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Wild
Tales
Katie was sitting on her front porch with her best friend and neighbor
Maya. The two friends were playing their favorite game, Mancala,
and talking about what they knew would be their first assignment
when they got back to school. It was the same every year. “Class,”
the teacher would say, “now I’d like you all to write
a report about what you did over your summer vacation.”
“I just wish I had something a little more exciting to write
about,” sighed Katie. “We always visit my grandparents
and it’s fun, but sometime I’d like to go to a place
I’ve never been before. You know, like this game we’re
playing; it comes from Africa. I’d like to go there someday.”
“I know what you mean,” agreed Maya. “I read a
lot of books at the library about Africa this summer. You can go
on a safari there. A safari used to be a hunting trip, but now it’s
a journey to see and photograph the animals that live there. And
there are all kinds of wonderful animals like lions, zebra, elephants,
impalas, and oh, more than you can imagine. Safaris are usually
in Kenya and Tanzania, on the Serengeti, which is the name for the
wide plain of east Africa.”
“It would be kind of scary to see lions,” shuddered
Katie. “I mean, I wouldn’t want to get eaten.”
“No, silly,” you travel in jeeps and mostly just look
at the animals from there. Or also, some of the lodges are built
right by a watering hole. The books said that a good time to see
the animals is at dusk when it’s cooler and they come to get
a drink.”
The girls were so involved in their conversation that they had forgotten
their game. They also failed to notice that another neighbor, Lori,
had joined them on the porch. Lori had been gone for most of the
summer and neither Maya nor Katie much cared that she was back.
Lori was always bragging. If Maya or Katie was excited about something
new she’d gotten, Lori always had some thing better or more
expensive. Or so she claimed.
“Hi girls,” said Lori. “It’s interesting
that you’re talking about Africa, because I just got back
from there.”
“For real?” asked Katie. Now both girls were interested
in spite of themselves.
“Oh yes,” said Lori, “it was wonderful!”
I saw a lion chase a herd of zebras and it got one.”
Katie winced. “That must have been a little gory.”
“Yes, but that’s the way it is, Katie” said Maya.
“On the African savannah, all of the animals are pretty much
either predator or prey.”
But Lori was just getting warmed up. “Then, she said, “as
the lion was getting ready to eat the zebra, a Bengal tiger came
up and the tiger and the lion fought over the food. And just when
it looked like the tiger would win, a grizzly bear showed up and
chased them both away! Can you imagine? I had a very exciting summer
vacation. I can’t wait to write my report when I get back
to school.
“Don’t worry girls,” Lori called over her shoulder
as she flounced off, “I’m sure you’ll come up
with something.”
“Oh man,” wailed Katie, “our reports are going
to be lame compared to that. Lori will get an “A” for
sure.”
“No she won’t,” said Maya with conviction. “The
teacher doesn’t care so much what you did, but how well you
write about it. Anyway, I don’t believe Lori even went to
Africa, and if she turns in the story she just told us, she’ll
get an “F” because there’s no way that could have
happened.”
“Really?” asked Katie
“Yep,” Maya answered, and I’ll tell you why…
How did Maya know that Lori’s story wasn’t true?
Answer: There are no grizzly bears or Bengal tigers in Africa. The
range of the grizzly circles the arctic; they are found in the forests
and mountains of Europe, Asia, Canada, and Alaska and the western
United States. Bengal Tigers live in the dense forests and lush
grasslands of Asia, primarily on the Indian sub-continent.
You can go on your own safari right here in Tucson when you visit
the International Wildlife Museum. The museum features a collection
of animals from all over the world, including many from Africa,
along with dioramas re-creating the natural environment in which
these animals live.
Tune-up
Your Mind
Look for these books and related materials:
We All Went on Safari: A Counting Journey Through Tanzania
by Laurie Krebs
African Animals ABC
by Philippa-Alys Browne
Kenya ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Kenya
by Sarah Heiman
African Animals
by Caroline Arnold
Jungle Jack Hanna’s Safari Adventure
by Jack Hanna and Rick A. Prebeg
This Place Is Wild: East Africa
by Vicki Cobb
Safari
by Robert Bateman
Journey into Africa: A Nature Discovery Trip
by Tim Knight
Details
International Wildlife Museum
4800 West Gates Pass Road (Go west on Speedway, 5 miles from I-10)
Tucson, AZ 85745
Information: (520) 617-1439 www.thewildlifemuseum.org
Admission:
$7.00 Adults
$5.50 Senior Citizens (62 & over) and Students with valid ID
$2.50 Children 4-12 years old
Children 3 and under are free when accompanied by a parent
Hours:
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday – Friday
9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas
Fuel
for Thought
Did you know…
Most hoofed animals have antlers or horns, which have two purposes:
to establish dominance over a herd and for protection. Although
they look similar, antlers and horns are actually very different.
Antlers are made of bone and fall off and regrow each year. Horns
have a protective sheath, much like our fingernails, over a core
of permanent bone. Horns grow larger as the animal gets older.
The horn of the rhinoceros isn’t really a horn at all; it
is a slow-growing pile of densely-matted hair. Rhinos have been
slaughtered almost to extinction because of the demand for their
horns, which are used in medicines and as dagger handles. A single
horn can bring a price as high as $30,000.
Safari is a Swahili word meaning long and difficult journey. Swahili
is one of two official languages of Kenya (the other is English).
You may not realize it, but you probably already know some words
in Swahili. If you saw the movie, The Lion King, you know
that simba means lion. And how about hakuna matata?
That means no problem or no troubles. And here’s one more:
hello in Swahili is jambo!
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