Dama (Addra) Gazelle

ORDER: Artiodactyla

FAMILY: Bovidae

GENUS: Gazella

SPECIES: dama ruficollis

DESCRIPTION:

Gazelles are medium sized antelopes. Height at shoulder 35-43 inches; weight 160 pounds. The largest of all true gazelles, the Dama is slenderly built with a proportionately long neck and legs. Neck and upper parts uniformly rufous or chestnut brown, sharply contrasting with the white rump and lower parts of the body. Head of adult is pure white. The eyes are relatively large and the indented preorbital glands are well developed. There is a conspicuous white spot on the middle of the neck. The tail is short, well haired, and white with only the very tip black. Horns are short and thick, strongly ringed, and are noticeably bent backwards at the base, then curved upward and forward (“S” shaped). Female is similar to the male, but with shorter and thinner horns.

GEOGRAPHICAL RANGE AND HABITAT:

A genuine desert animal, the Dama Gazelle inhabits all of the Sahara from east to west and the Sudan.

DIET:

They mainly browse on various desert shrubs and acacias, rearing up on their hind legs to reach young shoots, but also feed on the rough desert grasses.

LIFE CYCLE/SOCIAL STRUCTURE:

Dama Gazelles migrate according to the seasons. In the rainy season they move north, far into the Sahara, and in the dry season they wander back to the Sudan in large herds of up to 600 head. When not migrating they can be found singly or in small herds, up to 10-15 head. Young of gazelles are usually born from April to June and in a few days after birth they have sufficient strength to follow the mother. Within a week they are able to run almost as rapidly as their mothers. The life span is 10-12 years.

SPECIAL ADAPTATIONS:

They can resist long periods of drought without water, but their requirements are much higher than those of the Dorcas gazelles.

INTERPRETIVE INFORMATION::

Gazelles are medium-sized antelopes especially adapted to dry conditions. The name gazelle has come to suggest grace and beauty, for all the species are dainty, alert, and graceful.

OUR ANIMALS:

1 Male. 2 Females.

STATUS IN THE WILD:

The Dama (Addra) Gazelle has five subspecies. Two of the five have already been exterminated. The rest are greatly endangered.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

1. Estes, Richard. 1991. The Behavior Guide to African Mammals. University of California Press, Berkeley.
2. MacDonald, David. 1984. The Encyclopedia of Mammals, Equinox Ltd, Oxford.
3. Previous Docent Manual.