Porcuppette photographed in the den at Sambane.
The Porcupine in our area specifically target Seringa trees but we have also seen Silver Cluster Leaf trees being eaten. The bark is peeled off in order to get to the nutritious cambium layer, the reddish inner bark.
Porcupines are strict herbivores and virtually all species of trees found within a porcupine's range are eaten. During warm months, porcupines eat leaves, buds, nuts, fruit, twigs and green plants. During the winter, they chew through the outer tree bark to eat the tissue-like inner bark. They strip the trunk with their two front teeth which can sometimes kill the tree. The two large front teeth will continue to grow throughout their entire life.
Source : http://www.mspca.org/programs/wildlife-resources/species-information/about-porcupines.html
We have already noticed increased Porcupine activity at Sambane and excessive digging around the Seringa trees since 13 April 2015.
Interesting Facts About Porcupines
The name or word "Porcupine" comes from the French word "porc- ѐpique" (thorny pig).While searching for food they make grunting sounds and are most active during the night.
Latin name of porcupine is Hystrix africaeaustralis.
The name Porcupine means ‘one who rises up in anger’.
Porcupines can belong to any of the 27 rodent species of the families Hystricidae or Erethizontidae, and all of them have the sharp spines for defending themselves.
They are prickly creatures with more than 30,000 needle-like quills on their back, sides and tail.
A male porcupine is called Boar while the female is called a Sow.
A group of porcupines are known as, wait for it……… a “prickle”!!
Porcupines do not hibernate. They prefer to live in shady places such as forests, hillsides, grasslands and deserts.
They prefer to choose a cave, tree or sand banks that are safe from predators.
Their homes are called dens.
The porcupine is the prickliest of rodents, though its Latin name means "quill pig."
Porcupine species all boast a coat of needle-like quills to give predators a sharp reminder that this animal is no easy meal. Some quills, like those of Africa's crested porcupine, are nearly a foot (30 centimeters) long.
Porcupines have been known to eat insects and small lizards.
It is the largest rodent in Africa. Large for a rodent but the porcupine animal is still small compared to some African animals, weighing less than 30kg.
They live in pairs with their 1-4 offspring and keep to the same burrow. The quills of baby porcupines are soft and flexible at birth.
Porcupines are herbivores; that means that they eat plants. In fact, porcupines eat a variety trees, shrubs and other plants. In the winter they will eat the inner bark of trees.
It neck and shoulders are covered with the crest of stiff hair, which are 15 -30 cm long.
One of the few known facts about porcupines is that they turn on their back and make a 'reverse-charge', in order to drive their needle-like quills into their enemy's flesh.
The porcupine shakes its tail quills to create a rattling sound as a threatening distraction to predators.
They are also capable of erecting all their quills outwards to make themselves' look larger and more intimidating.
When the porcupine sees predators such as lion, leopard or hyena it will often "freeze", in the hope that it will not be noticed.
Porcupine quills are hollow and have spines on the end that make them hard to pull out.
The legs of porcupine are short and sturdy, and each foot has five toes, all equipped with powerful claws.
The average porcupine has about 30,000 quills or specialized hairs, which it uses as a defensive weapon.
They are found mostly all over sub-Saharan Africa, even in some domestic areas.
Quills are just modified hairs made out of keratin, the same substance found in our own hair and fingernails.
The quills do not cover the underside of the porcupine. Porcupines have muscles at the base of each quill that allow them to stand up when the animal is excited or alarmed.
Like all hairs, quills do shed, and when the porcupines shake, loose quills can fly off but without deadly force!
By: Neha Shah
Source : http://www.yensa.com/facts/facts-About-porcupines.htm
