Waterbuck | Online Record Book Preview

Kobus ellipsiprymnus

Antilope acuático (Sp), Wasserbock (G), Cobe onctueux (F).

DESCRIPTION (male) Shoulder height 46-53 inches (117-135 cm). Weight 450-600 pounds (205-270 kg).

A large, stately antelope with a shaggy coat and long, impressive horns. The back is level and the head is held high. Ears are large and rounded, white inside and tipped with black. Tail is moderately long with a dark tip. Overall color varies from reddish to dark brown. There is a long, white stripe above and before the eyes, and the end of the muzzle is white. Sometimes, there is a white patch under the throat. Legs are darker than the body, with a white ring above the hoofs. Rump markings vary from a solid white patch in the defassa races to a large white ring around the tail root in the common races. The coat is coarse and shaggy and is impregnated with an oily secretion from skin glands; therefore, its color in the field is largely determined by the color of the soil and the amount of burnt ash on the bush. The horns (males only) are heavily ringed, rising backward and upward in a single curve. Females are similar to males, but a little smaller and without horns.

DISTRIBUTION Private ranches in Texas and elsewhere.

REMARKS Native to most of Africa south of the Sahara in savanna woodland, grassland and reedbeds. In Africa, waterbucks are divided into defassa waterbucks (nine subspecies that have a solid, white rump patch below the tail) and common or ringed waterbucks (four subspecies with a large white ring encircling the tail). For now, we combine all North American specimens in one list for record-keeping.

HYBRIDIZATION The waterbuck is either known or believed to crossbreed, or to be the result of hybridization, when in a game ranch environment.