Scientific name | Alcelaphus buselaphus |
Weight | 75-200 kilos |
Height | 140 cm |
Length | 1.5m-2m in length |
Life expectancy | About 12 years in the wild |
IUCN Status | Least concern |
The hartebeest is a common sub-Saharan African antelope, which is common in East Africa. The Swahili name for the antelope is Kongoni. There are eight subspecies of the hartebeest; the Bubal hartebeest is extinct while the rest have decent numbers in the wild (except Tora hartebeest that is listed as critically endangered). The features of the mammal are defined that it makes it easy to identify the species.
Although they have a clumsy look, hartebeests are among the most evolved antelopes as they are fast (reaching speeds of up to 70 km per hour) and enduring runners. It is no wonder that they are nicknamed ‘tough ox.’
Interesting facts
ü They have weird shaped horns
ü Males are bigger than females.
ü The species is thought to be named after the Dutch in South Africa. Its name loosely translates to a ‘deer beast.’
ü The hartebeest found in groups on open fields and scrublands of sub-Saharan Africa. When the most extensive going of African antelope, they likewise once lived in North Africa.
ü It is a herbivore (plant-eater) whose main diet is based almost entirely on the grass. As such, hartebeest competes with livestock for pasture.
ü Although they primarily feed on grass, hartebeests are not picky in feeding on the grass. They feed on grasses that other livestock and game consider unpalatable
ü The tail, 40 to 60 centimeters (16 up to 24 inches) in length, ends in a dark tuft.
ü Its legs, which regularly have dark markings, are strangely long.
ü Mating in hartebeest happens throughout the year, with one or two peaks that can be influenced by the availability of food. Gestation is 8 to 9 months in length, after which a single calf conceived.
ü There are also very alert and non-aggressive.
ü Hartebeest reaches sexual maturity at the age of 1 and 4 years.
ü Hartebeests are social animals living in organized groups of up to 300 animals.
ü Even though youthful hartebeest relies upon the mother’s milk just during the initial four months of its life, it, for the most part, remains with its mother until the age of 3 years. Youthful males leave their local groups and gather in the ranger of heard.
Despite being listed as least concern by IUCN, hartebeest population in the wild face severe challenge of poaching. Their meat is a highly regarded game. Some livestock keepers also poach the species because it competes with livestock for grass.
