NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Connochaetes

Connochaetes taurinus
Connochaetes gnou
Reference: The Columbia Encyclopedia (http://www.bartleby.com/65/gn/gnu.html) The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species continuing to survive. ... Photograph of a Blue Wildebeest (Gnu), see Wildebeest Although the animal on this picture was originally name a Black Wildebeest, it is most certainly a Blue Wildebeest. ... Scientific classification - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins/monobook/IE50Fixes. ... Phyla Porifera (sponges) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria Placozoa Bilateria Acoelomorpha Orthonectida Rhombozoa ?Myxozoa Superphylum Deuterostomia Chordata (vertebrates, etc. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicates Ascidiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Typical classes Petromyzontidae (lampreys) Placodermi - extinct Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fish) Acanthodii - extinct Actinopterygii (ray-finned fish) Actinistia (coelacanths) Dipnoi (lungfish) Amphibia (amphibians) Reptilia (reptiles) Aves (birds) Mammalia (mammals) Vertebrata is a subphylum of chordates, specifically, those with backbones or spinal columns. ... Orders Subclass Monotremata Monotremata Subclass Marsupialia Didelphimorphia Paucituberculata Microbiotheria Dasyuromorphia Peramelemorphia Notoryctemorphia Diprotodontia Subclass Placentalia Xenarthra Dermoptera Desmostylia Scandentia Primates Rodentia Lagomorpha Insectivora Chiroptera Pholidota Carnivora Perissodactyla Artiodactyla Cetacea Afrosoricida Macroscelidea Tubulidentata Hyracoidea Proboscidea Sirenia The mammals are the class of vertebrate animals primarily characterized by the presence of mammary... Families Suidae Hippopotamidae Tayassuidae Camelidae Tragulidae Moschidae Cervidae Giraffidae Antilocapridae Bovidae The even-toed ungulates form the mammal order Artiodactyla. ... Subfamilies Bovinae Cephalophinae Hippotraginae Antilopinae Caprinae A bovid is any of almost 140 species of cloven-hoofed mammals belonging to the family Bovidae. ...

The wildebeest (from Dutch "wild animal"), also called gnu (pronounced /nu/ or /nju/), is a large hooved (ungulate) mammal of the genus Connochaetes, which includes two species, both native to Africa: the Black Wildebeest (C. gnou), and the Blue & White-bearded Wildebeest or Blue Wildebeest (C. taurinus). The gnus belongs to the family Bovidae, which includes antelopes, cattle, goats, and other even-toed horned ungulates. Symbols of the International Phonetic Alphabet. ... Ungulates (meaning roughly hoofed or hoofed animal) make up several orders of mammals, of which six survive: Artiodactyla: even-toed ungulates, cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, antelope, and many others Cetacea: whales and dolphins (which evolved from hoofed land animals) Perissodactyla: odd-toed ungulates such as horses and rhinos Proboscidea: elephants... See genus (mathematics) for the use of the term in mathematics. ... Subfamilies Bovinae Cephalophinae Hippotraginae Antilopinae Caprinae A bovid is any of almost 140 species of cloven-hoofed mammals belonging to the family Bovidae. ...

Wildebeest grow to 1.15–1.4 metres (3'9"–4'7") at the shoulder and weigh between 150 and 250 kilograms. (330 and 550 pounds) They inhabit the plains and open woodlands of southern Africa, especially the Serengeti. Wildebeest can live for more than 20 years. Categories: Africa geography stubs | Southern Africa ... Serengeti is a region of grasslands and woodlands in Africa shared between the countries of Tanzania in the south and Kenya in the north. ...

The principal foodstuff of wildebeest are grasses. The seasonal nature of the African grasslands forces wildebeest to make annual migrations. The main migration is in May, when more than a million animals move from the plains to the woods; they return in November as summer rains water the plains. In popular language grass means a short, green, ground covering or lawn, usually, but not necessarily comprised of a true grass or grasses, called turf. ...

A grazing Wildebeest

The cows will calve in summer, on the plains. The calves can walk within minutes, and after a few days can keep up with the rest of the herd. After calving the breeding season begins. Dominant bulls defend territories marked with feces and pheremones produced by scent glands on the hooves. Subordinate males form bachelor herds. Reproduction is the creation of one thing as a copy of, product of, or replacement for a similar thing, e. ... Feces (also spelled faeces in British English, or fæces) are semi-solid waste products from the digestive tract expelled through the anus (or cloaca) during defecation. ... Fanning honeybee exposes Nasonov gland (white-at tip of abdomen) releasing pheromone to entice swarm into an empty hive A pheromone is any chemical produced by a living organism that transmits a message to other members of the same species. ...

Wildebeest are an important part of the plains ecosystem. Their dung fertilizes the ground and their eating and trampling encourage new growth. They are also an important food source for predators such as lions and hyenas. In ecology, an ecosystem is a community of organisms (plant, animal and other living organisms - also referred as biocenose) together with their environment (or biotope), functioning as a unit. ... This snapping turtle is trying to make a meal of a Canada goose, but the goose is too wary. ... Binomial name Panthera leo (Linnaeus, 1758) The Lion (Panthera leo) is a mammal of the family Felidae. ... Genera Crocuta Hyaena Parahyaena Proteles Hyenas (or Hyænas) are moderately large terrestrial carnivores native to Africa and Asia, and members of the family Hyaenidae. ...

A Blue Wildebeest grazing in Etosha National Park, Namibia

The erroneous (but common) pronunciation of ' /gnu/' is largely due to the comic song 'A G-nu' by Michael Flanders and Donald Swann, in which all words starting with n have a g prepended: 'I'm a g-nu, I'm a g-nu, the g-nicest work of g-nature in the zoo.' This image (C) User:Pcb21, 1999. ... This image (C) User:Pcb21, 1999. ... Flanders and Swann were British actor and singer Michael Flanders (1922-1975) and composer and linguist Donald Swann (1923-1994) who joined forces to write and perform comic songs in the two-man revues At The Drop Of A Hat and At The Drop Of Another Hat. ...

Etymology

'Gnu' is from the Hottentot language (which pronounced the g), which likely imitated it from the grunt-type noise that a wildebeest makes. The Khoikhoi (men of men) or Khoi are a division of the Khoisan ethnic group of south-western Africa, closely related to the Bushmen (San). ...

See also