Gemsbok

Description
This large antelope has a greyish brown coat with a lighter colour in the underparts. Its tail is long and black. A dark brown strip runs from the chin to the legs and along the flanks, separating the grey on the back from the lighter underparts. But what really characterises these animals are the long horns that can measure up to 85 cm and which are straight in males and curved in females. 

Ethology
They are gregarious animals that normally live in groups of 30 individuals, but during the rainy season, up to hundreds can gather. The males establish territories, which they will defend from other oryxes, where herds of females live and with which the male will have exclusive breeding rights. The females give birth to a brown coloured single foal following eight and a half months’ gestation.

Interesting facts
The gemsbok is adapted to dry climates withstanding temperatures of up to 45ºC; it has a special circulation system in its head that can cool the blood flowing to the brain through capillaries in the nose whilst they breathe. They are highly prized in the south of Africa, as they are considered as a preferential trophy on hunting estates.