Tsessebe antelopes. |
Being darkish red brown in colour
with a slight purple sheen over its coat, along with a distinctive hump on
their back and a long narrow face, the tsessebe antelope is rather peculiar
looking.
This large buck is the fastest of
all antelope found in Africa being able to run up to speeds over 80km/h. The
females weigh in at 126kg with their male counterparts at 140kg. These antelope’s
horns usually grow 37 to 40 cm’s, with a record length measured of 47cm.
Habitat
They are found to be living on the
plains of African countries from Angola, Zambia and Namibia to Botswana,
Zimbabwe and South Africa. In the rainbow nation of South Africa, they are restricted
to the northern parts of the country within the Kruger National Park as well as
provincial and private game reserves.
Tsessebe's enjoy a life in a lightly wooded area or grassland and take up home in territories within 5km away from a water source such as floodplains or lakes.
Tsessebe's enjoy a life in a lightly wooded area or grassland and take up home in territories within 5km away from a water source such as floodplains or lakes.
Behaviour
These antelopes are social animals
living in breeding groups of six to ten cows with their young or larger herds of up to 30
territorial bulls. When a young males turns one they are banished from the herd
and go onto form bachelor herds with other young bulls.
Males show their territorial
dominance by scraping the ground with their hooves using their inter-digital
glands on their front hoof or rubbing the sides of their faces on the ground.
Both males and females mark their territories with their pre-orbital glands.
Territorial males stand on higher
ground such as termite mounds to investigate their surroundings. When danger is
upon them they hurry away with their herd members stopping to look back at how
far away their hunter is.
These antelopes doze in small
groups standing up with their heads bobbing up and down. However when
they are fully exhausted they lie down on their chests resting their mouths on the
ground.
Tsessebe antelopes are considered
to be fussy eating herbivores grazing on a variety of only the freshest of grass or browsing on leaves and
not eating the stems. They love burnt areas because of the fresh
growth of new plants coming to life to eat.
Reproduction
They mate during the late summer
months of February through to March, and the females give birth to one calve, seven months
later. When the bulls are interested in a female they put on an extravagant
show by parading in front of them, high stepping and pointing their noses in
the air.
Did you know?
Their numbers are declining in the
wild.
They defecate regularly as a
territorial marking.
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