|
The antelope clan refers to a group of
hollow-horned ruminants that belong to the same family as goat and
sheep. The family is called Bovidae. Antelopes have simple,
unbranched and hollow horns that are never shed. They are truly one
of the most beautiful creation of nature, brilliant hued as they
are. They may be found in open plains, marshes, deserts, or forests,
depending upon the species. Some species of antelopes are solitary,
while some others prefer to move in groups.
There are more than one
hundred species of antelopes that belong to this rather large
family. Most of them are found in Africa and some of them in Asia.
The closest American native kin that the antelope can claim is the
Rocky Mountain Goat, which is also known as the goat antelope since
it shares some typical features with both the goat and the antelope. |
|
|
There is no taking a
guess on the average size of the antelope. It ranges widely, from
the tiny royal antelope, which is about ten inches in height to the
giant eland, which could reach a height of five feet nine inches.
|
Some African
species:
The kudu
One of the species of the African
antelope is known as kudu. There are
two varieties of kudu and they inhabit the forest areas of
Africa. Of the two varieties, one known as the greater kudu,
scientifically known as Tragelaphus strepsiceros,
ranges in color from reddish brown to pale grey. The greater
kudu has a white stripe running along the middle of its back,
with several transverse white stripes on either side. The male
of the species has long horns that are spiral in shape, often
running to a length of five feet.
(The female of the species is free from having to carry around
the additional weight of the horns; it is unencumbered with
horns.) Pray, do not be misled by its size, for the greater
kudu is a timid and gentle vegetarian feeding on grass, leaves
and fruit. To locate one, we will need to trek to Africa, from
Chad to Somalia and South Africa, where we may find the
greater kudu in the dry forests and or in the dense bushes.
Its height averages between three and a half and five feet. |
The greater kudu |
|
Tragelaphus imberbis is the scientific name for the
smaller kudu, which measures a mere 35-41 inches in height (at
its shoulder), but is no less brightly hued than its bigger
cousin.
|
Dik-Dik
Found in the dry region of equatorial East Africa, the dik-dik is
merely the size of a large jackrabbit. Are you curious to know why
it is so called? The dik dik gets its name from the dik-dik or
zik-zik sound that it makes when it is startled. It makes a series
of zigzag leaps too. Two common varieties of dik dik are Kirk's and
Guenther's. They may be found in the region from Tanzania to Kenya.
Kirk's dik-dik may also be found in Angola and Namibia.
The dik-dik is a shy animal. It measures about 20 to 28 inches in
length and 12 to 18 inches in height. Its average weight is about
three to seven kilos. It has a short tail and a long nose. Its horns
are short, often hidden inside a tuft of hair on the head. It is
herbivorous and can apparently live without water (save what it gets
from tasting dew!!), for several months.
Eland
There are two varieties of eland, the common eland and the derby
eland. The common eland (Taurotragus oryx) may be found in
central and southern Africa. It has a lovely fawn-colored coat. It
has strong spiral horn that grows straight upward to a length of
four feet. The Taurotragus derbianus, or the derby eland as
it is known, may be found in the southern part of Africa. They can
grow to a height of six feet.
Gnu
The gnu is a large animal with a head like that of an ox and a tail
like that of a horse. Gnus have bristly facial hair and manes. They
have smooth broad horns that are also curved. A specialty with the
gnus is that their young ones can run a few minutes after birth.
There are two varieties
of gnus, the black wildebeest and the blue wildebeest. The black
wildebeests were once to be found abundantly in South Africa, but
there are hardly ten thousand of them left now. The variety called
blue wildbeest may be found on the grassy plains from Kenya to the
northern part of South Africa. Blue wildebeests vary in color from
bluish-grey to brown. |
