The Rock Dassie or Hyrax is found from sea level to the Drakensberg mountains of South Africa. The Dassie has to have rocks to shelter and live in.
The diet is mainly vegetation such as grass,
shrubs and succulent leaves. The Rock Dassie feeds in the morning and afternoon.
If the Dassie gets enough succulent feed it does not need water.
It spends very little time moving around. This is to conserve energy. It also
allows its body temperature to drop by up to three degrees centigrade to save
metabolic energy. It then spends lots of time basking in the sun to warm up
again.
The dassie's main predators are Black eagles, Caracal and Leopard.
Pictures of animals
