Endangered

The wild water buffalo (or Bubalus arnee), also known as the Asian water buffalo, is a very large species of bovine living in the marshes, swamps and flood plains of central east and southeast Asia. Its present range is extremely fragmented, with the majority of animals living in India, and other populations surviving in Nepal, Bhutan, Thailand and Cambodia. Wild water buffaloes have grey to black skin, with coarse dark hair covering the body sparsely, and an elongated head with small ears.

The African penguin is a flightless bird that inhabits the coastline and islands of South Africa and Namibia. The African penguin has a black back and flippers, black feet and a black face ‘mask’ with white surround. It also has a white torso with a black strap across the upper chest. The eyes of the African penguin are surrounded by pink patches which are used in thermoregulation. Each penguin has a unique pattern of black spots on its chest. African penguins are 60 to 68cm in size and weigh between 2.2 and 3.5kg. Males are slightly larger than females and have a longer beak.

The proboscis monkey is a species of primate that lives in the rainforests, mangroves and swamp forests of the Isle of Borneo (Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei). The monkeys have dark orange fur on their backs and the top of their heads, paler orange fur on their chests, stomachs and upper arms and grey fur on their lower bodies, legs and forearms. Males have a distinctive elongated nose that hangs down over their lip. Females do not have this pronounced feature, although their noses are still quite prominent for primates.

The Malayan tapir is a mammal native to the rainforests of South East Asia. The Malayan tapir’s head, shoulders, front legs and back legs are black, and their mid-body and back end is white. It is a heavy-set animal and has a distinctive prehensile proboscis nose. Malayan tapirs measure between 1.8 and 2.5m in length and weigh between 250 and 540kg. Females tend to be slightly larger than males and 10% to 20% heavier.

The Ussuri dhole lives in the forests, grasslands and tundra of India, Nepal, China, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Thailand, and is the largest of all subspecies of dhole. The Ussuri dhole has a red coat, white underbelly and narrow muzzle. They have summer and winter coats, with the winter coat being thicker and a brighter red. The dhole has a head-body length of 88-113cm, a tail length of 41-50cm and a shoulder height of 45-55cm. Both sexes are similar in size, but males are significantly heavier than females, with males weighing between 15 and 20kg and females weighing between 10 and 13kg.

The giant otter is a large semi-aquatic mammal that lives in the Amazon river basin and the Pantanal wetlands of South America. The giant otter has thick, velvet-like brown fur with distinctive white markings around its throat. Giant otters have large, webbed feet and a wing like tail adapted for swimming. Male and female giant otters do not differ in size and are typically between 150 and 180cm long, though they vary in weight. Males weigh 26 to 32kg, while females are slightly lighter with 22 to 26kg.

The Siberian tiger (or Panthera tigris altaica) – also known as the Amur tiger – is the largest of the cat species. It is characterised by orange-yellow fur with thin, black stripes and a paler undercoat on its belly. Its head is also very large, with strong jaws containing large canines.

Like all species of lemur, the ring-tailed lemur (or Lemur catta) is native to Madagascar and is not naturally found anywhere else in the world. Ring-tailed lemurs have a pointed muzzle, cat-like ears, and a long tail that has 12 or 13 white rings, 13 or 14 black rings, and a tip that is always black. They are usually between 39 and 46cm in size with a tail of 56 to 63cm and live in groups called ‘troops’ that will travel and forage together. Ring-tailed lemurs are omnivorous and will eat fruit, leaves, insects and most other food they can find.

Also known as the Somali giraffe, the reticulated giraffe (or Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata) is a subspecies that lives in the savannahs and open forests of Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia. The reticulated giraffe is distinguishable from other subspecies thanks to its large, polygonal spots, tan to red in colour, that are divided by white interconnecting lines on the animal’s fur. While both sexes are extremely tall, the males are significantly taller than females and have well developed bony horns on their head; the horns of the female are smaller and thinner.

The red panda (or Ailurus fulgens) is a small mammal that lives in the woodlands of the Himalayas and multiple areas of China. Despite its name, it is not closely related to the giant panda, however it does share some characteristics such as a diet mainly consisting of bamboo. With red fur, black legs, a ringed tail, and white ears and snout, the red panda averages between 50 and 64cm from head to body, with a tail 28 to 59cm long. They are excellent climbers and good swimmers that enjoy living in a varied environment.