A large African antelope with a long face, oddly bent horns on both sexes, long legs and a back that slopes down from a hump over the shoulders. It grazes in herds of 20 to 300 on dry savannas and wooded grasslands, mainly in the morning and late afternoon.
Quick answers
What is it?Mammal
Carnivore?No, herbivore
Dangerous?No
Domesticated?No
Awake when?Daytime
Hibernates?No
Kept as a pet?No
Do people eat it?Yes
A popular game animal because its meat is highly regarded.
At a glance
Found inAfrica
HabitatGrassland, Scrub
ColoursTan, Brown
SizeLarge
Length2–2.5 m (head and body)
HeightJust over 1 m at the shoulder
Weight100–200 kg
Legs4
Covered inFur
Lives inherds
Lives for12–20 years
In the wild
- Where it lives
- Much of sub-Saharan Africa, from West Africa to Ethiopia and south to South Africa; now extinct in North Africa.
- What it eats
- Mainly grasses, which make up at least 80% of its diet.
- Conservation
- Least Concern (IUCN Red List)
Did you know
While the herd feeds, one stands lookout, often on top of a termite mound to see farther.
When danger threatens, the whole herd flees in single file after one animal suddenly sets off.
The Bubal hartebeest of North Africa was declared extinct in 1994; the last one was shot in Algeria in 1925.
Often confused with
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