 203 days
Class: Mammalia
Family: Cervidae
Trophic level: Herbivorous
Mass: Male: 55 – 150 kg (Adult), Female: 43 – 90 kg (Adult)
The mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) is a deer indigenous to western North America; it is named for its ears, which are large like those of the mule. The several subspecies include the black-tailed deer.

Unlike the related white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), mule deer are generally more associated with the land west of the Missouri River, and more specifically with the Rocky Mountain region of North America. Mule deer have also been introduced to Argentina and Kauai, Hawaii.







Chital
Scientific name: Axis axis
Higher classification: Axis
Phylum: Chordata
Rank: Species

The chital or cheetal (Axis axis), also known as spotted deer or axis deer, is a species of deer that is native in the Indian subcontinent. The species was first described by German naturalist Johann Christian Polycarp Erxleben in 1777. A moderate-sized deer, male chital reach nearly 90 centimetres (35 in) and females 70 centimetres (28 in) at the shoulder. While males weigh 30–75 kilograms (66–165 lb), the lighter females weigh 25–45 kilograms (55–99 lb). The species is sexually dimorphic: males are larger than females, and antlersare present only on males. The upper parts are golden to rufous, completely covered in white spots. The abdomen, rump, throat, insides of legs, ears and tail are all white. The antlers, three-pronged, are nearly 1 metre (3.3 ft) long.

ZEBRA

Zebras are several species of African equids (horse family) united by their distinctive black and white striped coats. Their stripes come in different patterns, unique to each individual. They are generally social animals that live in small haremsto large herds. Unlike their closest relatives, horses and donkeys, zebras have never been truly domesticated.

There are three species of zebras: the plains zebra, the mountain zebra and the Grévy's zebra. The plains zebra and the mountain zebra belong to the subgenus Hippotigris, but Grévy's zebra is the sole species of subgenus Dolichohippus. The latter resembles an ass, to which zebras are closely related, while the former two look more horse-like. All three belong to the genus Equus, along with other living equids.

The unique stripes of zebras make them one of the animals most familiar to people. They occur in a variety of habitats, such as grasslands, savannas, woodlands, thorny scrublands, mountains, and coastal hills. However, various anthropogenic factors have had a severe impact on zebra populations, in particular hunting for skins and habitat destruction. Grévy's zebra and the mountain zebra are endangered. While plains zebras are much more plentiful, one subspecies, the quagga, became extinct in the late 19th century – though there is currently a plan, called the Quagga Project, that aims to breed zebras that are phenotypically similar to the quagga in a process called breeding back.

Representative Species

Grévy's zebra

Scientific name: Equus grevyi
Higher classification: Equus
Rank: Species


The Grévy's zebra (Equus grevyi), also known as the imperial zebra, is the largest extant wild equid and the largest and most threatened of the three species of zebra, the other two being the plains zebra and the mountain zebra. Named after Jules Grévy, it is the sole extant member of the subgenus Dolichohippus. The Grévy's zebra is found in Kenya and Ethiopia. Compared with other zebras, it is tall, has large ears, and its stripes are narrower.

The Grévy's zebra lives in semi-arid grasslands where it feeds on grasses, legumes, and browse; it can survive up to five days without water. It differs from the other zebra species in that it does not live in harems and has few long-lasting social bonds. Male territoriality and mother–foal relationships form the basis of the social system of the Grévy's zebra. This zebra is considered to be endangered. Its population has declined from 15,000 to 3,000 since the 1970s. However, as of 2008, the population is stable.

Mountain zebra
Scientific name: Equus zebra
Rank: Species
Higher classification: Equus

The Mountain zebra (Equus zebra) is a threatened species in the family Equidae. It is native to south-western Angola, Namibia and South Africa.

Plains Zebra
Scientific name: Equus quagga
Higher classification: Equus
Rank: Species

The Plains zebra (Equus quagga, formerly Equus burchellii), also known as the common zebra or Burchell's zebra, or locally as the "quagga" (not to be confused with the extinct subspecies), is the most common and geographically widespread species of zebra.It ranges from the south of Ethiopia through East Africa to as far south as Botswana and eastern South Africa. The plains zebra remains common in game reserves, but is threatened by human activities such as hunting for its meat and hide, as well as competition with livestock and encroachment by farming on much of its habitat.

Subspecies include the extinct quagga and six recognized extant subspecies, though there is great variation in coat patterns between individuals. The striping pattern is unique among ungulates in the region, and its functions are disputed. Suggested functions include crypsis, forms of motion camouflage, social signaling and recognition, and discouraging biting flies. As of 2016, the plains zebra is classified as Near Threatened by IUCN.

The Plains zebra's range is fragmented, but spans much of southern and eastern Africa south of the Sahara. Its habitat is generally but not exclusively treeless grasslands and savanna woodlands, both tropical and temperate. They generally avoid desert, dense rain forest and permanent wetlands, and rarely stray more than 30 kilometers from a water source. Predators of the zebra include lions, spotted hyenas, leopards, cheetahs and wild dogs.

The plains zebra  is a highly social species, forming harems with a single stallion, several mares and their recent offspring; there are also bachelor groups. Groups may come together to form herds. The animals keep watch for predators rather than attempting to hide; they bark or snort when they see a predator, and the harem stallion attacks predators to defend his harem. The species population is stable and not endangered, though some populations such as in Tanzania have declined sharply.

 LION

Scientific name: Panthera leo

Lifespan: 10 – 14 years (Adult, In the wild)

Speed: 80 km/h (Maximum, In Short Bursts)

Conservation status: Vulnerable (Population decreasing) Encyclopedia of Life

Mass: Male: 190 kg (Adult), Female: 130 kg (Adult)

The lion (Panthera leo) is a species in the Felidae family and a member of the genus Panthera. It has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1996, as populations in African range countries declined by about 43% since the early 1990s. Lion populations are untenable outside designated protected areas. Although the cause of the decline is not fully understood, habitat loss and conflicts with humans are the greatest causes of concern. The West African lion population is listed as Critically Endangered since 2016. The only lion population in Asia survives in and around India's Gir Forest National Park and is listed as Endangered since 1986.

The lion  typically inhabits grasslands and savannahs, but is absent in dense forest. It is usually more diurnal than other big cats, but when persecuted adapts to being active at night and at twilight. A lion pride consists of a few adult males, related females and cubs. Prides vary in size and composition from three to 20 adult lions, depending on habitat and prey availability. Females cooperate when hunting and prey mostly on large ungulates.They are opportunistic hunters and prefer prey weighing 190 to 550 kg (420 to 1,210 lb).The lion is an apexand keystone predator.

With some males exceeding 250 kg (550 lb) in weight, it is the second-largest living cat species after the tiger.Wild male lions seldom live longer than 10 to 14 years, as injuries sustained from continual fighting with rival males greatly reduce their life span.Captive lions live more than 20 years.

In the Pleistocene, the spelaea cave lion was the most widespread large land mammal and ranged throughout Eurasia to North America.The atrox lion ranged in the Americas to Peru.

Male lions are easily recognized by their manes, and the male's face is one of the most widely recognised animal symbols in human culture. Cultural depictions of lions are known from the Upper Paleolithic period, with carvings and paintings from the Lascaux and Chauvet Caves in France dated to 17,000 years ago, through virtually all ancient and medieval cultures where they once occurred. It has been extensively depicted in sculptures and paintings, on national flags, and in contemporary films and literature. Lions have been kept in menageries since the time of the Roman Empire, and have been a key species sought for exhibition in zoos over the world since the late 18th century. Zoos are cooperating worldwide in breeding programs for the endangered Asiatic lions.

TIGER

Scientific name: Panthera tigris

Conservation status: Endangered (Population decreasing) 

Lifespan: 20 – 26 years (In captivity)

Speed: 49 – 65 km/h (Adult, In Short Bursts)

Mass: Male: 90 – 310 kg (Adult), Female: 65 – 170 kg (Adult)

The tiger (Panthera tigris) is the largest cat species, most recognizable for their pattern of dark vertical stripes on reddish-orange fur with a lighter underside. The species is classified in the genus Panthera with the lion, leopard, jaguar, and snow leopard. Tigers are apex predators, primarily preying on ungulates such as deer and bovids. They are territorial and generally solitary but social animals, often requiring large contiguous areas of habitat that support their prey requirements. This, coupled with the fact that they are indigenous to some of the more densely populated places on Earth, has caused significant conflicts with humans.

Tigers once ranged widely across eastern Eurasia, from the Black Sea in the west, to the Indian Ocean in the south, and from Kolyma to Sumatra in the east. Over the past 100 years, they have lost 93% of their historic range, and have been extirpated from Western and Central Asia, from the islands of Java and Bali, and from large areas of Southeast, Southern, and Eastern Asia. Today, they range from the Siberian taiga to open grasslands and tropical mangrove swamps. The remaining six tiger subspecies have been classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Major reasons for population decline include habitat destruction, habitat fragmentation and poaching. The extent of area occupied by tigers is estimated at less than 1,184,911 km2 (457,497 sq mi), a 41% decline from the area estimated in the mid-1990s. The global population in the wild is estimated to number between 3,062 and 3,948 individuals, down from around 100,000 at the start of the 20th century, with most remaining populations occurring in small pockets isolated from each other, in which about 2,000 tigers live on the Indian subcontinent.In 2016, an estimate of a global wild tiger population of approximately 3,890 individuals was presented during the Third Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation. The WWF declared that the world's count of wild tigers has risen for the first time in a century.

Tigers are among the most recognisable and popular of the world's charismatic megafauna. They have featured prominently in ancient mythology and folklore, and continue to be depicted in modern films and literature. They appear on many flags, coats of arms, and as mascots for sporting teams. The tiger is the national animal of Bangladesh, India, Malaysia and South Korea.

  MONKEY

Phylum: Chordata

Lifespan: Mandrill: 20 years, White-headed capuchin: 44 years, MORE

Gestation period: Mandrill: 175 days, MORE Encyclopedia of Life

Mass: Mandrill: 19 – 37 kg, White-headed capuchin: 2.9 – 3.9 kg, MOREEncyclopedia of Life

Height: Mandrill: 55 – 65 cm, Japanese macaque: 57 cm, MORE

Length: Mandrill: 75 – 95 cm, White-headed capuchin: 34 – 45 cm, MORE Encyclopedia of Life

Monkeys are haplorhine primates, a group generally possessing tails and consisting of about 260 known living species. Many monkey species are tree-dwelling (arboreal), although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Most species are also active during the day (diurnal). Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent, particularly Old World monkeys.

There are two major types of monkey: New World monkeys (platyrrhines) from South and Central America and Old World monkeys (catarrhines of the superfamily Cercopithecoidea) from Africa and Asia. Hominoid apes (consisting of gibbons, orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees, and humans), which all lack tails, are also catarrhines but are not considered monkeys[citation needed], although often they or their ancestors are (which cladistically automatically implies homonoids are as well.)(Tailless monkeys may be called "apes", incorrectly according to modern usage; thus the tailless Barbary macaque is sometimes called the "Barbary ape".) Simians ("monkeys") and tarsiers emerged within haplorrhines some 60 million years ago. New World monkeys and catarrhine monkeys emerged within the simians some 35 millions years ago. Old World monkeys and Hominoidea emerged within the catarrhine monkeys some 25 millions years ago. Extinct basal simians such as Aegyptopithecus or Parapithecus [35-32 million years ago] are also considered monkeys by primatologists.

Lemurs, lorises, and galagos are not monkeys; instead they are strepsirrhine primates. Like monkeys, tarsiers are haplorhine primates; however, they are also not monkeys.

Apes emerged within the catarrhines with the Old World monkeys as a sister group, so cladistically they are monkeys as well. However, traditionally apes are not considered monkeys, rendering this grouping paraphyletic. The equivalent monophyletic clade are the simians.

 ELEPHANTS

Length: Asian elephant: 5.5 – 6.5 m

Mass: Asian elephant: 5,400 kg, African bush elephant: 6,000 kg, African forest elephant: 2,700 kg

Gestation period: Asian elephant: 18 – 22 months, African bush elephant: 22 months

Lifespan: Asian elephant: 48 years, African bush elephant: 60 – 70 years, African forest elephant: 60 – 70 years

Height: Asian elephant: 2.7 m, African bush elephant: 3.3 m

Elephants are large mammals of the family Elephantidae and the order Proboscidea. Three species are currently recognized: the African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), the African forest elephant (L. cyclotis), and the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). Elephants are scattered throughout sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. Elephantidae is the only surviving family of the order Proboscidea; other, now extinct, members of the order include deinotheres, gomphotheres, mammoths, and mastodons.

All elephants have several distinctive features, the most notable of which is a long trunk or proboscis, used for many purposes, particularly breathing, lifting water, and grasping objects. Their incisors grow into tusks, which can serve as weapons and as tools for moving objects and digging. Elephants' large ear flaps help to control their body temperature. Their pillar-like legs can carry their great weight. African elephants have larger ears and concave backs while Asian elephants have smaller ears and convex or level backs.

Elephants are herbivorous and can be found in different habitats including savannahs, forests, deserts, and marshes. They prefer to stay near water. They are considered to be keystone species due to their impact on their environments. Other animals tend to keep their distance from elephants while predators, such as lions, tigers, hyenas, and any wild dogs, usually target only young elephants (or "calves"). Females ("cows") tend to live in family groups, which can consist of one female with her calves or several related females with offspring. The groups are led by an individual known as the matriarch, often the oldest cow.

Elephants have a fission–fusion society in which multiple family groups come together to socialise. Males ("bulls") leave their family groups when they reach puberty and may live alone or with other males. Adult bulls mostly interact with family groups when looking for a mate and enter a state of increased testosterone and aggression known as musth, which helps them gain dominance and reproductive success. Calves are the centre of attention in their family groups and rely on their mothers for as long as three years. Elephants can live up to 70 years in the wild. They communicate by touch, sight, smell, and sound; elephants use infrasound, and seismic communication over long distances. Elephant intelligence has been compared with that of primates and cetaceans. They appear to have self-awareness and show empathy for dying or dead individuals of their kind.

African elephants are listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) while the Asian elephant is classed as endangered. One of the biggest threats to elephant populations is the ivory trade, as the animals are poached for their ivory tusks. Other threats to wild elephants include habitat destruction and conflicts with local people. Elephants are used as working animals in Asia. In the past, they were used in war; today, they are often controversially put on display in zoos, or exploited for entertainment in circuses. Elephants are highly recognisable and have been featured in art, folklore, religion, literature, and popular culture.