The Nile delta has long been a fertile region that supports many of Africa’s fauna, from the large aquatic hippos to the light-as-air falcons.  The Ancient Egyptians appreciated the animals that walked among them, viewing some as personifications of the gods.

Animals were incorporated into daily life as well as into their religion. In King Tut Virtual, you can experience an exotic world in which hippos and crocodiles roam the Nile.

Long-lived and slow to reproduce, the Nile hippo was listed as a vulnerable species in 2006 after a 95% decline in population due to unregulated hunting for food and ivory.  The ivory comes from the long, sharp tusks of the male hippopotamus, tusks that aid in territory marking and fighting rituals.  These tusks get male hippopotamuses in trouble as well - they are so well known for accidentally mauling young hippos with their teeth that female hippopotamuses will actually attack males that wander too close to their young, unless they lie down in submission first! 

Male hippos also have a charming habit of marking territory with excretion. If another male enters their territory, they will turn the other direction and shower the other male in a rain of feces and urine, a clear sign that the other male is unwelcome!  Females mature and begin to breed late, for animals, at around seven to nine years old. Gestation is a similar length to human babies, eight months, and their lifespan is generally 45 years in the wild, and longer in the zoo.  Ungainly on land, these animals can still gallop up to 65 km/hr, and are extremely graceful swimmers.

2. King Tutankhamun’s tomb contained a curious and beautifully engraved fan.  On one side was a depiction of the king on a chariot, hunting an ostrich.  On the other, the return, with the captured ostrich in the arms of the king’s men.

Adorning the fan were long plumes, perhaps from the very ostrich depicted.  With a ground speed of up to 72 km/hr, catching these flightless birds was no easy task.  The speed of ostriches is so renowned that Arsinoe II was depicted riding one. Long of neck and leg, ostriches live in nomadic groups of between five to fifty birds, and use their speed to outrun predators. Ostriches also blend well with the dusty colors of the Nile shore, lying down and remaining perfectly still to resemble large tufts of pampas or pale grass. Male ostriches have harems of two to seven females, and they live off of the rich plant and insect matter found along the Nile. 
3. Crocodile.

Powerful and ancient, the Nile crocodile survived several waves of extinction to become one of the few animals to remain relatively unchanged for 200 million years of evolution.  Because of their ancient heritage, crocodiles are closer in genetics to birds and dinosaurs than reptiles. Asexual as embryos within their eggs, sex is determined by temperature, with males produced if the environmental temperature is 31.6C, and females at slightly lower and higher temperatures.  Incubation lasts for around 80 days, also depending upon temperature.  Crocodiles reach up to 4.85 meters long and weigh up to 1,200 kg.  Nile crocodiles are among the most dangerous on earth, known for killing several hundred people every year, although the ones in King Tut Virtual can’t harm you.  The Ancient Egyptians honored this creature, embodying him in the god Sobek, the one who controlled the waters of the Nile and the fertility of the land.  Egyptians would appease Sobek by keeping crocodiles in temples and in city pools, often ornamenting them with jewels.  

4. One of the most well-known symbols of Ancient Egypt is the eye of Horus.  A drooping tear descends in a hook from the dark oblique right eye, symbolizing the sun.  Falcons are known for the power of their vision, with some species having visual power of up to 2.6 times that of a normal human.  Falcons are also ancient creatures, with the earliest in history showing in fossil records of 10 million years ago.  African falcons with their distinctive grey feathers come from the kestrel group, with males of the species at least 1/3 smaller in body size than females.  Egyptians worshipped the falcon in a few shifting incarnations.  As simply a falcon he was linked to the god of the sky or the falcon-god Nekheny, the patron of the city of Nekhen (Hawk City).  As Horus or Ra, he became the embodiment of the very sun.

5.Monkeys and baboons were probably more prevalent in the Old Kingdom of Ancient Egypt than they are today due to a greater level of environmental moisture, but even by the era of the New Kingdom (1570 - 1070 BC), these animals were scarce, and had to be brought in from wetter countries such as Nubia or Punt.  Temples kept monkeys in colonies for sacred reasons, because monkeys were considered sacred vessels of the gods. Baboons especially, in the form of statues or mummies, were often used to represent the Pharoah.  Rich households also kept monkeys and baboons in captivity, although they only lived from six to ten years due to a lack of proper exercise and diet.  One of the four sons of Horus, Hapy, is represented as a baboon-headed god that oversaw mummification. Baboons are also one of the aspects of Ra, often depicted in paintings and reliefs lifting a hand to worship the sun.