Speke's Gazelle

scientific name

gazelli spekei

size/weight/height

Height: at shoulder 1.6-2 ft.w Length: 3.1-3.5 ft.wWeight: 33-55 lbs.

adaptations/coloration

Light grayish brown with a black flank stripe and a paler band above it w white buttocks with dark margins w pale face w horns with broad annulations: males 10-12.4 curving backwards in an S, females 6-10 straight-er, steeper and thinner than male w Three to five folds of skin in nasal region, inflatable to the size of half a tennis ball, inflated to make an alarm call which sounds like a pistol shot.

behavior

Crepuscular w Gather in family groups up to 20, number depends on amount of vegetation available w Muscular spasms dispense scent from preorbital glands (inner corner of eye where tear duct is on human)

reproduction/lifespan

Gestation: 6-7 months w single young w average birth weight 2.75 lbs. w wean after 2-3 months w Sexual maturity: female 9 months, males 18 months wLifespan: 12 years

diet

Wild: Grass, herbs, shrubs and succulents w Zoo: herbivore pellets, grains, hay

habitat/range

Horn of Africa, on the Indian Ocean side of Somalia w Former range included eastern Ethiopia w Stony brush, grass steppes, semidesert.

status

IUCN classification: vulnerable w Not listed in CITES

other

Main predators: cheetah, lion, wild dog, leopard, hyena, python w Long-hunted for use as food w Habitat modifications have adversely affected populations.

oregon zoo exhibit

Africa Savanna

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