Long-Necked Antelope
Long-Necked Antelope : Samburu National Park is Kenya’s impressive safari destination with the incredible unique wildlife that makes the reserve to be recognized as Kenya’s premier. Samburu national reserve holds Kenya’s special animal species that are only located in this reserve that is the reticulated giraffe, Somali ostrich, Gerenuk, Beisa Oryx and Grevy’s zebra. Gereuk is one of the most thrill among the special animal species this is an antelope that gets name from the exceptionally long neck. Gerenuk means ‘’giraffe necked’’ in the Somali language. Gerenuk inhabits in the woody vegetation like the thickets, flat thorn bush and others.
Gerenuk has got a small head in terms of its size and its eyes and ears are large. Compared to the gazelles and other antelopes. Gerenuk do feed while it’s standing on its hind legs as browsing the tall bushes. Compared to the females and the males, the male gerenuks have got the horns that are stout and heavily ringed, where they have more heavily muscled neck than the females. Gerenuks are such very unique species of antelopes known for their distinctive appearance and the unusual physical features.
Gerenuks have got the coat that is brown on the upper back and lighter on the sides. With the short tail that looks longer as it ends in a tuft of the black hair. Compared to other gazelles, these large antelopes have got the periorbital glands in front of the eyes that helps them in the emitting a tar-like, scent-bearing substance they deposit on twigs and bushes to clearly mark their territories. And they have got the scent glands on their knees that are covered by the tufts of hair and in between their split their hooves.
Gerenuk are highly and able to survive in the hunting pressures to a certain extent, and this has enabled them to withstand widely in the unprotected regions. Though as the human population keeps on growing it causes lots of segmentations for these species and other animal species. And this makes the Gerenuk to lack the food and shelter to protect themselves from the predators hence causing the number of Gerenuks to decrease in their numbers.
Gerenuks are known as the social animal species living together of related females and their young or bachelor groups of males, but at times the males live alone. The latter to be sometimes territorial, they range in large and populations are usually sparse, according to research it’s difficult to determine if these animal species do defend these territories, Long-Necked Antelope
Gerenuks feed more compared to gazelles and antelopes. These are the most exclusive browsers and largely prefer the succulent plants. They feed on different species of plants that are over 80 like the tender leaves, shoots of prickly bushes along the nutritious mix of the flowers, fruits, buds, climbing plants and others, gerenuks do not eat the grass and they do not require drinking water. They get themselves enough moisture from the plant life they eat and still survive in the dry thorn bush destinations like Samburu National Reserve and among other areas in the desert.
Gerenuks are such very vocal as these use several vocalizations. Like these use the buzzing sound when alarmed, a whistle when annoyed though, loud bleat when in the danger and can be soft bleat when the females communicate their young ones.
Gerenuks are the prey of most of the African carnivores like the cheetahs, lions, hyenas and among others. And the Gerenuks to escape from their predators they do run so fast on a distance of 64 kilometers that is about 40 miles per hour as they are protecting themselves from their enemies.