“Whatever befalls the earth, befalls the people of the earth. Man did not weave the web of life; he is merely a strand in it”
Chief Seattle
Found primarily in Chile and thinly in bordering parts of Argentina, with others located on the islands of Chiloé and Guaitecas, this elusive and endearing little cat is the smallest felid in the New World, and with the smallest known distribution. Known also as the guiña or Chilean cat, and roughly the size of an average domestic cat, the extremely rare kodkod is very similar in appearance to Geoffroy’s cat.
The kodkods’ diminutive size may have spared them the horror of being hunted for their fur, but, as fate would have it, they tend to get caught in traps laid for foxes, 
ultimately causing the same sad death. Occasionally their pelts have been seen in markets, but it is not a common occurrence. Farmers, however, have considered kodkods as pests in the past and thus killed them. This opinion was not entirely without foundation as kodkods have always had a penchant for chicken meat and are still known to occasionally prey on domestic stocks, the farmer’s livelihood.
Such persecution has been partially ameliorated with research and education, though some humans still remain a threat, as do the kodkods to the poultry, of course. The studies of Dr. Elke Schüttler show the kodkod does not feature heavily in Mapuche legend and it has been possible to ascertain that the people of the Araucaría region are coming to value ecotourism. Children in schools were also found to have a positive attitude towards the little cats. All of which bodes well for the few remaining kodkods.
But, by far the biggest threat to the kodkods is the wanton destruction of their habitat and prey base. Due to logging, the over planting of pine plantations and human settlement, the kodkods are now confined to a narrow mainland coastal strip of mixed forest, with a few more populations on the nearby islands. Although, they are tolerant of altered habitats and can be found in secondary forest and shrub and near cultivated areas, as well as the forests they prefer. In particular they favour Valdivian and Araucaria forests, where there is a notable presence of bamboo in the understory.
Kodkods have bushy tails, small heads, relatively large, round ears, short legs and large feet and claws for climbing. They can measure up to a length of thirty inches from the top of the head to the tip of the tail. and weigh as much as six-and-a-half pounds.
Their beautiful coats are yellowish-brown to greyish-brown on top and covered with dark spots. This affords incredible camouflage. The underside is pale and the tail is ringed. They have very distinctive facial markings around the nose and eyes. Melanistic kodkods are not unusual.
Largely arboreal, kodkods are also superb climbers. They are active both day and night but only expose themselves to open areas under cover of darkness. They spend their days well-hidden in dense vegetation and other parts of the forest offering heavy cover.
Very little is known about the breeding habitats of the species. They are rarely seen and none are kept in captivity. Available information suggests there is a gestation period of up to seventy-eight days after which a litter of one to three cubs will be born. There is some suggestion kodkods may be polygamous. As with other cats, parental care will probably fall to the mother, who may also teach them to hunt. The cubs will reach maturity at about two years of age and can expect to live for roughly eleven years.
Kodkod is the Araucanian Indian name for this felid of which there are two subspecies: Leopardus guigna guigna, which can be found in Southern Chile and Argentina, and Leopardus guigna tigrillo, which inhabits the forests of Central Chile.
Natural Habitat
Moist temperate mixed forests.
Where
Argentina and Chile. It can also found on the Isla de Chiloé and the Isla Grand Guaiteca off the southern coast of Chile.
What they eat
Small mammals, especially rodents; reptiles, birds and insects.
Threats
Habitat loss with much of their native habitat being cut down and replaced with pine plantations, agriculture and human settlement. Persecution; kodkods have occasionally been killed when seen raiding chicken coops. Humans and their dogs are the only known predators of kodkods. They are often caught in traps set for foxes.
Status: Vulnerable
The kodkod (Leopardus guiana) is listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as Vulnerable (at high risk of endangerment in the wild). It is also included on Appendix II of CITES and protected by law in Chile and Argentina.
There are various conservation plans in action including involving local people in field projects and visiting local schools. There are currently no captive kodkods in zoos.
All wild chinchilla species are listed in 
shares the blame for the torture and gruesome deaths of millions of animals each year.”
In 1918, the government of Chile, (along with those of Peru and Bolivia) declared the trapping of animals and exportation of pelts illegal; but, it was all too little, too late. Needless to say, this activity did not cease then, and has still not ceased today. Poaching in Chile persists. But, possibly due to much smaller populations now, they are not being taken in such large numbers.
2013, two rangers were fired upon by five poachers they had tracked to the Umphang Wildlife Sanctuary in northern Thailand. On their way, the poachers had poisoned various animals, which the rangers suspected had been left behind as tiger bait (although, it is known they were hunting for various species). Four of the rangers were shot in the incident, and two later died. To add to the tragedy of the deaths of the rangers, when shots were exchanged, shockingly, the hunters were seen to be armed with 
males as much as eight feet six inches. They can stand at anything between two and four feet high at the shoulder and weigh between one hundred and four pounds and two hundred and eighty-four pounds.
Malayan sun bears (or honey bears as they are sometimes known) have short, smooth, water-repellent, dark-brown to black fur, with an orangey/yellow bow-shaped mark on their chests. The same colour of fur surrounds the muzzle and the eyes. The skin around the neck is loose, allowing the bear to twist and bite its attacker when necessary. They have strong paws with hairless soles and long curved claws. Their snouts are flexible and they have extraordinarily long tongues – an adaptation for gathering termites from the nests and mounds. Sun bears have very poor eyesight, but a keen sense of smell, which helps them to detect food. They are good climbers and can often be found resting in trees. 
There is no specific breeding season. The gestation period following mating is roughly ninety-six days. One to three tiny, altricial (furless, eyes closed and dependent upon the parent) cubs will be born. The cubs will continue to nurse for about eighteen months. Cubs remain with their mothers until fully grown and are able to fend for themselves. Female bears use holes inside large, old hollow trees to birth the babies.
a black triangular cap on the head, and faces are bare and pink in colour, as are the ears. Hands and feet are blackish. The species is sexually dimorphic and weighs an average of six and a half pounds. Adult Capuchins stand almost eighteen inches tall and have a tail which is roughly twenty inches long.
The breeding season ranges from January to August, after which there is a gestation period of one hundred and fifty-eight days. Normally, two piglets will be birthed. The little ones will not be weaned until they are six or eight months old, but their diet will have been enriched with solids, starting ten days after birth.
Howler monkeys are a large and inexpensive source of protein. One monkey could easily feed a family of four. And, they are slow and docile, which makes them easy prey. Then, there are the usual illegal logging activities and other forms of human encroachment that we see everywhere across the globe. The locations change, but the threats remain the same.
can sniff out nourishment (the nostrils have sensory hairs inside) at over two to three miles. Possibly no coincidence that they can be heard that far away as well.
thirty-four miles per hour can be reached.
Spider monkeys have a lovely habit of greeting each other with a hug. When the whole troop gets back together, they sometimes affectionately entwine tails, too.
Its sparse coat is a deep-dark-grey to black with a white ‘saddle’ running from the centre of its back to its tail, and white ears trims. The coat is made up of very coarse hair which covers extremely tough skin. The tough skin comes in handy for protection against the claws and jaws of predators, and for withstanding the rigours of crashing through thick understorey vegetation when on the run. It also has a very short stubby tail, small piggy-eyes and large ears. There are four toes on each fore foot and three toes on the hind ones.
The breeding season for tapirs typically occurs between April and June. A gestation period of up to three hundred and ninety-five days follows. After which, one single calf will be born weighing about fifteen pounds. Looking nothing like the mother in colour, the baby will have brown hair, white spots and white stripes. This colouring allows it to blend in with the variegated forest vegetation. Between the ages of four and seven months, the, now juvenile’s, coat will turn to the colours of an adult tapir. The young one will be weaned at six to eight months. By this time it will be almost fully grown. The mother will only produce a calf once every two years.
Northern sportive lemurs are nocturnal. During the day, they sleep in holes in trees, usually up to eight meters above ground level.
Mungai and the Goa Constrictor 