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| SCIENTIFIC
CLASSIFICATION |
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| COMMON
NAME: |
slender-horned
gazelle, rim, sand gazelle |
| KINGDOM: |
Animalia |
| PHYLUM: |
Chordata |
| CLASS: |
Mammalia |
| ORDER: |
Artiodactyla |
| FAMILY: |
Bovidae |
| GENUS
SPECIES: |
Gazella
(wild goat) leptoceros (slender horned) |
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| DESCRIPTION: |
This
is the palest gazelle species with a cream or yellow-white
colored body, pure white undersides, and a faint
flank stripe. Both sexes have horns, and the hooves
are somewhat broadened to ease travel on long stretches
of sand. |
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| SIZE: |
Approximately
65-72 cm (2.1-2.4 ft) at the shoulder |
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| WEIGHT: |
20-30
kg (44-66 lb.) |
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| DIET: |
Includes
acacia and bush leaves, grasses, and herbs |
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| GESTATION: |
Gestation
lasts approximately 156-169 days; one offspring |
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| SEXUAL
MATURITY: |
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| MALE |
Approximately
18 months |
| FEMALE |
Approximately
6-9 months |
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| LIFE
SPAN: |
Up
to 14 years |
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| RANGE: |
Central
Sahara Desert |
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| HABITAT: |
Inhabits
scrub and desert regions |
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| POPULATION: |
GLOBAL |
Approximately
5,000 |
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| STATUS: |
IUCN |
Endangered |
| CITES |
Appendix
III |
| USFWS |
Endangered |
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| 1. |
Due
to the extreme heat of its desert environment, the
slender-horned gazelle is crepuscular, feeding mostly
at night and early morning. |
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| 2. |
A normally quiet animal, gazelles signal alarm by
a snort or flick of the tail, and the herd reacts
by withdrawing to a safe distance. Mothers also
call their young to nurse with a snorting sound. |
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| 3. |
Slender-horned gazelles rarely need to drink water.
They are able to use the dew formed on leaves and
the higher water content in the plants for their
water needs. |
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| 4. |
To
keep cool in the hot desert, they have a reflective
white coat and specially adapted nasal passages,
which help in cooling their blood. |
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| The
slender-horned gazelle was formerly found in Algeria,
Mauritania, Egypt, and Sudan as far as the Nile
River. It was once the most common of all the gazelles
living in the Saharan deserts, but by the early
1970s it was in serious decline and its populations
were scarce and isolated. Hunting for sport and
meat was the major reason for their decline. In
addition, its horns were formerly sold as ornaments
in North African markets and shops. |
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|
|
Estes, R.D. The Safari Companion: A Guide to
Watching African Mammals. Vermont: Chelsea Green
Publishing Co., 1993. |
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Gotch, A.F. Mammals-Their Latin Names Explained.
Poole, U.K.: Blandford Press Btd., 1979. |
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|
Nowak, R. (ed.). Walkers Mammals of the World.
Vol. II, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University
Press, 1991.
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| Parker,
S.P. (ed.). Grizmek's Encyclopedia of Mammals.
Vol 5. New York: McGraw Hill Pub. Co., 1990. |
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| Spinage,
C.A. The Natural History of Antelopes. New
York: Facts on File Pub., 1986. |
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| Stuart,
C. and T. Field Guide to the Mammals of Southern
Africa. Florida: Ralph Curtis Books Pub. 1988. |
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| www.ultimateungulate.com/gazelleslhn.html |
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