Bushbuck

Bushbuck live in habitat including rain forests, montane forests, forest-savanna mosaics and bush savannas. Bushbuck stand about 90 centimetres at the shoulder and weigh from 30 to 80 kilograms (depending on sex). Bushbuck have a light brown coat, with up to seven white stripes and white splotches on the sides.

The white patches are usually geometrically shaped and on the most mobile parts of their body such as the ears, chin, tail, legs and neck. The muzzle is also white and horns are found only on the males and they can reach over half a metre with only one twist. At 10 months old, young males sprout horns that are particularly twisted and at maturity form the first loop of a spiral.

Bushbuck eat mainly browse but supplement their diet with any other plant matter they can reach. Bushbuck are active around 24 hours a day but tend to be nocturnal near human habitations. Bushbuck tend to be solitary, though some live in pairs.

All bushbucks live within a "home" area they will not normally leave this area, which is usually around 50,000 square metres on the savannah and much larger in the forest.

These areas usually overlap other bushbuck home areas. Bushbucks are basically solitary animals and the mature males go out of their way to stay away from each other.

Usually bushbuck are most active during early morning and part of the night, therefore are almost entirely nocturnal in areas where they are unlikely to be disturbed.

Klipspringer

Reaching approximately 58cm (22 inches) at the shoulder, Klipspringers are relatively small animals compared to some of their larger antelope cousins. Only the males have horns that are usually about 20-25cm (4-6 inches) long. They stand on the tips of their hooves.

With a thick and dense speckled "salt and pepper" patterned coat of an almost olive shade, Klipspringers blend in well with the kopje (rock outcrops, pronounced "kah-pee") on which they can usually be found.

Klipspringers are herbivores, eating rock plants. They never need to drink, since the succulents they subsist on provide them with enough water to survive.

The mating season for Klipspringers is from September through to January. The gestation period is about 214 days.

Oribi

Oribi are found in most countries throughout sub-Saharan Africa.

They typically inhabit open grasslands or thinly bushed country, preferring habitats with short grasses on which to graze, interspersed with tall grass which provides cover from predators and the elements. Oribi are highly water-dependent and tend to avoid steep slopes.

Oribi are graceful slender-legged, long-necked small antelope found in grassland almost throughout Sub-Saharan Africa.

They grow to a cool lengh around 92–110 cm (36 to 43 inches) in length, with a shoulder height of 50–66 cm (20 to 26 inches) and weigh an average of 12–22 kg (26 to 49 lb).

They can run at speeds of up to 40–50 km/h (25–31 mph). In captivity they have a lifespan of up to 14 years.

Bontebok

The Bontebok is an antelope found in South Africa and Lesotho. The Bontebok has two subspecies; the Bontebok (Damaliscus pygargus pygargus), occurring naturally in the Fynbos and Renosterveld areas of the Western Cape(and which is an endangered species), and the Blesbok (Damaliscus pygargus phillipsi) occurring in the highveld.

The Bontebok stands 80 to 100 centimetres at the shoulder and weighs 50 to 90 kilograms. The Bontebok is a chocolate brown colour, with a white underside and a white stripe from the forehead to the tip of the nose, although there is a brown stripe across the white near the eyes in most Blesbok. Bontebok also has a distinctive white patch around its tail (whence the latin name), while this patch is light brown/tan in Blesbok. The horns of Bontebok are lyre-shaped and clearly ringed they are found in both sexes and can reach a length of half a metre.

Blesbok live in highveld where they eat short grasses, while Bontebok are restricted to coastal Fynbos and Renosterveld (Skead 1980). They are diurnal, though they rest during the heat of the day. Herds contain only males, only females or are mixed and do not exceed forty animals for Bonteboks or seventy for Blesboks.

Bontebok are not good jumpers but they are very good at crawling under things. Mature males form territories and face down other males in displays and occasionally combat.

Bontebok were once extensively killed as pests, and were reduced to a wild population of just seventeen animals, but the species has since recovered. Blesbok are extinct in their natural habitat but they have increased in population to the point where they are now very abundant and avidly farmed, because they are popular quarry for hunters and are easy to sustain.

Impala

An impala (Aepyceros melampus Greek αιπος, aipos "high" κερος, ceros "horn" + melas "black" pous "foot") is a medium-sized African antelope. The name impala comes from the Zulu language. They are found in savannas and thick bushveld in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, northern Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, southern Angola, northeastern South Africa and Uganda (the source of that country's capital city's name - Kampala).

Average mass for an Impala is approximately 75 kilograms. They are reddish-brown in color with lighter flanks, have white underbellies and a characteristic "M" marking on its rear. Males have lyre-shaped horns which can reach up to 90 centimeters in length.

Kudu

Like many other antelope, male kudu can be found in bachelor groups, but they are more likely to be widespread. Males do not have long shows for dominance; it is usually quick and peaceful, consisting of one male giving the most lateral show, standing up front and making himself look big.when males do have a face off they will lock their horns and it will be a compotition of whos the strongest puller, as you would notices there neck inlargen during the mating season, and sometimes the two males are unable to unlock there horns from each other and end up dying.

Kudus are browsers and eat leaves and shoots. In dry seasons, they eat wild watermelons and other fruit for the liquid they provide. The lesser Kudu is less dependent on water sources than the greater kudu.

Males are seen with females only in the mating season, where they'll only be in groups of 5-15 with their offspring. Calves grow very quickly and at six months are fairly independent of their mothers.

Nyala

The Nyala (Tragelaphus angasii) is a South African antelope. It is a spiral-horned dense-forest antelope that is uncomfortable in open spaces and is most often seen at water holes. Nyalas live alone or in small family groups of up to 10 members.

The male stands up to 3.5 feet (110 cm), the female is up to 3 feet tall. The male has loosely spiraled horns and a long fringe on throat and underparts; the female has no horns and no noticeable fringe. The male is dark brown, white on the face and neck, with vertical white stripes on the body. The female is reddish brown with clear striping.

The rare Mountain Nyala (Tragelaphus buxtoni) is limited to central Ethiopia. While superficially similar to the lowland nyala, it is now considered more closely related to the kudu.

The name "Nyala" is the Swahili name for this antelope. The Latin name comes from "tragos" (he-goat), "elaphos" (deer), and George Francis Angas, an English artist and naturalist.

Common Duiker

The Common Duiker, Sylvicapra grimmia, also known as the Gray or Bush Duiker, is a small antelope with small horns found in west, central, east, and southern Africa- essentially everywhere in Africa south of the Sahara, excluding the horn of Africa and the rainforests of the central and western parts of the continent.

Generally they are found in habitat that has sufficient vegetation cover to allow them to hide—savannah and hilly areas, including the fringes of human settlements.

It grows to about 4 feet (1.2 m) in height and generally weighs 12 to 25 kg;

Blue Duiker

Blue Duiker (Cephalophus monticola) is a small forest dwelling duiker found in the Central Africa and southern South Africa.

Blue Duikers stand around 35 centimetres tall at the shoulder and weigh 4 kilograms. Blue Duikers have a brown coat with a slight blue tinge - hence their name - and a white underside.

There is a glandular slit beneath both eyes and a very slight crest between the ears. Blue Duikers have simple conical horns of 2 to 10 centimetres. Females don't always have horns.

Blue Duiker live mainly in rainforests, where they eat fruit, flowers and leaves, which have fallen from the canopy as well as eggs, and insects. It is, in turn, the prey of the ferocious Crowned Eagle. Blue Duiker are nocturnal and solitary or form mating pairs. They are very territorial animals, patrolling the borders of their territory and marking it with their dung and excretions from glands above their hooves and under their eyes. They will chase off any intruders and only tolerate their children's presence until they reach 18 months.

Blue Duiker are not at all endangered and are in fact quite common - in Gabon they can reach population densities of almost 80 animals per square kilometre.

Red Duiker

The Red-flanked Duiker (Cephalophus rufilatus), is a tiny antelope found in western and central Africa.

Red-flanked Duikers grow to almost 15 inches (35 centimetres) in height and weigh up to 31 pounds (12 kilograms). They have a russet coat, with black legs and back and a white underbelly.

The duiker feeds on leaves, fallen fruits, seeds, flowers, and sometimes small birds or other small animals. They have a lifespan of 10-15 years in captivity.

Roan Antelope

The Roan Antelope (Hippotragus equinus) is a savanna antelope found in West, Central, East Africa and Southern Africa.

Roan Antelope stand about a metre and half at the shoulder and weigh around 250 kilograms. Named for the "roan' colour (a reddish brown), they have a lighter underbelly, white eyebrows and cheeks and a black face, lighter in females. There is a short erect mane, a very light beard and prominent red nostrils. The horns are ringed and can reach a metre long in males, slightly shorter in females. They arch backwards slightly.

They are similar in appearance to Sable Antelope and can be confused where their ranges overlap. Sable Antelope males are darker, being black rather than dark brown.

Roan Antelope are found in woodland and grassland savanna mainly in the Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, which range in tree density from forest with a grassy understorey (such as Central Zambezian Miombo woodlands) to grasslands dotted with few trees, where they eat mid-length grass. They form harem groups of five to fifteen animals with a dominant male. Roan Antelope commonly fight among themselves for dominance of their herd, brandishing their horns while both animals are on their knees.

Sable Antelope

The Sable Antelope stands 120 to 140 centimetres at the shoulder and weigh 200 to 270 kilograms, males being larger than females. Female Sable Antelope are chestnut to dark brown darkening as they mature while males are very distinctively black. Both sexes have a white underbelly, white cheeks and a white chin. They have a shaggy mane on the back of their neck. Sable antelope have ringed horns which arch backward, in females these can reach a meter, but in males they can reach over one and a half meters.

Sable Antelope live in wooded savannah where they eat mid-length grass and leaves. They are diurnal but are less active during the heat of the day. Sable Antelope form herds of ten to thirty females and calves led by a single male. Sable Antelope males will fight among themselves; they drop to their knees and use their horns.

Scimitar Oryx

The Scimitar Oryx is just over a metre at the shoulder and weighs around two hundred kilograms. Its coat is white with a red-brown chest and black markings on the forehead and down the length of the nose. The horns are long, thin and parallel and curve backwards (like a scimitar) and can reach a metre to a metre and a quarter on both sexes, male and female.

Scimitar Oryx natively inhabit steppe and desert where they eat leaves, grass and fruit. They form herds of mixed sex containing up to seventy animals. Formerly they would gather in groups of several thousand for migration. Scimitar Oryx can survive without water for many weeks, because their kidneys prevent loss of water from urination and they can modify their body temperature to avoid perspiration.

Sharp’s Grysbok

It is similar in size to the Gray Duiker, but has a stockier body and elongated fur over the hindquarters. It stands about 20" (45–60 cm) at the shoulders and weighs only 7–11.5 kg. Its coat is reddish-brown which is streaked with white; eye-rings, around mouth, throat and underside are off-white. The males have stubby horns, which are widely spaced. Sharpe's Grysbok has a short deep muzzle with large mouth and heavy molar (grinding) teeth. The short neck and face on a long-legged body result in a high-rump posture when browsing.

Although its territorial range is large, Sharpe's Grysbok is infrequently seen. Males and females seem to form brief associations, but the species is usually encountered singly. Territory is marked with dung middens. Their habitat is rocky hill country, but preferring fertile zones on the lower slopes.

They are nocturnal browsers and spend the day in the protective cover of tall grass or shrubs. They are extremely timid and will run away at the first sign of anything unusual, although this flight is accompanied "short stamping hops"; they move well away from where the disturbance occurred before stopping (unlike Steenbok, which stop and look back). Sharpe's Grysbok are reported to take refuge in Aardvark burrows, like Steenbok.

Sharpe's Grysbok browse on leaves, buds, herb and fruits—in the dry season, their food is typically tough (for which their teeth and jaws are adapted). Grazed grass makes up about 30% of their diet.

The closely related Cape (or Southern) Grysbok (R. melanotis) occurs in the western Cape region. Haltenorth and Diller[3] consider sharpei as a subspecies of melanotis.

Gemsbuck

The gemsbok or gemsbuck (Oryx gazella) is a large African antelope, of the Oryx genus. The name is derived from the Dutch name of the male chamois, Gemsbok. Although there are some superficial similarities in appearance (especially in the colour of the face area), the chamois and the oryx are not related.

Gemsbok live in herds of about 10-40 animals, which consist of a dominant male, a few non-dominant males, and females. They often live in association with zebras, gazelles or other antelopes. The female's horns may be curved but the male's are thicker and parallel. Male gemsbok have been known to gore attacking lions with their horns.

There are two types of gemsbok: a northern and southern variety. The northern gemsboks have black-fringed ears while the southern ones have longer horns and more rounded ears.

Gemsbok are mainly desert-dwelling and do not depend on drinking to supply their physiological water needs.

Suni

Suni (Neotragus moschatus) is a very small species of antelope. It occurs in south-east Africa in dense underbrush.

Suni are around 12-17 inches high at the shoulder and weigh 10-12 pounds. They are usually reddish brown, darker on their back than their sides and legs. The belly, chin, throat and insides of legs are white. The nostrils are prominent red, and there are black rings around the eyes and above the hooves. Males have horns 3-5 inches long, that are ridged most of their length and curve backwards close to their heads. Females do not have horns. Suni can make weak barking and whistling sounds.

Suni feed on leaves, fungi, fruits and flowers, and need almost no free water. They are shy, most active at night, and sleep during the day in a shady, sheltered area. They are social but males defend a territory of about 3 hectares. They scent-mark the boundaries with secretions from their preorbital glands. There may be an individual or communal dung pile on the periphery of the territory. A male usually takes one mate, but other females may share his territory. A single calf is born weighing about two pounds, after a gestation of 183 days.

Lions, birds of prey, snakes, and other meat-eaters prey on suni. For protection, they are well camouflaged in dry grass and keep very still. When a predator is almost on top of them, they spring out and bound away into the underbrush.

Springbuck

Springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis): South Africa's national animal, once the name of just about all of Africa’s international sporting teams.  The Springbok is a beautiful antelope and still common throughout much of its habitat, which is most of the interior to the west coast and the southern Cape.

Variants: Black, Copper, White

Described as a true desert antelope, the Springbok prefers arid and semi-desert scrub and grassland, being both a grazer and a browser. It lives in mixed herds of anything from ten upwards, but will congregate in much greater numbers.

They are a plains species and dislike wooded areas. The blesbuck is indigenous to South Africa and are found in large numbers in all national parks with open grasslands.

Blesboks can be found in open velds and open plains of South Africa. Preferred habitat is open grasslands with water.

Females have a tan coat, while males have a darker tan coat with a blueish-grey tinge; there may also be a series of white stripes vertically on the sides of bulls (mainly in parts of the karoo in South Africa).

Males have dense fur on their foreheads and a large dewlap. Both sexes have horns, about 65 centimetres (26 in) long and with a steady spiral ridge (resembling that of the bushbuck). The female's horns are wider set and thinner than the male's.

Black Wildebeest

A large, dark brown antelope, not really black, it does however appear black at a distance. The shoulders are massive and somewhat higher than the slender hindquarter.

Has a large head and long face, with a beard under the throat.

Weight: 308-323lb
Height: 44-48in
SCI minimum score: 61

Habitat: Found in open grassland and bushveld

Blue Wildebeest

Though it is not actually blue, has a dark silvery gray color with a grayish brown tinge. This large, bearded antelope with it's humped shoulder and sloping backs, are tough and although normally timid, will fight ferociously when cornered.

Weight: 440-600lb
Height: 50-58in
SCI minimum score: 60

Habitat: Found in open savanna, woodland with short grass; open plains

Red Hartebeest

(Alcelaphus buselaphus) is a grassland antelope found in West Africa, East Africa and Southern Africa. It is one of the three species classified in the genus Alcelaphus.

The Hartebeest stands almost 1.5 m (5 ft) at the shoulder and weighs anywhere from 120-200 kg (265-440 lb). Male Hartebeest are a dark brown colour while females are yellow brown.

Both sexes have horns which can reach lengths up to 70 cm (27 in). Hartebeest live in grassland and open forest where they eat grass. They are diurnal and spend the morning and late afternoon eating. Herds contain five to twenty individuals but can occasionally contain up to three hundred and fifty.

Tsessebe

The Tsessebe has the reputation of being the fastest antelope in Southern Africa. They are endangered in South Africa, mainly through habitat loss. Both sexes have crescent shaped horns, the males have larger and thicker horns.

Habitat is grassland and open country with scattered patches of bush. Herds are small, usually up to ten animals.

Diet is exclusively grass. They appear to be almost independent of water when the grass is green.

Waterbuck

The shaggy, coarse coat is reddish brown to grizzled grey in colour, darkening with age.  Facial markings are composed of a white muzzle, lighter eyebrows and insides of the ears, while there is a cream-coloured 'bib' on the throat.  The most conspicuous feature of this antelope is a large white 'halo' or hollow ring which surrounds the base of the tail on the rump (in certain subspecies, most notably the Defassa waterbuck K. e. defassa, the area within the circle is covered with white hair, creating a rump patch.  The body is heavyset, and the strong legs are black in colour.  The heavily ridged horns are found only in males and sweep in an arc backwards and upwards, with the tips pointing forwards.  They grow 55-100 cm / 1.6-3.3 feet long.

As it name would suggest, the waterbuck is a good swimmer and flees into water if pursued, although it is reported that they do not actually like going into water.  At 7-9 months, males are driven from their maternal family and join up with a bachelor herd.  These groups have a distinct social hierarchy based on size and strength, and contests are frequent.

General Characteristics

Body Length:
180-220 cm / 6-7.3 ft.
Shoulder Height:
100-130 cm / 3.3-4.3 ft.
Tail Length:
22-45 cm / 8.8-18 in.
Weight:
150-250 kg / 330-550 lb.

 Around 6-7 years, males become territorial, staking out areas of 150-625 acres and defending them against mature rivals with posturing and fights.  These territories are maintained throughout the year, and a male is generally overthrown before he reaches 10 years of age.  Only about 5-10 % of mature males are territorial at the same time.  Female groups wander over a home range of 200-600 hectares, which may be kept for up to 8 years and encompasses several male territories.  Population densities in Uganda vary from 0.15-17.8 animals per square kilometer

Family group: Male, female, and mixed groups of up to 30 animals.
Diet: Grasses, reeds, leaves.
Main Predators: Lion, leopard, hyena, Cape hunting dog.

Scrub, savanna, and woodlands near water in sub-Saharan west Africa and most of central and eastern Africa