Mr. Nature: The Rock Hyrax

Jambo! Mr. Nature here, with another one of those little animals that doesn’t get a lot of press–the rock hyrax.

It’s not a quokka, although it looks like one. We are told the rock hyrax’s closest living relative is the African elephant. Peculiarities of the skull, and all: but Hannibal would’ve had an interesting time crossing the Alps with these instead of elephants. Hyraxes are at home in rocky terrain, though, so they might’ve done all right–provided you weren’t counting on them to carry troops and equipment.

Hyraxes live in colonies, employ a host of different vocalizations, and have big, sharp incisor teeth. They are found in South Africa, West and Central Africa, and here and there throughout the Middle East. They are not marsupials, so if you find one with a pouch, you’ve got a quokka.

God’s creation features endless variety. We’ll never run out of stuff to study.