Tag: Antelope

Bovini family or wild cattle

Bovini or the family of all wild cattle species

Bovinae is a biological family of cloven hooved family Each of these three tribes encompass a variety of species and we will deal with these tribes one by one. The Bovinae family includes all bovids, which are ruminant mammals (cloven hooved) which include all of the worlds cattle, yaks, bison, buffalo antelopes (which include goat-antelope) goats and sheep. 

This family currently has 143 surviving species, with 300 known species. it has 11 major families and 13 major tribes.

This family first appeared 20 million years ago. Below is the initial splits into 3 in this family. It should be noted that not all these families will be relevant at the current time – but as destinations grow all should be fully relevant. 

 

four-horned antelope
African buffalo
Tragelaphini (spiral-horned antelopes) A Kudu

So, firstly Borselaphini, this consists of just 2 species, the Nilgai and the 4-horned 

The next tribe (below) is Bovini, which includes 3 families. These vary in size quite widely with the middle one only containing one species

Bovini Family - here an African Buffalo
psuedorygina Family - containing just Saola
Bos Family - here American Bison

The first family Bubalina contains 2 Genus Syncerus only contains one species (first) the rest are from Bubalina

              Genus Syncerus                                                              Genus Bubalus

 

The second family contains one genus psuedorygina which contains one species the Saola

Bovina contains 1 Bison subgenus (it used to contain 2 but the Genus Bos became a subgenus (it should be noted there are far more subgenus that are extinct). Also, for simplicity sake, any subspecies will only be mentioned in each species page.

   Subgenus Bos                        poephagus                                Bison & Bos                               Bibos

Bos is domestic cattle

_Taurus originate in Africa,  _Mutus=wild Yak,                           Bos_Indicus                                                                                                Domestic cattle                            Originate in Himilayas               Originate in India, fatty hump (first on second row)                                and Aurochs                                     

Finally tribe Tragelaphini or spiral horned antelope contains 5 genus. The first 4 contain 1 species (in order) the last genus has 3 species. If I cover subspecies these will be in their own pages

Genus Ammelaphus           Genus Nyala                                                        Genus Tragelaphus                        Genus Taurotragus             Genus Strepsiceros

lesser kudu - Genus Ammelaphus
nyala - Genus Nyala
Eland - Genus Taurotragus Wagner
greater kudu - Genus Strepsiceros
Mountain nyala
giant eland (eastern and western)
Bushbuck
Bongo
Situnga

Bovidae family (including Aegodontia &Boodontia & Caprinae) or Antelope family tree

Bovidae family (including Aegodontia &Boodontia) or Antelope family tree

Antelope lie in the Bovidae family, and account for around 2/3 of the 135 Bovidae species that exist in the world. It should be noted that deer come from the family Cervidae, which means that despite looking extremely similar, antelope are more closely related to cattle than they are to deer.

There are 91 antelope species in the world with 72 found in Africa, 14 in Asia, with the last 5 found in Eastern Europe.

There are 8 subfamilies in Africa

1. Bovinae (Bushbuck)
2. Reduncinae (Boher reedbuck)
3. Peleinae (grey rhebok)
4. Alcelaphinae (Hirola)
5. Hippotraginae (Beisa Oryx)
Impala
7. Antilopinae (Bates’ Pigmy Antelope)
Abbott’s Duiker

1. Subfamily Bovinae

Spiral horned antelopes made up of tribe Tragelaphini: 9 species 4 subspecies.

1. Bovinae (Bushbuck)
common eland
Giant eland (eastern and western subspecies)
Greater Kudu
lesser kudu
Eastern bongo
nyala
mounain nyala
mountain bongo
Sitatunga

2. Subfamily Reduncinae

Rhebok, reedbucks, and waterbucks 8 Species, 11 Subspecies
2. Reduncinae (Boher reedbuck)
mountain reedbuck
southern reedbuck
Kob
Red Lechwe
Nile lechwe
puku
Waterbuck

3. Subfamily Peleinae:

 1 Species
 
Grey rhebok

4. Subfamily Alcelaphinae

 

Sassabies, hartebeests, and wildebeests: 6 Species (depending on how you count, it can be anywhere from 6 to 10) , 19 Subspecies

4. Alcelaphinae (Hirola)
Tsessebe (Topi Sasseby and Tiang)
Bontebok
Genus Alcelaphus, Hartebeest
Blue wildebeest
Black wildebeest

5. Subfamily Hippotraginae

Grazing antelope: 7 Species, 4 Subspecies
Addax
Sable antelope
Giant Sable
Roam
gemsbok
5. Hippotraginae (Beisa Oryx)
scimitar oryx

6. Subfamily Aepycerotinae

Impala: 1 Species which is impala, 2 Subspecies

Impala

7. Subfamily Antilopinae

Gazelles, dwarf antelopes

    • Tribe Antilopini: 10 Species, 4 Subspecies
Dama Gazelle
Docas Gazelle
gerenuk
grant’s gazelle
Mhorr Gazelle
red fronted gazelle
Slender horned gazelle
Soemmerings gazelle
Spekes gazelle
springbok
Thompsons gazelle
  • Tribe Ammodorcadini: 1 Species
dibatag
  • Tribe Neotragini: 13 Species, 4 Subspecies
7. Antilopinae (Bates’ Pigmy Antelope)
Beira
Cape Grysbok
Guenther’s Dikdik
Kirk’s Dikdik
Klipspringer
Oribi
Royal Antelope
Salt’s Dikdik
Sharpe’s Grysbok
Steenbok
silver dikdik
Suni

8. Subfamily Cephalophinae

 Duiker: 17 Species, 7 Subspecies

Abbott’s Duiker
Aders’ Duiker
Bay Duiker
Black Duiker
Black-fronted Duiker
Blue Duiker
Grey Duiker or common
Harvey’s Red Duiker
Jentink’s Duiker
Maxwell’s Duiker
Natal Red Duiker
Ogilby’s Duiker
Peters’ Duiker
Red-flanked Duiker
White-bellied Duiker
Yellow-backed Duiker
Zebra Duiker
Walter’s-Duiker

If you want to return to the Ruminants family page click here

Caprinae

The Caprinae family is a close relation of Alcelaphinae & Hippotraginae (subfamily 4 and 5 on this page) but this family consists of the worlds goats and sheep.

This consists of 9 genus with just 1 species in each (and one further extinct so not included here) and then 5 genus with more than that. 

Firstly dealing with each genus with only one species.

Arabian Tahr
Barbary Sheep
Bharal genus Pseudois
Himalayan Tahr
mountain goat
Musk ox
Nilgiri Tahr genus Nilgiritragus
Takin genus Budorcas
tibetan antelope genus Pantholops

Next the Capra genus, which consists of the worlds Ibex species

Alpine ibex
Domestic goat
Iberian ibex
Markhor
Nubian ibex
Siberian Ibex
Walia ibex
west asian ibex or wild goat
West Caucasian tur

Next the Ovis family (sheep species)

Big horn sheep
Dall sheep
Domestic sheep
Marco polo sheep
Mouflon
Snow sheep
Urial

Two species of Chamois remain

Alpine chamois
Pyrenees chamois

The second last group is the Serow (6 species)

Himalayan serow
Japanese serow
Mainland serow
Red serow
Sumatran serow
Taiwan serow

The last group is the Goral

Chinese goral
Himalayan goral
Long-tailed goral
Red goral
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World maps: explore

This website aims to make it easy for those living with wildlife, and those who would like to see it, to find each other. Where-ever the wildlife, if the local people do not benefit it will not survive.  Please note, on some computers these maps can take 10 seconds to load.

Explore the worlds wilds, through the map above (each country contains a list of any wild areas within it – world maps for each fo these can be found at the top of the page -“wild places, “shadow of mankind”, “Hides”, “Future places” & “sightings board”), or the species in the expandable section below. Add your destinations, by clicking on “list your wild”. Scroll down to read our latest wild news.

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    aaa Niokolo-Koba national park, Senegal

    Niokolo-Koba national park, Senegal

    River Gambia Niokolokoba National Park Credit: United states Government

    A fascination reserve with a wide range of wildlife, this is a place well worth a visit. With a variety of habitats, the range of wildlife that can be seen is not usually available in one reserve anywhere else.

     The national park is known for its wildlife. The government of Senegal estimates the park contains 20 species of amphibians, 60 species of fish, 38 species of reptiles (of which four are tortoises). There are some 80 mammal species. These included (as of 2005) an estimated 11000 buffaloes, 6000 hippopotamuses, 400 western giant eland, 50 elephants, 120 lions, 150 chimpanzees (It is inhabited by a banded forest in the park (Lower Rim) and Mount Assirik. (north-western limit line where chimps are distributed.)), 3000 waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus), 2000 common duiker (Sylvicapra grimmia), an unknown number of red colobus (Colobus badius rufomitratus) and a few rare African leopards and West African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus manguensis), although this canid was thought to be wiped out throughout the rest of the country.[4]

     

    Other mammals include roan antelope, Guinea baboon, green monkey, patas monkey, warthog.

     

    Around 330 species of birds have been sighted in the park, notably the Arabian bustard, black crowned crane, Abyssinian ground hornbill (Bucorvus abyssinicus), martial eagle, bateleur (Terathopius ecaudatus), and white-faced duck (Dendrocygna viduata).

     

    There are also reptiles such as three species of crocodiles, four species of tortoises

     

    aaa Victoria falls national park, part of the KAZA transfrontier park

    Victoria Falls national park, Zimbabwe, Part of KAZA transfrontier park

    One of natures greatest spectacles, the Victoria falls lie within the national park that takes its name, and in turn is part of the vast Kalahari Zambezi Transfrontier park. The area around the falls contains a wealth of wildlife, Covering a total area of 56 000 hectares, both parks lie on the southern bank of the Zambezi River which forms the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia. There are a number of picnic and fishing sites available. Activities include guided tours, walks, day and sunset cruises, game drives and adventure activities.

    The Rainforest – Here visitors can see unique flora and fauna. Bird species and small mammals may be spotted beneath the forest canopy whilst following the paths through the groves of Date Palm, Fig and Mahogany.

    The Game Park – Elephant, Lion, Buffalo, Leopard and White Rhino (the Big Five) can be seen in the park as well as herds of Eland, Sable Antelope, Zebra, Giraffe, Waterbuck and Kudu amongst other smaller species. The Zambezi River is known for its Bream and Tiger Fishing. There are two game drive routes, one accessed through the main gate and the other from just outside town on the Bulawayo road.

    aaa Table mountain national park, South Africa

    Table mountain national park, South Africa

    While relatively small at only 85 square miles or 221 square kilometres, due to its proximity to Cape town it is one of the most visited national parks in South Africa.


    A surprisingly large variety of wildlife is found there, given the size of the reserve. Apart from a sizable and growing colony of African penguins, there is also bontebok antelope, and a large population of baboons. Other species include rock dassies (hyrax), porcupines, mongoose, snakes, lizards, tortoise and a rare species called the table mountain ghost frog which is only found here. While once a big 5 reserve, only the leopard is ever present, and this is only an occasional visit by the roaming cape leopard. The current apex predator is the Caracal, which is a relatively small cat when compared to the Leopard.


    Other than this the retrogresses and a handful of wild ostrich. During the meeting season between August and October it also can be a good place to watch southern right whales which come here to breed.

    Species watch

    Species watch

    All species are important, often reintroductions have failed because a small unnoticed animal was missed. Over time, we will amass pages for as many species as possible. However, just as important is  seeing how species are closely related. As such as well as looking at species from a specific ecosystem or family, we will also include family trees of many of the families on earth. It should be noted, that this is to help you find wildlife you wish to see, so will never link to every species. In either way, these links to these will be placed at the top.

    Mammal family tree
    Wild cat family
    Wild dog family
    Primate family
    African Savannah
    Bear family tree
    Antelope family tree
    Bovini or cattle family tree
    Equidae: Genus for horses (horses, donkeys and zebra)
    Cervidae family (deer) here red deer
    Camelid family (camels and Llamas)
    Aardvark
    Hyaenidae
    Elephant family
    Hippo family
    Rhino family
    Pinnipeds: Seals, Sealions, Fur Seals and walruses
    Crocodiles, Alligators, Caimans, Gharials, False Gharials
    Lizards
    Snakes
    Amphibians
    Birds general
    Emporer-penguins Genus Aptenodytes Not threatened 256,000 breeding pairs
    Flightless birds
    Predatory birds
    sea, water birds and waders
    Mid to small birds
    Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises Species
    Shark Species
    Tiger - all subspecies
    Jaguar
    Lion - all subspecies
    Leopard - all subspecies
    Clouded Leopard & Sunda Clouded Leopard
    Snow Leopard
    Cheetah - all subspecies
    Lynx family (this is the Eurasian Lynx)
    Wildcat
    Cougar
    Sumatran Orangutan
    Chimpanzee
    Boonobo
    Gorilla
    African hunting dog
    wolf
    arctic fox
    polar bear
    Panda
    Bear species (the rest of the family)
    Red panda
    Hyrax family tree (yellow spotted hyrax)
    Sus or pig family
    bee eater familly
    Vulture family tree
    Hedgehog - European hedgehog and family
    Hamster family (Turkish hamster )
    Elephant shrew (western rock elephant shrew)
    Beaver species
    Common vole (possibly vole family in future)
    Siberian ibex
    Naked mole rat family
    Mexican ground squirrel and the ground squirrel family
    Large treeshrew photo credit Daderot CC0 1.0
    Rat family (brown rat)
    Pangolin family
    Eagle family
    Owl family
    Original paper - OrthoMaM: A database of orthologous genomic markers for placental mammal phylogenetics. Ranwez V., Delsuc F., Ranwez S., Belkhir K., Tilak M. & Douzery E. J. P. BMC Evolutionary Biology, 2007, 7 : 241.
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    Saiga antelope making wonderful progress but is never likely to return to its former numbers

    The Kazakstan population of these antelope has more than doubled in the last 2 years from 334,000 to 842,000. In 2015 there was a mass die-off and distressing images of the steppe strewn with bodies made the rounds. Thankfully, the mothers give birth to twins every year, so their ability to bounce back is impressive.

    Back during the Soviet era there were many millions of these antelope, but with increasing development in their range a return to those days is highly unlikely.

    With numbers like these of remaining individuals, one would be forgiven for thinking that these species is not critically endangered, or perhaps even endangered. However, these terms are applied based on percentage fall in the size of the population. Saiga antelope have suffered a 90% decline in their population at the end of the 20th century.

    So long as there is not another mass die-off and poaching is kept under control, these animals are likely to recover, and continue to be the base of an extremely large food chain.

    Sightings boards

    Everywhere on the planet can have wildlife – even the most nature depleted country do still have wildlife. We aim to allow you to list sightings from all over the world, wherever you encounter them, from encounters on walks to sightings in the headlights of a car.

    When you arrive in a wild place, it can seem overwhelming. You are given a large area to explore (even the small reserves are usually several hundred square miles, and while this doesn’t seem big, where do you go?). The aim of these pages is to change this. Often, the main reason that you hire a guide, is that they know where the animals are most likely to be.

    Over time, by using this map, and putting down your sightings, we will build up a map of where animals are often found and when. It will also be possible to see where animals have been seen recently, though sighting will not appear instantly. While you might think this is not good, it actually makes sure that the person making the initial sighting gets to enjoy the animal to themselves for a while. While in theory this would allow day visitors to zoom around and tick off the big 5 in a couple of hours, this has been built for more interesting reasons.

    Importantly, I am keen that this is not a tool for poachers. As such, it is possible for us to remove animals from being chosen to appear on the map, so you can feel confident in listing sightings of animals such as black rhino. If you see news of a poaching epidemic somewhere, let me know. In the long term I hope to create these sightings boards for all destinations.

    Click on the maps below to go to the relevant sightings board.

    Limpopo transfrontier park, Kruger Sabi Sands Limpopo, Gonarezhou and others
    Serengeti, Ngorogoro, Massai Mara Mau forest and other wild regions

    In the near future, before many people have found the map, it can operate very well as a personal guide to where you saw animals. Like us, animals have regular habits, and so if you find them in one place on one day, and put up the sighting, they are likely to be near the sighting on future days. However, as the sightings data builds up, there is likely to be a change in how you can use it. Of course you can continue to look at what has happened recently, however the filtering options have been designed so that you can look at the pattern of sightings – the hope is that with a little planning homework, you can give yourself information on wildlife habits, and become your own expert wildlife guide.

     

     

    Apart from the big 5 I have included wild dog and cheetah, jackals, and hyena. I have also included the rarer antelope – these tend to be found in specific parts of the park, so knowing where to look can help in finding them. Finally I have listed some rarely seen nocturnal animals, like pangolins and aardvarks. It is unlikely that these are ones other people can look at, though if we get lots of data in this field, it may allow scientific study of these rarely seen creatures.

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    Does hunting pay its way?

    Even in the current age where many species such as elephants and lions are facing steep declines in population and range, there are still many countries where it is legal to go and hunt them and other species. Unlike many conservationists I am not inherently against hunting, however the way it is done in many places baffles me. I realise with many people it is essentially “the bragging rights” that they are looking for. Shoot an animal and mount its head on your wall at home. One hundred years ago, when there were more animals left I could understand this idea, but nowadays, when we are likely to have to explain to our grandchildren if not children why these animals no longer live in the wild I don’t want one stuck to my wall! Continue reading “Does hunting pay its way?”

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