# Could any African animals survive in the Americas? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 24, 2014, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405 "2014-09-24T03:44:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/1 "2014-09-24T03:44:38Z")
Assume that all of the people mysteriously vanished or some post-apocalyptic even occurred and there was either a land bridge or they were just suddenly teleported to the other side of the world. Could lions, zebras, hyenas or anything else do well here? ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/2 "2014-09-24T04:04:52Z")
[Hippos](http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-27905743) are doing well in Colombia. Too well, according to local authorities. ---
**Author:** ![Bumbershoot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbershoot/32/3428_2.png) [@Bumbershoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbershoot)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/3 "2014-09-24T04:07:13Z")
The [gemsbok](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemsbok), a type of oryx native to southern Africa, was introduced to New Mexico less than 50 years ago and has done quite well; in fact it is now considered an invasive species. The main reason it has thrived (other than the similar ecology) is that it has no natural predators here. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/4 "2014-09-24T04:08:05Z")
The US doesn’t have any tropical savannah climates, but Mexico and South America do. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/5 "2014-09-24T04:18:01Z")
Homo sapiens is doing OK. Several African birds are doing extremely well. Cattle Egret, Eurasian collared dove, Starling, House sparrow. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/6 "2014-09-24T04:18:29Z")
There are monkeys in the New World. The jaguar is related to African cats such as the leopard. In fact, it’s the only cat in the Americas that can roar. Crocodiles and snakes abound. There are antelopes in Africa and the Americas. And as noted, there are feral hippos in Colombia. Lions could probably survive here. I don’t know if larger animals such as elephants or giraffes would thrive here. Or any of the great apes, the gorilla or chimpanzee. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/7 "2014-09-24T04:27:00Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > Homo sapiens is doing OK. > > Several African birds are doing extremely well. Cattle Egret, Eurasian collared dove, Starling, House sparrow. Haha yes I should have excluded humans. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/8 "2014-09-24T04:30:45Z")
The extinct [American Lion,](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_lion) usually today considered a subspecies of the African Lion, ranged [as far north as Alaska](http://www.beringia.com/research/lion.html) and down into northern South America. Given the proper supply of game, African Lions could certainly live in the Americas today. During the Pleistocene a variety of mammoths and mastodonts lived throughout the Americas from the far north to southern South America. Horses had a similar range, so zebras could certainly live in the same areas as well. North America had [a species of hyena](http://markgelbart.wordpress.com/2013/10/01/the-american-hyena-chasmaporthetes-ossifragus/) and a couple of [cheetahs](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_cheetah). In fact, North America in the Pleistocene has often been liked to the African savannas today. If transported to the Americas, virtually all of the modern fauna of Africa could survive there, especially in the tropics, and some could also range into temperate areas. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/9 "2014-09-24T04:38:40Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > The extinct [American Lion,](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_lion) usually today considered a subspecies of the African Lion, ranged [as far north as Alaska](http://www.beringia.com/research/lion.html) and down into northern South America. Given the proper supply of game, African Lions could certainly live in the Americas today. > > During the Pleistocene a variety of mammoths and mastodonts lived throughout the Americas from the far north to southern South America. Horses had a similar range, so zebras could certainly live in the same areas as well. North America had [a species of hyena](http://markgelbart.wordpress.com/2013/10/01/the-american-hyena-chasmaporthetes-ossifragus/) and a couple of [cheetahs](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_cheetah). In fact, North America in the Pleistocene has often been liked to the African savannas today. > > If transported to the Americas, virtually all of the modern fauna of Africa could survive there, especially in the tropics, and some could also range into temperate areas. Very interesting. It’s amusing that the American Lion was apparently one of the largest species: American exceptionalism in action! It would be interesting to see how, say, timber wolves and hyenas reacted to each other. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/10 "2014-09-24T04:46:02Z")
There are ranches in Texas that are raising rhinos. They’re being cared for and looked after but I think they’re living semi-wild on a large tract of land. So presumably the climate is survivable for them. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/11 "2014-09-24T05:40:24Z")
> [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > It would be interesting to see how, say, timber wolves and hyenas reacted to each other. They didn’t _quite_ [overlap](http://markgelbart.wordpress.com/2013/10/01/the-american-hyena-chasmaporthetes-ossifragus/), but the [dire wolf](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dire_wolf) probably co-existed with them. Interestingly enough, they would have been the opposite of a modern spotted hyena/timber wolf relationship. The hunting hyenas were slender dog-like animals most closely related to the modern aardwolf, while the dire wolf appears to have fit a more hyena-like niche, with a more massive body and bone-crushing teeth. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/12 "2014-09-24T05:59:06Z")
I would think jackals would adapt well. They might get some trouble from the locals like coyotes but they might find an area to adapt to. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/13 "2014-09-24T06:55:01Z")
Their are many elephant refuges in the US caring for retired circus elephants. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/14 "2014-09-24T09:55:31Z")
The problem is that you are treating Africa as if it is the same climate all over. Like America, it has desert, grassland and mountains with snow on them. I may be showing my ignorance, but I don’t believe America has any tropical jungle (unless perhaps if you go down to Panama) so the species that depend on that environment may not do so well. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/15 "2014-09-24T15:44:08Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > The problem is that you are treating Africa as if it is the same climate all over. Like America, it has desert, grassland and mountains with snow on them. I may be showing my ignorance, but I don’t believe America has any tropical jungle (unless perhaps if you go down to Panama) so the species that depend on that environment may not do so well. Yes, I’m afraid you’re right. When I think Africa I think stereotypical grassland such as that seen on National Geographic. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/16 "2014-09-24T16:41:04Z")
Nat’l Geo shows the desert, snowy mountains, marshes etc. as well … ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/17 "2014-09-24T17:07:59Z")
Even if we’re just talking North America there are tropical rainforests in Mexico. Lots of animal types that we consider exotics once lived in North America. Dozens of elephant species, horses, camels, lions, saiga anetelope. And note that “African species” is sometimes misleading, since many animals that we consider typical of Africa are actually cosmopolitan in Afro-Eurasia, or used to be. Lions used to live in Europe in historical times and a few still exist in India, jackals, hyenas, camels, leopards, and antelope live in the middle east and south asia, and so on. So there are plenty of African species that could live in North America (or South America). The problem is that the habitat they’d need to live is taken for human use. We could introduce wild lions into Texas, but what are they going to eat? Ranchers are already panicked about wolves and cougars, and now we’re introducing lions? For species like jackals there are already jackal-like canids filling that niche, coyotes are everywhere. Can a jackal outcompete or live side by side with a large population of coyotes? Often non-native invasive species do very well in the new territory because the natural controls (like predators or diseases or parasites) they had in their original range aren’t present in the new range. So it’s very common for an introduced species to thrive in a new range with a broadly similar ecology. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2014, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/18 "2014-09-24T17:15:16Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > The problem is that you are treating Africa as if it is the same climate all over. Like America, it has desert, grassland and mountains with snow on them. I may be showing my ignorance, but I don’t believe America has any tropical jungle (unless perhaps if you go down to Panama) so the species that depend on that environment may not do so well. You never heard of the Amazon basin? America has both wet tropical jungle (lots of it) and one of the rare patches of dry tropical jungle in the world (some of the jungle in Costa Rica, which looks more like a temperate forest with very little brush than like a storybook “jungle”). ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/19 "2014-09-25T02:36:58Z")
There are all of those famously angry bees. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2014, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405/20 "2014-09-25T02:54:52Z")
Camels were exported to Australia and still live there - if _that_ happened, then surely everything is fair game. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-african-animals-survive-in-the-americas/699405.md?page=2)