Common Eland

Description

It has enormous spiral horns, which are smaller and thicker in males. Its coat is light brown (being darker in the males) and the animals that inhabit the Northern areas have dark stripes on their backs and legs. They become greyer with age. They are not particularly fast runners; their fastest speed is about 40 km/h, but they have high stamina.

Ethology

They are nomads and are mostly active in the morning and at night, taking advantage of the lower temperatures at these times. They are sociable and move in herds of up to 500 individuals, sometimes even with other species, although the males are more solitary and often separate from the group. If they feel threatened, they will give deep-throated barks and strut forwards and backwards. 

Interesting facts

The main danger they face is from hunting for sport or for food, although they are also threatened by habitat fragmentation. If this species survives without being in danger of extinction, it is thanks to the fact that most settlements are in protected areas or even in private lands, meaning that hunting them in these areas would be illegal.