Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Oscar-winning director reveals the secret lives of pangolins
Pangolins are solitary, nocturnal mammals that live in South Asia and Africa. There are nine existing species that range in size from 30 to 100 centimeters. Pangolins have a long, toothless muzzle, and their legs are short with sharp claws for digging to eat ants and termites. They have large, protective keratin scales, similar in material to fingernails and toenails, covering their skin. When threatened, they can curl up into a tight ball for protection. Like rhinoceroses and elephants, pangolins are one of the world’s most trafficked mammals for their meat and scales used in traditional medicine and folk remedies, especially in China and Vietnam. Protection and rescue efforts to save these scaly anteaters have been made, but it is challenging. For example, when in captivity, they don’t eat at all. So, in order to feed a pangolin, the carer has to walk wth the pangolin for hours. Recently, Netflix created a documentary of a rescued pangolin called “Pangolin: Kulu’s Journey.” It hopes to raise awareness of this fragile, scaled mammal for conservation.
Read the article and learn about this unique endangered mammal species.
https://edition.cnn.com/world/pippa-ehrlich-pangolins-kulus-journey-cte-hnk-spc
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