Scientific Name: Cape eland (Taurotragus oryx)
Size: About 70 inches
Weight: 1,300 to 1,500 or more pounds
Lifespan: 15 to 20 years
Habitat: Plains
Diet: Herbivorous/browser/grazer
Gestation: About 280 days
Predators: Humans
The cowlike eland is the world's largest antelope and is the animal most often depicted in the early rock art of East Africa. Even today, it still holds an important place in the mythology of some southern African tribes.
Elands belong to the same group as kudus, nyalas, bongos and bushbucks. Most of these antelopes have stripes and spots on the body, a white chevron on the forehead and a short mane on the neck and shoulder that continues along the spine. The males have twisted horns. The eland's horns are thick and tightly spiraled, growing up to 25 inches in females and to 50 inches in males.
The two types of eland in Africa include the giant eland (Taurotragus derbianus) of western and Central Africa and the smaller Cape eland (Taurotragus oryx) in East Africa. The giant eland, now in grave danger of extinction, can weigh up to a ton. The Cape eland is not as heavy but is massive and bovine in appearance. In spite of their size, elands are extraordinary jumpers, leaping up to 8 feet from a near standing start.
A tuft of black hair grows out of the eland's prominent dewlap, the loose fold of skin that hangs down from the neck. Usually fawn or tawny-colored, elands turn to gray or bluish-gray as they get older; the oldest animals become almost black. Most animals have several light-colored lateral stripes starting behind the shoulders, and various black markings occur on the legs and other parts of the body. Adult males have a mat or brush of brown hair on the forehead that grows longer and denser as an animal ages. It also becomes smellier, as the males like to rub it in mud and urine.
