Mammals of Africa Mammals are animals that are warm-blooded and have hair on their bodies. They give birth to live babies and feed them on their own milk. Because mammals are warm-blooded, they can keep their body at the same temperature. This makes it much easier to survive in all sorts of weather. Their fur or hair helps to keep them warm in cold weather. Every type of mammal also has  other features that help them survive in the place they live. Big cats have claws so they can climb trees and deer can run very fast. Mammals can live in a lot of different habitats. In Africa you will find mammals that can survive in the very hot desert. Others live in very cold conditions high in the mountains. Some mammals build burrows to protect themselves while others roam about without a home. Some mammals eat meat. Some eat only plants. Some eat both meat and plants. Mammals need to eat food every day and most of their time is spent finding it. Some kinds of mammal are better at this than others and are able to survive more easily. All mammals have babies. Some mammals are small in size and easily caught by other animals. They usually have a large number of babies to make sure that some survive. Mammal babies develop inside the mother for a long time. When the babies are born the mother feeds them with her milk. Some mammals live in family groups. The other members of the group sometimes help the mother look after the young. Young mammals have a much longer childhood than other animals. The parents spend a lot of their time looking after them. Most mammals hunt other kinds of animals for food. They may also end up as food for another animal that hunts them. Because of this, mammals work out ways to avoid being caught. Large mammals may not be in danger but they must protect their babies. The biggest problem for large mammals is that people are taking up their wild habitats to build cities and farms. Some types of mammal have disappeared completely.

Headings and Trigger words: Use this column to write down a heading and trigger words to summarise each paragraph. Mammals Warm-blooded Babies Physical features Survive Temperature Big cats very fast. to keep them warm habitats Protect Habitats eat meat eat only plants mountains reproduction Small Babies Born Mother Social behavior Family Members Young Animals Predators Hunt Food Avoid danger Man and mammals Biggest People