The most commonly asked question
at camp is
"Can a porcupine shoot it's
quills?" The answer is
NO. While the African Crested Porcupines
are very different than the North American
Porcupine, neither can shoot their quills.
The North American Porcupine has rather short
quills that come out very easily. Their
quills also have small barbs that allow them to
stick into what ever is unlike enough to make
contact with it. The African Crest
Porcupine quills do not have barbs. They
will run backwards into their enemy's, stabbing
them with their quills, which then break off in
the predators skin.
The crested porcupine is the
largest and heaviest of African rodents.
The head is roundish and rather domed, with a
blunt muzzle and small eyes and ears. The legs
are short and sturdy, and each foot has five
toes, all equipped with powerful claws.
The porcupine is, of course,
easily recognized by its most notable
feature—its quills. Quill length on different
parts of the body varies, from 1 inch up to 12
inches on the back. Usually the quills lie flat
against the body, but if danger threatens, the
porcupine raises and spreads them. Scales on
quill tips lodge in the skin like fishhooks and
are difficult to pull out. New quills grow in to
replace lost ones. This information was taken
from
www.awf.org
At Cub Creek Science Camp we
have a pair of African Crested Porcupines. The male
African Crested Porcupine is Spike and the female African
Crested Porcupine is Spunky. They live in the animal
enclosure called the Jungle here at our ranch "zoo".
Spike likes to put his front feet up on the rail of his
enclosure and let you pat his head. Spunky is a little
bit more shy. During our summer camp many of our
campers enjoy adopting an African Crested Porcupine as their
responsibility for the week through our Adopt an Animal
program. The porcupines love to gnaw on sweet potatoes
and pumpkins along with other types of fruits and
vegetables. When their quills fall out they are prized
by campers as souvenirs from their summer camp experience of
adopting an African Crested Porcupine.
