Red hartebeest

Alcelaphus buselaphus caama is a large African antelope of the family Bovidae, one of ten subspecies; it is sometimes treated as a separate species, A. caama. Commonly known as the red hartebeest, it is the most colorful hartebeest, with black markings contrasting against its white abdomen and behind. It has a longer face that other subspecies, with complex curving horns joined at the base. The average weight of a male is about 150 kg, and female is 120 kg. Their average shoulder height is 135 cm, and horns are 60 cm long. The life expectancy of a red hartebeest is around 19 years. Little sexual dimorphism is noted between males and females, showing no distinct identifiable physical features, but body size is slightly affected. Horn size, however, expresses more dimorphism between males and females, as males fight and defend themselves for sexual selection. Thus, male skull weight and circumference is slightly greater than that of the female. Hartebeests have an excellent sense of hearing and smell, although their sense of sight is poor. When alarmed, hartebeests flee, reaching a maximum speed of 55 km/h. Their evasion tactic is to induce confusion by running in a zigzag pattern, making it difficult for predators to catch them.

Life cycle

Breeding

A. buselaphus subspecies have a gestation period of eight months, and they give birth to single calves. They typically give birth in a seasonal pattern before the summer rain begins. After birth, calves are hidden in dense vegetation before joining a group to increase their chances of survival from predators, since they are weak. Most females begin breeding after the age of two, and can conceive again 9 or 10 months after giving birth.

Diet

Red hartebeests are grass feeders, which is evidenced by their long snouts, which give the advantage of an improved cropping ability to acquire and masticate grasses more efficiently. During the rainy season in southern Africa, the grass species Andropogon is in abundance and is the main source of dietary consumption. As grazers, their diets fluctuate seasonally, as they consume higher-quality, green primary production in wet seasons, and lower-quality sheath material in the dry seasons. Hartebeests are considered less water-dependent than most alcelaphines, only needing to drink water when melons and tubers are inaccessible.

Predators

The few carnivores preying on hartebeest in southern Africa include lions, spotted hyenas, leopards, and cheetahs. Nile crocodiles may opportunistically prey upon hartebeest that drink from waters inhabited by the reptiles; though this is uncommon, it is not unheard of. Furthermore, hartebeest are not a primary food source for any of these species, and least of all for cheetahs. On average, out of their entire diet, lions only consume hartebeest about 7% of the time; leopards, 6.25%; hyenas, 3.5%; cheetah consumption of hartebeest makes up only about 1.75% of their total diet. Cheetahs tend to target smaller gazelle species (primarily Thomson’s gazelle or springbok) to medium-sized antelope, such as impala or Grant’s gazelle. When hartebeest are hunted by lions, the felines typically prey on adult males, while both spotted hyenas and leopards tend to prey on vulnerable young calves. These predatory habits are likely attributed to the difficulty of catching nomadic hartebeests, as well as the better success hyenas and leopards have with catching calves. Hartebeest, topi, tsessebe and their relatives are also thought to have “oily” and unpalatable meat, at least to some predators. Additionally, their hides are often covered in oily secretions from their preorbital glands and pheromones/scent-marking behaviors. Wildebeest are by far the most favoured prey species of the entire group.