Sable antelope

Hippotragus niger (Harris, 1838)

Scene:  Munyati Valley, Zimbabwe

Also present:  African Hoopoe—Upupa epops africana,
Brown parrot—Poicephalus meyeri,
Green Wood-Hoopoe—Phoeniculus purpureus,
Magpie Shrike—Corvinella melanoleuca,
Speckled Mousebird—Colius striatus

Sponsor:  Leslie Simson and Dean Witter

Background artist:  Frank J. McKenzie (1865-1939)

Range:  Eastern and southern Africa.

Habitat:  Thin forest with patches of bush and open meadows.

Status:  Endangered (Kenya) to rare (South Africa).

Diet:  Grass.

        Sable antelopes stand 4-5 feet tall at the shoulder and weigh up to 600 lbs. Females are chestnut to dark brown, darkening as they mature. Males are black.

        Sable antelope form herds of 10 to 30 females and young, led by a single male. Males fight by dropping to their knees and using their horns. The giant sable antelope (Hippotragus niger varani) is critically endangered.

Further information about this species may be found on the Animal Diversity Web page for sable antelope.

Back to African Mammal Hall