A pair of Blackbucks fighting for the herd
Blackbucks are a common species of antelopes found in the bird sanctuary that I visited. They numbered in 100's with the ratio of females outweighing males by a big number.
The dominant males have their own female herd to protect and mate with. When a challenger comes along they engage in a behavior known as "Lekking". Something that I read as not very common in animal kingdom.
Both the males locked their horns and pushed each other till one of the males could not take it any longer. The defeated male then bent his head as if to acknowledge the loss and walked away. This behavior - I understand from literature - is to demonstrate to the females the male's prowess.
This happened 2-3 times with few different herds in the ~2500 acre grassland. It was fun to watch, but the full impact and meaning of those actions, I understood only after coming back and reading.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback.
A pair of Blackbucks fighting for the herd
Blackbucks are a common species of antelopes found in the bird sanctuary that I visited. They numbered in 100's with the ratio of females outweighing males by a big number.
The dominant males have their own female herd to protect and mate with. When a challenger comes along they engage in a behavior known as "Lekking". Something that I read as not very common in animal kingdom.
Both the males locked their horns and pushed each other till one of the males could not take it any longer. The defeated male then bent his head as if to acknowledge the loss and walked away. This behavior - I understand from literature - is to demonstrate to the females the male's prowess.
This happened 2-3 times with few different herds in the ~2500 acre grassland. It was fun to watch, but the full impact and meaning of those actions, I understood only after coming back and reading.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback.