Be a mammal completely scales It can have advantages in nature, but sometimes it is a great risk if you live in areas where scales are sought and illegally marketed: this is the case of pangolino. In Malaysian language means “COlui who rolls up“, Someone calls it nicely”itinerant” or “squamous ant“For its eating habits, in any case, it is a truly singular animal. It is theThe only mammal in the world entirely covered with horny scales and the only representative of the Order of folide. It could be compared to the Armadillo, but the latter presents ossified rigid plaques that form a sort of semi-rirchical armor and not real scales. There language is longer than the body And it is suitable for predating a large number of ants and other insects. One of the 8 living species, the Long tail pangolino (Manis Tetradactyla), is the mammal with the greater number of caudal vertebrae in the world (47). But this unusual mammal also has the sad record of being Among the most persecuted animals For the illegal trade in scales and meats, so much so that it is at a high risk of extinction.
Where he lives and what a pang eats: characteristics and habits
The pangolino (genre Manis) is a mammal whose body is covered with scales, the only representative of the Folitidi order, and insectivorous, voracious consumer of ants And termite. Only one year in one year can feed over 70 million insects. It is present in nature with sun 8 speciesof which 4 in Asia and 4 in Africa. Has a particularly long and viscous language and is teeth -free. The legs equipped with Unghioni are suitable for digging to look for insects, remaking and coming up the ground in a way that, together with the elimination of parasites, generates obvious effects of soil quality improvementin the places where this lives.
Having very small eyes, the communication with their fellows is based on thesmell. It is medium -sized: the weight, according to the species, can vary from about 1.6 kg of the Pangolino from the black belly to the 33 kg of the giant pangolino. The length varies from 114 to 137 cm including the tail. Lonely and mainly nocturnal habitsit is thus elusive that it is particularly difficult to also have the number. To defend himself from the predators he “curls himself” on himself, thus creating a sort of squamous ball.
The female gives birth to puppies that present small soft scales at birth. The baby remains with his mother for 3-4 months often hooking to his tail to be transported. The habitat is quite varied and goes from Asian tropical forests to African prairies and savannas.
The properties of scales
Recent studies on the properties of the scales of the Pangolino, made of keratinhave revealed their unique structure composed of crossed slats that give an exceptional strength and resistance to the cut. This sophisticated structure could also potentially trap the pathogens. It has also been shown that Pangolino’s scales extract has anti -inflammatory activities on laboratory animals and numerous proteins and metabolites have been identified showing antimicrobial activities. The scaginous coating, replacing the hair, could therefore act as a system of immune defense Multiform, thanks to both the structure and to the chemical composition, and also from thermal insulator.
Because the pangolino is one of the most persecuted animals in the world
Traditional Chinese medicine probably had already experienced the properties of these flakes, since they are widely used to treat disorders such as skin diseases, inflammation, rheumatic arthritis and even tumors. Too bad that all this is at the expense of the Pangolino who continues to be today one of the most sought after animals in the world to obtain tons of scales and meat, Another product deemed delicacy in Asian cuisine.
Thus, despite all the 8 existing species are suffering a drastic decline so much that they are classified as in “critical danger” byInternational Union for the conservation of nature (IUCN), the poaching and illegal trade of these harmless animals does not stop.
An estimate has calculated that About 1 million Pangolini were illegally hunted within a decade. Criminal organizations of traffickers capture Pangolini in Africa to sell them at exorbitant prices on the black market of Eastern and South-Eastern Asia and every year new routes of illegal trafficking of pangolini (living or dead) are discovered.
