Gentle viewers, welcome
to Animal World:
Our Co-Inhabitants.
In the Holy Bible or Torah,
God told Noah
to build an Ark
and to take onboard
two of every being
on Earth in preparation
for a catastrophic flood.
Have you ever wondered
where Noah’s Ark
may have landed after
the flood waters receded?
There’s a legend that
Mozambique is where
Noah and the animals
left the Ark.
Today we’ll travel
to Mozambique to visit
this wildlife wonderland.
Mozambique’s neighbors
include South Africa
and Swaziland
to the southwest,
Zimbabwe to the west,
and Tanzania, Malawi
and Zambia to the north.
The Mozambique Channel
and Indian Ocean
are east of Mozambique.
The country occupies
about one-third of
the East African seaboard
with most of its coastline
consisting of flat plains.
There are magnificent,
palm-fringed beaches,
warm-water lagoons
and mangrove swamps.
Heading inland,
the land rises
and high plateaus and
mountains extend along
the southwestern edge
of the nation.
The Zambezi River
flows from west to east
across the country.
In Mozambique one can see
flourishing forests
and grasslands.
This diverse landscape
supports
a large animal population
and includes excellent
parks and reserves
that are home
to rare birds, reptiles
and large mammals
such as elephants, zebras,
giraffes, water buffaloes,
hippos, baboons, lions,
turtles and flamingoes.
Now let’s meet some
of the noble inhabitants
of the country.
Mozambique’s Mammals
The African Wild Dog,
also called the Spotted Dog
or Ornate Wolf,
is a highly social animal
who lives in packs
ranging from
two to 40 plus members,
sometimes separated into
female and male groups.
When the different-gender
groups meet, they might
combine into one,
and in the merged pack
the dogs peacefully form
a hierarchy, because
they highly prize harmony.
Even when
it comes to dividing food,
a dog will beg for food
instead of
instigating conflict with
a fellow pack member.
A cute, tiny mammal
is the Checkered Sengi,
also known
as the Elephant Shrew,
because of his
extended trunk-like nose.
Each day Elephant Shrews
poke their long noses
under forest litter
in search of food.
Sengi are monogamous
and have only one partner
during their lifetime.
These busy beings build
new nests every few days.
A couple may build
up to 10 shelters
in their territories.
A nest is a small pit
covered with leaves
that is extremely
challenging to detect.
African Buffalo prefer
savannas, forests
and woodlands
with plenty of grass,
shade, and water,
and the water’s edge
is the most likely place
to find them.
These gentle herbivores
have large heads,
thick necks,
low, curved horns
and strong legs.
African Buffalo
live in herds, which
are highly protective
of their members,
of up to several thousand
individuals.
You may see them
laying on the ground
with their chins
on each other’s backs
while resting.
Interestingly
scientists have found
each afternoon
adult female buffaloes
“vote” among themselves
on where the herd should
feed during the evening.
A female “registers”
her vote by
looking in the direction
in which she feels
the herd should travel.
Wildebeests are large,
grazing, migrating
antelopes, who even
with their enormous size,
are very agile.
If frightened, they
instantly take off in a run.
Their birthing season
is restricted to the period
between April and June
each year.
Just a few minutes
after they are born, calves
are able to run about!
The average lifespan
for a wildebeest
is 20 years.
Do you remember
the funny character
in the Disney film
“The Lion King”
named Pumbaa,
the Warthog?
We can visit
his family members
in Mozambique’s
Gorongosa National Park.
Just like Pumbaa
in the film, Warthogs
enjoy spending time
in marshy areas and
wallowing in the mud.
To feed, he kneels
on his front legs and dines
on grasses and roots.
The cute Springhare,
who looks like a cross
between a kangaroo
and a hare,
has erect ears, a soft coat,
long, powerful hind legs
and a long tail.
However,
they are neither related to
kangaroos nor hares,
rather they belong to
the rodent family.
Being an energetic jumper,
the Springhare
can leap a distance
of up to two meters.
These gentle fellows like
to stay very close to home,
which are burrows
that they dig themselves,
but at times they may
venture several kilometers
from their residence
at night.
Yellow Baboons
play an important role
in maintaining
ecological balance by
aiding in seed dispersal
through their
active foraging habits.
These primates can use
10 or more different sounds
to communicate.
When traveling in a group,
dominant males
lead the way, females
and the vulnerable young
stay safely in the middle,
and the rest of the males
bring up the rear.
Baboons are
compassionate animals.
In 1968, a boy who had
been raised by baboons
for 18 years was discovered
in Mozambique.
A female baboon tried
to protect the youngster
from the humans
who found him.
If we go diving along
Mozambique’s coast,
we may be treated
to the spectacular sight
of the annual migration
of the Humpback Whale,
the Sei Whale
and the Sperm Whale.
Humpback and Sei Whales
migrate annually.
In summer, they feed in
cold, productive waters
and in winter
migrate to tropical
or subtropical seas.
These giant, mild-mannered
ocean beings are
intelligent, loving
and mysterious,
possessing brains
larger than those of
any other type of animal
on Earth.
Echolocation allows
mother Sperm Whale
to keep track of her calf
when she is diving
to great depths, as her baby
is not able to follow her.
Humpback whales
are known as beautiful
oceanic singers and
compose elaborate songs.
They sometimes will
repeatedly sing the same
song for several hours.
To celebrate the nation’s
precious, abundant and
beautiful animal friends,
the government
of Mozambique
has issued a series
of animal stamps.
Let’s take a look at some.
First is a stamp
featuring the giraffe,
a vegan native
of the wooded savannas
and open woodlands.
Baby giraffes are born
1.8 meters tall, taller than
the average man,
and can grow as much
as 2.5 centimeters a day.
The Aardvark’s name
comes from South Africa's
Afrikaans language
and means “earth pig.”
The Aardvark
loves to burrow
using his forefeet’s
thick set of claws
that are perfectly suited
for digging.
However, even with
these powerful tools,
when Aardvarks
come across soil
that is too hard to dig,
they move on to areas
where the digging is easier.
In times of rain,
when the earth is soft
nearly everywhere,
aardvarks dig new burrows
almost nightly.
After the rain,
many animals
may benefit from
an Aardvark’s burrow
including
Ground Squirrels,
Hares, Civets,
Hyenas, Jackals,
Porcupines, Warthogs
and birds, who make use
of holes the Aardvark
no longer uses
as ready-made shelters.
Mozambique’s Reptiles
Now let us meet two
of our reptilian friends
in Mozambique.
In 2010, Dr. Julian Bayliss,
a conservation biologist
working for the UK-based
Fauna & Flora
International,
discovered a new species
of chameleon,
Nadzikambia baylissi,
living in a small
evergreen-forest area
of Mount Mabu
in northern Mozambique.
The discovery
of this very unique reptile
in this high altitude region
highlights the importance
of protecting
Mount Mabu’s ecology.
Regarding
having the chameleon
being named after him,
Dr. Bayliss stated,
“You feel honored
for the recognition,
but also humbled
by the fact that there is
so much still unknown
about our own planet,
that we can still
be finding new species.”
Loggerhead Sea Turtles
spend most of their lives
in the open ocean
and in coastal waters.
Only the females come
ashore to construct nests
and deposit eggs.
Turtle nesting season
runs from November
to late March
along the coast
of southern Mozambique.
Dolphin Care-Africa,
which works to conserve
marine animals, organized
a clean-up project
along the coast so that
nesting female marine
turtles such as Loggerheads
and Leatherbacks
have a clear path
when they are onshore.
The group has also
voiced concerns about
the increase
of artificial lighting
on the coast which is
the result of the tourist
industry’s expansion.
The lighting can
unfortunately deter females
from leaving the water
to nest.
Mozambique’s Birds
Namuli Apalis is
a soft-billed bird with
a gray crown and nape
and a black throat
and breast.
The rest of the under parts
are yellow and green.
The bird is found
only in Mozambique
and their range is limited
to Mount Namuli
which is in the nation’s
central region.
Now let’s take a look at
another beautiful bird,
the Red-and-yellow Barbet.
This brightly
colored species
is generally very tame,
feeding on seeds and fruit.
Barbets raise two to four
eggs at a time and
both the male and female
take turns
incubating the eggs.
Peace and harmony is
what all beings deserve.
With tranquility
comes abundance
of life and happiness.
The Great Limpopo
Transfrontier Park
is an excellent example.
The Park, which is
currently in process
of being created,
will eventually link
Mozambique’s
Limpopo National Park,
South Africa’s
Kruger National Park and
Zimbabwe’s Gonarezhou
National Park together.
In 2001, hundreds
of kilometers of fences
between the
Kruger National Park and
Limpopo National Park
were removed, allowing
the native animals to take up
old migratory routes
that had been
previously blocked.
The Great Limpopo
Transfrontier Park
is roughly the size
of Belgium at 35,000
square kilometers
and will be the world’s
largest transboundary
protected area when opened.
This wise initiative
reflects the ideal of peace
without boundaries.
Mozambique is
truly blessed with a range
of splendid wildlife.
Supreme Master Ching Hai
has spoken
on many occasions
regarding why animals
have come to our planet.
The animals come to this
planet with a special role.
Many of them are able to
bring down divine power
from Heaven, or love,
just through
their presence
because they are
very connected with
the Divine at all times.
Some, like horses
and rabbits, can protect
their human caregivers
from negative influences,
or boost them with good
health, good luck, even
material fortune, joy,
or spiritual upliftment.
They watch out for us
quietly and humbly
send blessings our way.
Some of them are
from higher levels of
consciousness;
they only came down
in animal form to help
humankind or
other beings on Earth.
We must always
take good care of
our environment
so that our graceful
co-inhabitants may thrive
and forever beautify
our planet.
We wish all the lovely
animals of Mozambique
as well as all animal life
across the world
lives of peace.
May they all continue
to help move our planet
to a higher spiritual level.
Insightful viewers,
thank you for your
wonderful presence today
on Animal World:
Our Co-Inhabitants.
Up next is
Enlightening Entertainment
after Noteworthy News
here on
Supreme Master Television.
May the beauties
of the Earth
forever remind us
of the love and blessings
from Heaven.