Giraffe gazelles

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Giraffe gazelles
Southern giraffe gazelle (Litocranius walleri)

Southern giraffe gazelle ( Litocranius walleri )

Systematics
Subordination : Ruminants (ruminantia)
without rank: Forehead weapon bearer (Pecora)
Family : Horned Bearers (Bovidae)
Subfamily : Antilopinae
Tribe : Gazelle-like (antilopini)
Genre : Giraffe gazelles
Scientific name
Litocranius
Kohl , 1886

The giraffe gazelles ( Litocranius ), also called Gerenuks , are an African genus of antelopes from the gazelle-like group . The name Gerenuk is an inexact translation of the Somali name garanug .

Images of giraffe gazelles can be found among the ancient Egyptians from around 5600 BC. The species was not scientifically described until 1878. To this day, very little is known about the way of life of this gazelle. In the African landscape, the giraffe gazelles are particularly noticeable because they often stand on their hind legs during grazing to get hold of leaves.

features

Giraffe Gazelles in the Masai Mara in Kenya

The giraffe gazelles are distinctive because of their long, slender neck and long legs. They reach a shoulder height of up to 1.04 meters. The weight is 32 to 50 kilograms, the horns, which only the male wears, are up to 43 centimeters long.

The coat is reddish chocolate brown on the back, the sides of the body, on the other hand, are clearly lighter and sharply set off from the back saddle. This two-tone coat on the top of the body is unique among gazelles. A dark line clearly delimits the white side of the abdomen. The ears are very large, a white eye ring tapers towards the mouth. The male has short, strongly curled horns with a relatively thick shaft. They form a sweeping arch directed backwards, then twist forward and end in a tight hook. The male also has showy pre-eye glands secreting a dark substance. Further scent glands can be found on the legs at knee level.

distribution

The distribution area extends from Ethiopia and Somalia via Kenya to northern Tanzania . In historical times, giraffe gazelles were also common in Sudan and Egypt , but have long been extinct there. The preferred habitat are arid areas, mostly thorn bush savannas.

Way of life

Giraffe gazelle eating in the Samburu National Reserve

The giraffe gazelles are among the representatives that are specially adapted to life in the dry savannah. Similar to the saber antelope and the mendes antelope , the giraffe does not even drink when there is a watering hole nearby. The need for fluids is covered solely by food.

The giraffe gazelles mainly feed on leaves, and like the (unrelated) giraffes , they have developed neck and leg extensions for this. The rough tongue and the elongated, insensitive lips, with which even thorny branches can be enclosed, also developed convergent to the giraffe. With their mouths closed, the giraffe's gazelles pull their heads back and graze on the leaves. In order to get to high branches, these antelopes stand on their hind legs and support themselves with their front legs on the tree.

The feeding behavior of the giraffe gazelles has been investigated in the Tsavo East National Park , among other places , and food competition with the lesser kudu was determined. However, the lesser kudu mainly lives in the savannah regions, which are denser with trees and shrubs. Because of the ability to stand on their hind legs while foraging for food, the giraffe gazelles can also reach leaves that are inaccessible to the lesser kudu. In the Tsavo East National Park, the giraffe gazelle's diet included leaves, shoots, flowers and some fruits. Some climbing plants were also eaten by this species of gazelle. The giraffe gazelles are not food specialists, but use at least 84 plant species as a food source. There is a particular preference for thorn-reinforced plants such as the blackthorn acacia .

The females live with their young in small groups of two to five animals. Adult males are territorial loners who try to keep females in their territories and mate with them during the mating season.

species

Today there are two types:

  • Northern giraffe gazelle ( Litocranius sclateri Neumann , 1899); slightly larger type
  • Southern giraffe gazelle ( Litocranius walleri ( Brooke , 1878)); somewhat smaller species, which has a band of hair on the nape of the neck running in the opposite direction to the dashed line

Others

Giraffe gazelles have probably never been particularly common. Because of their solitary nature, they are hardly noticeable among the large herds of ungulates in the savannahs. However, hunting has made the species even rarer in recent decades. Most of the Gerenuks are in Ethiopia today. The total population is estimated at 70,000 animals.

literature

  • Colin Groves and Peter Grubb: Ungulate Taxonomy. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2011, pp. 1–317 (SS 108–280)
  • Colin P. Groves and David M. Leslie Jr .: Family Bovidae (Hollow-horned Ruminants). In: Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier (eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 2: Hooved Mammals. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2011, ISBN 978-84-96553-77-4 , pp. 630-631
  • CA Spinage: The Natural History of Antelopes . Croom Helm, London 1986, ISBN 0-7099-4441-1

Web links

Commons : Giraffe Gazelles  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. Spinage, p. 189
  2. Spinage, S: 189
  3. Spinage, p. 44
  4. Spinage, p. 66
  5. Spinage, p. 67