Scientific classification
Kingdom ~ Animalia
Phylum ~ Chordata
Class ~ Mammalia
Order ~ Artiodactyla
Family ~ Bovidae
Subfamily ~ Hippotraginae
Genus ~ Oryx
Type species
Antilope oryx
The other Species
Oryx beisa Rüppell,
Oryx dammah Cretzschmar,
Oryx gazella
Oryx leucoryx Pallas
Oryx gazella
ORYX
Choroa or Barabara
Weight: Males 375-460lb (170-210kg).
females 310-410lb (140-185kg)
Height: 4ft (1.2m)
Length: 6ft 7in (2m), plus tail 2ft 9in
(85cm)
Gestation: 8-9 months
Young: 1 (rarely twins)
Lifespan: 12-15 years
The three subspecies of O. gazella live in eastern and southern Africa: the beisa (O. gazella beisa) and fringe-eared oryx (O. gazella callotis) from the Horn of Africa south to Tanzania and the gemsbok in the Karoo region of South Africa. The scimitar-horned oryx, once found throughout northern Africa, was restricted to the southern rim of the Sahara (the Sahel) by the early 1980s and was virtually extinct in the wild by the century’s end. The Arabian oryx once lived in the deserts of the Sinai and Arabian peninsulas and adjacent areas to the north. The last survivors were captured in the early 1970s and bred in captivity. Efforts to reintroduce their descendents, beginning in Oman in 1982, have been partially successful but are dependent on effective protection from poaching.
A greyish or buff-coloured antelope with long, spear-like horns, measuring up to 2ft 6 in 75m) in oryx found in northern Kenya; females have longer horns than males. Oryx have black and white facial markings, and a black side stripe running along their flank and the tops of their forelegs. The belly is white. Two subspecies occur in East Africa the beisa oryx (subspecies beisa), and the smaller, browner, less distinctly marked fringe-eared oryx (subspecies callotis)
Voice
Females summon their calves with a soft, lowing sound Oryx grunt aggressively when provoked, and bleat when agitated
Habitat
The beisa oryx inhabits arid semi-desert bush and scrub north of the Tana River in the Northern Frontier District of Kenya, westwards to north-eastern Karamoja in Uganda The fringe-eared oryx is found in similar country, as well as in open grassy woodlands, preferring rather denser, thomy areas. It ocCurs south-east of the Tana RIver and south of the Aberdare Mountains in Kenya, southwards into northern Tanzania.
Habits
Diunal and nocturnal. Oryx are gregarious and famed for their fighting spirit. They are shy, wary antelopes usually found in herds of 5-15
individuals, compOsed of a mature male with several females and their young. Bulls are sometimes solitary.
Larger mixed herds also occur, consisting of cows and calves, non- breeding bachelors and a dominant bull. Males and females form independent dominance hierarchies, and in the more sedentary populations, groups of females and calves wander within a large home range overlapping the territories of a number of males. Males are mature at live years old, when they begin to challenge for a territory of their own. Bulls fight savagely during the rut and have thickened skin at the top of the Shoulders to help absorb blows from the pointed horns of their rivals.
Oryx are less dependent on watch than any other large East African antelope, drinking regularly when water is readily available, but otherwise sustaining themselves by feeding on succulent plants. In very dry areas they avoid heat exhaustion by feeding at night and in the early morning when the vegetation has the highest moisture content. Oryx have plenty of stamina and are strong runners. They creep under, rather than over, obstacles. Beisa oryx, Buffalo Springs Game Reserve, Kenya. Oryx are gregarious and famed for their fighting spirit. They are shy, wary antelopes usually found in groups of 5-15 individuals, comprising a mature male, several females and their young.
Reproduction
Calves are born at all times of the year, though females in the same herd often calve within a few months of each other. Females isolate themselves from the herd when giving birth, and calves remain hidden for the first four to six weeks, after which they may form a creche. They suckle for the first three months and the adult colour starts to develop shortly afterwards.
Food
Grazers and broWsers, taking grass, other plants and the shoots of trees and bushes. In desert environments, oryx feed on thick-leaved plants, wild melons and similar ground fruits, as well as digging for succulent roots, tubers and onions.
Predatioon
Adults are preyed on by lions, hyaenas and hunting dogs, and the young are taken by all of the larger predators. Oryx rely on their speed and stamina to avoid predators. They rarely turm and defend themselves, but have been known to kill predators and humans by spearing them with their hons. Mothers defend their calves bravely.
The Ecology of Oryx.
All oryx species prefer near-desert conditions and can survive without water for long periods. They live in herds of up to 600 animals. Newborn calves are able to run with the herd immediately after birth. Both males and females possess permanent horns. The horns are narrow and straight except in the scimitar oryx, where they curve backwards like a scimitar. The horns can be lethal: oryxes has been known to kill lions with them, and they are thus sometimes called sabre antelopes (not to be confused with the sable antelope). The horns also make the animals a prized game trophy, which has led to the near-extinction of the two northern species.
Oryxes have an unusual social organization that is adapted to a nomadic existence in desert conditions. Isolation and low population density select against the dispersal of adolescent males, as is usual in social antelopes. Accordingly, oryx herds, which may number up to 300 for the fringe-eared oryx (e.g., in Kenya’s Tsavo National Park), include adults of both sexes. Females and males have separate dominance hierarchies. The alpha bull (or bulls) commands herd movements and enforces the same submissive behaviour from both sexes. Where conditions permit—e.g., where there are permanent water holes and grazing—some oryx bulls maintain individual territories.
The predator of the Oryx are
Cheetah
Lion
Leopard
Hyaenas and Wild dogs
Mostly Carnivores are the cheif predator of Oryx.
0 Comments