This week, Shane gave us a choice. We could write a reflection, like normal, or we could write about a science article. I chose to write about pangolins! Pangolins are the only scaly mammals in the world, but they are also the most trafficked. People capture them, and inject and fill their stomachs with gruel, just to make them heavier. The pangolins are then sold, they are eaten, and their scales go to medicinal shops. Pangolin scales aren’t proven to be medicinal, they are made of the same stuff our nails are after all!

Pangolins are extremely evolutionarily distinct and are the product of over 80 million years of evolution. Archaeological evidence suggests that pangolins originated in Europe, but are now only found in Africa and Asia. Now, some fun facts. Did you know, the word pangolin comes from the Malay word ‘penngguling’, ‘which means something that rolls up’. When threatened, all pangolin species roll up into a ball. This is very effective against wild predators, but not poachers, they can just pick them up. There are eight species of pangolins, in all species, males are 10 to 90 percent heavier than the females. I hope you learned something about pangolins, thank for reading!

When did pangolins evolve to roll up?

Why are the males heavier?

When will they become a not endangered species?

http://www.arkive.org/c/pangolins