kudu

kudu, two species of spiral-horned antelopes (tribe Tragelaphini, family Bovidae). The very large greater kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) is common in southern African wildlife reserves. The svelte lesser kudu (T. imberbis) is an elusive dweller in the arid lowland thornbush of northeast and East Africa. Both species have corkscrew horns (in males only), depend on cover for food and concealment, and form small herds.

The greater kudu is the tallest antelope after the eland; males stand 130–150 cm (51–59 inches) but are narrow-bodied, weighing on average 257 kg (567 pounds), with a maximum of 315 kg (694 pounds). Females average 120 cm (47 inches) and 170 kg (370 pounds). Colour varies from reddish brown to blue-gray with white markings, an adaptation for concealment that includes 6–10 vertical torso stripes, a short spinal crest, a nose chevron, and small cheek patches. The greater kudu also has white forelegs with dark garters and a black-tipped tail. Males have a beard, turn darker with age, and possess the longest horns of any antelope: 120–180 cm (47–71 inches) along the curve. These horns take six years of growth to complete two full turns; the horn’s size and shape keep pace with and advertise the dominance status of the bearer.

The lesser kudu stands only about 100 cm (39 inches) high and weighs 92–108 kg (202–238 pounds). Females and young have a bright rufous coat, which darkens to slate-gray in males. The lesser kudu is vividly marked with 11–15 vertical white stripes, broad chest and throat patches, a nose chevron, and cheek patches. The legs are tawny and decorated with black and white patches, the tail is bushy with a white underside and a black tip, and there is a short, erectile dorsal crest but no beard. The horns of mature males make two and a half (rarely three) turns and measure 60–90 cm (24–35 inches) along the outer curve.

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Both kudus are cover-dependent browsers that feed on more than 100 different trees, shrubs, vines, herbs, seedpods, and fruits, as well as a little new grass. Eating greens enables them to inhabit waterless country, yet greater kudus regularly drink at water holes. Both species depend on the green growth along watercourses in the dry season and disperse through deciduous woodlands in the rains. Home ranges may be as small as 55 hectares (136 acres) or as large as 600 hectares (1,500 acres), and bulls studied in South Africa covered 11 square km (4 square miles) in migrating between wet- and dry-season ranges. Both sexes of lesser kudu studied in Kenya’s Tsavo National Park had ranges averaging 230 hectares (570 acres), at an average density of only one kudu per square km (three kudus per square mile).

The greater kudu is still widely distributed in the lowland Bushveld of southern Africa. However, in northeastern and East Africa, humans have crowded it out of the lowlands, and it is largely confined to mountains with dense woodland and thickets. Yet its secretiveness and nocturnal activity enable it to persist unusually close to civilization. The lesser kudu inhabits dense thornbush below 1,200 metres (3,900 feet) above sea level inside and outside East African parks.

In the baking heat of midday, kudus habitually stand motionless and are beautifully camouflaged in thickets. If hiding fails, kudus take abrupt flight with soaring bounds and often utter loud, hoarse barks. Both species occasionally form transitory herds of up to 25 animals, but the typical group consists of two to three females with their offspring. The kudus have stronger social (possibly kinship) bonds than other tragelaphine antelopes (e.g., the eland and nyala). The sexes segregate except for mating. Males leave female herds at age 11/2 years, when their horns grow past their ears and thus advertise their gender, after which they associate in loose bachelor herds. Up to 10 greater kudu bulls sometimes get together—a grand sight—but males become increasingly solitary with age. Kudus are particularly vulnerable to cattle-borne diseases such as rinderpest, which decimated their populations in the 1890s.