Top 5 Most Unique Animals in Mergui Archipelago

» 5 Unique Mammals in Mergui Archipelago

1. The Dusky Langur

You can not resist their adorable appearance with a tiny size. They are considered being one of the cutest animals in Mergui Archipelago as wellas in the world.Due to the white rings around the eyes, the little langurs are also called Spectacled Leaf Monkey.

They live in a group of up to 20 animals with one dominant male, females and offsprings. The Dusky Langurs are very territorial, so they often shout out to defend their territory from predators. They often hide in the canopy almost day and only active in the early mornings and the afternoons. 

In comparison with other monkeys, they are more obedient and calmer. It is always fun to watch these cute little creatures swing around high trees and spend most of their time relaxing, brushing and searching for food.

2. The Dugong

"Dugong" is from "duyung" in Burmese and means "lady of the sea". It is the only animal in Mergui Arhipelago which lives in water pust on this top 5 list. Dugong is also known as sea cow.The dugongs belong to a small family of marine mammals related to elephants. 

Dugongs are big and sturdy mammals. They have short front flippers which look like paddles with a paddle-shaped tail that is used as a propeller. Dugong will remind you of dolphin but only one difference, dugongs have no dorsal fin.

They live near the coast of the wide and shallow bays, the mangrove channels or the leeward side of islands. An adult can grow to 3-4 meters in high and a half of ton in weigh.

» Read more: Diving in Mergui Archipelago - Explore the Mysterious Underwater World

3. The Sunda Pangolin

The Sunda Pangolins are shy animals in Mergui Archipelago which usually hunt at night. they are completely covered in keratin scales and often called "scaly anteaters".

Pangolins detect their prey with the long, sticky tongue. They only feed ants and termites. A pangolin eats about 200.000 ants or termites every day.  It is quite hard to find a pangolin. If you see a big hole dug into the forest on any island, it can be a pangolin.

The Pangolin is the only known mammal in the world to have hard and thick scales which cover their entire body. They often rolls as a ball to avoid threats. Besides, pangolin can climb very well and spend almost day to rest in a tree.

4. The Oriental Small-clawed Otter

The Oriental Small-clawed Otter is one of the smallest otters iin the world. These otters live in extended  groups including 12-20 individuals. They live in small families of a male otter, a female one and their young ones. Specially, the older otter will help rear the younger one.

They are really good at swimming. They movetheir back legs and tail to swim. The Oriental Small-clawed Otter often play in water and glide down muddy land in regions they visit and they fight with their enermies by scratching.They live in a mangrove swamps but spend most of time to hang around on the ground.

You can find this animal easily in Mergui Archipelago. The otters are very charming and playful. Their paws are almost not webbed, so they become more skillful in catching the preys with their paws instead of with their mouth.

5. The Lesser Mouse-deer

Mouse-deer is known as Tragulus kanchil lampensis (named after Lampi Island). It is the smallest hoofed animal in the world with only 45 centimeters in size and 2 kilograms in weigh for a mature one. The mouse-deer has elongated canine teeth to use in fights and short and thin legs help they run through the dense foliage easily.

Don't be surprised if you might never have seen or heard about these little adorable animal before. They are very shy animal which live alone and away from the others. They like to stay in the low underbrush or covered areas and they are also nocturnal aniimal so it is really hard to see them in a daylight. When they feel danger, they often stand motionlessly and then run quickly away at high speeds which makes visitors hard to catch on camera.

Even though the mouse deer's legs are incredibly thin and small, they are actually quite strong. These cute mammals like climbing in the low branches of trees which allows them to pick up berries easily and help them have a shelter to hide from predators. Some species can even swim with ease. Once not hanging around or climbing, the mouse deer will hide in a burrow to sleep all day and wake up in evening.

» Read more: Top 5 Most Unique Birds in the Mergui Archipelago

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