Tsessebe (Damaliscus lunatus)
Image taken in the Okavango Delta in Botswana.
The common tsessebe or sassaby (Damaliscus lunatus) is one of five species of the subfamily Alcelaphinae in the family Bovidae. It is most closely related to the topi and the bontebok in the same genus. Tsessebe are found primarily in Angola, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, and South Africa. They used to be spread throughout a significant area of Africa, from Senegal to eastern Ethiopia south to the northern areas of South Africa.
The tsessebe has an average shoulder height 1,26 m; mass (m) 140 kg, (f) 126 kg. The animal is colored rufous to dark brown, with purplish sheen. Upperparts of legs darker; inside hindlegs and the underside yellowish-white. The gestation period is 8-9 months. The potential life span is 20 years. The record length of the horns can be 48 cm.
The tsessebe is mostly like the Red Hartebeest, but the tsessebe's horns are shorter and its shoulders are not as humped as the hartebeest. The tsessebe also lacks the clearly defined white marking so evident on the hartebeest's rump. Their habitat is mainly grassland near water and the fringes of woodland.
The Tsessebe may appear rather awkward, but it is probably the fastest of the southern African antelope, capable of maintaining a bouncing gallop of 60 km/h for considerable distances. The name comes from the Tswana name for the species: 'tshesebe'.
Early hunters were amazed at the naivety and inquisitiveness of tsessebe, which were so overcome by curiosity during a hunt that they stood and stared, while other members of the herd were shot down around them. When threatened, tsessebe often do no more than canter away to an open vantage point, where they will stop and coolly survey their surroundings before, finally, breaking into their characteristic easy gallop.
They are territorial, and the dominant male will often keep a look-out for rival males from a high vantage point, such as a termite mound. Tsessebe are gregarious grazers, sharing their pastures freely. Both males and females mark their territory, using a secretion from glands below their eyes. Unlike the blesbok, tsessebe harems remain permanently associated with their territorial male. A single calf is born, usually during spring or early summer, and calves develop so fast that within a day or two of birth they are strong enough to join the herd. Here they tend to form nursery groups of their own which are supervised by one or more cows.
Tsessebe (Damaliscus lunatus)
Image taken in the Okavango Delta in Botswana.
The common tsessebe or sassaby (Damaliscus lunatus) is one of five species of the subfamily Alcelaphinae in the family Bovidae. It is most closely related to the topi and the bontebok in the same genus. Tsessebe are found primarily in Angola, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, and South Africa. They used to be spread throughout a significant area of Africa, from Senegal to eastern Ethiopia south to the northern areas of South Africa.
The tsessebe has an average shoulder height 1,26 m; mass (m) 140 kg, (f) 126 kg. The animal is colored rufous to dark brown, with purplish sheen. Upperparts of legs darker; inside hindlegs and the underside yellowish-white. The gestation period is 8-9 months. The potential life span is 20 years. The record length of the horns can be 48 cm.
The tsessebe is mostly like the Red Hartebeest, but the tsessebe's horns are shorter and its shoulders are not as humped as the hartebeest. The tsessebe also lacks the clearly defined white marking so evident on the hartebeest's rump. Their habitat is mainly grassland near water and the fringes of woodland.
The Tsessebe may appear rather awkward, but it is probably the fastest of the southern African antelope, capable of maintaining a bouncing gallop of 60 km/h for considerable distances. The name comes from the Tswana name for the species: 'tshesebe'.
Early hunters were amazed at the naivety and inquisitiveness of tsessebe, which were so overcome by curiosity during a hunt that they stood and stared, while other members of the herd were shot down around them. When threatened, tsessebe often do no more than canter away to an open vantage point, where they will stop and coolly survey their surroundings before, finally, breaking into their characteristic easy gallop.
They are territorial, and the dominant male will often keep a look-out for rival males from a high vantage point, such as a termite mound. Tsessebe are gregarious grazers, sharing their pastures freely. Both males and females mark their territory, using a secretion from glands below their eyes. Unlike the blesbok, tsessebe harems remain permanently associated with their territorial male. A single calf is born, usually during spring or early summer, and calves develop so fast that within a day or two of birth they are strong enough to join the herd. Here they tend to form nursery groups of their own which are supervised by one or more cows.