Biome and Habitat

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The range of the serval
  Servals live only in south eastern and northern Africa, in savannahs and grasslands. There is a very limited Northern Africa population, with no confirmed sightings in Algeria, Tunisia, or Morocco since the 1930's. They prefer scrub bush, tall grass, and dry weed beds near water. They do not hunt in the open savannahs, where there is little cover. Melanistic (black) servals are found in higher altitudes (up to 10,000 feet) in Kenya, provided there is a source of water nearby. Servals like water, and can be caught fishing for food in small lakes or ponds.
    Male servals are extremely territorial. They patrol their territories frequently, marking their borders. In fact, some servals are so territorial that they mark their territory boundaries 40-50 times an hour! A serval's territory can be anywhere from 40km(23mi) to 72km(40mi). Males' territories can be up to twice as big as a female's, and may even cover part of it. If a male serval confronts another male in its territory, they stare each other in the face until one provokes the other to attack, sometimes leading to a cat fight.
   The African savannahs are hard places to inhabit. Savannahs have two different types of weather; wet and dry. In the winter, it is dry, with the average rainfall of only 4 inches. In fact, it usually doesn't rain at all between the months of December and February. The average temperature is about 70 degrees Farenheit, which is a little cooler than in the summertime (85 degrees Farenheit- 120 degrees Farenheit). The wet season takes place in the summer months, when a lot of rain falls. The monsoons start in May in Africa. It can rain for many hours on end, making the air humid and hot. Despite these conditions, many animals survive and thrive here, including the serval. Because most of the wild cats that live near it have different food preferences, it is able to coexist comfortably with other big cats, without any competition for food.

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This website was created by: Georgina Del Vecho    Period 6