Black Buck

• Kingdom                  :Animalia
• Phylum                     :Chordata
• Class                         :Mammalia
• Order                       :Artiodactyla
• Family                      :Bovidae
• Genus                       :Antilope
• Scientific Name       :Antilope cervicapra

Characteristics:

The blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra), also known as the Indian antelope, is an antelope found in India, Nepal and Pakistan. The blackbuck is the sole extant member of the genus Antilope. The species was described and given its binomial name by Swedish zoologist Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized. It stands up to 74 to 84 cm (29 to 33 in) high at the shoulder. Males weigh 20–57 kilograms (44–126 lb), an average of 38 kilograms (84 lb). Females are lighter, weighing 20–33 kilograms (44–73 lb) or 27 kilograms (60 lb) on an average. The long, ringed horns, 35–75 centimetres (14–30 in) long, are generally present only on males, though females may develop horns as well. The white fur on the chin and around the eyes is in sharp contrast with the black stripes on the face. The coat of males shows two-tone colouration: while the upper parts and outsides of the legs are dark brown to black, the underparts and the insides of the legs are all white. On the other hand, females and juveniles are yellowish fawn to tan.

The blackbuck is a diurnal antelope (active mainly during the day). Three kinds of groups, typically small, are the female, male and bachelor herds. Males often adopt lekking as a strategy to garner females for mating. While other males are not allowed into these territories, females often visit these places to forage. The male can thus attempt mating with her. Herbivores, blackbuck graze on low grasses, occasionally browsing as well. Females become sexually mature at eight months, but mate no earlier than two years. Males mature later, at one-and-a-half years. Mating takes place throughout the year. Gestation is typically six months long, after which a single calf is born. The lifespan is typically 10 to 15 years.

Distribution and Habitat:

Blackbuck is native to the Indian subcontinent, but extinct in Bangladesh.In Nepal, the last surviving population of blackbuck inhabits the Blackbuck Conservation Area south of the Bardia National Park. In 2008, the population was estimated at 184.In Pakistan, blackbuck occasionally occur along the border with India and a captive population is maintained in the Lal Suhanra National Park.

Blackbuck inhabits grassy plains and thinly forested areas where perennial water sources are available for its daily need to drink. Herds travel long distances to obtain water.Scrublands are a good source of forage and cover. Cold climates do not suit the blackbuck.

A few blackbucks are present in the Indian Institute of Technology Madras campus, which is adjacent to Guindy National Park.The albino males were an attraction to the campus. Their numbers are diminishing due to habitat loss and attack by the increased number of stray dogs.

The British naturalist William Thomas Blanford described the range of the blackbuck in his 1891 The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma as:
India from the base of the Himalayas to the neighbourhood of Cape Comorin (the southernmost locality known to me is Point Calimere), and from the Punjab to Lower Assam, in open plains, not in Ceylon nor east of the Bay of Bengal. Not found on hills nor in thickly wooded tracts, and wanting throughout the Malabar coast south of the neighbourhood of Surat. The statement that this antelope is not found in Lower Bengal is not quite correct ; none are found in the swampy Gangetic delta, but many exist on the plains near the coast in Midnapore (I have shot them near Contai), as they also do in Orissa. Antelopes are most abundant in the North-west Provinces, Rajputana, and parts of the Deccan, but are locally distributed and keep to particular tracts.

Today, only small, scattered herds are seen that are largely confined to protected areas.

The antelope was introduced in Texas in the Edwards Plateau in 1932. By 1988, the population had increased and the antelope was the most populous exotic animal in Texas after the chital.As of early 2000s, the population in the United States has been estimated at 35,000. Blackbuck have been introduced into Argentina, numbering about 8,600 individuals (as of the early 2000s)

Diet:

Being herbivores, blackbuck graze on low grasses, occasionally browsing as well. They prefer sedges, fall witchgrass, mesquite, and live oak. They have occasionally been observed browsing on acacia trees in the Cholistan Desert.Oats and berseem were found to be palatable and nutritious to captive populations in a study.A study in the Velavadar Black Buck Sanctuary (Gujarat, India) showed that Dichanthium annulatum comprised 35 percent of their diet. Digestion of nutrients, especially crude proteins, was poor in summer, but more efficient in the rainy and winter seasons. Consequently crude protein intake in summer was very low, even below the recommended value. Blackbuck had a lower food consumption in summer. The fruits of Prosopis juliflora are often eaten, and blackbuck may play a role in their dispersal.Prosopis becomes a significant food item if grasses are scarce.Water is a daily requirement of the blackbuck.

Reproduction:

Females become sexually mature at eight months, but mate no earlier than two years. Males mature later, at one-and-a-half years. Mating takes place throughout the year; peaks occur during spring and fall in Texas.Two peaks have been observed in India: from August to October and from March to April.Rutting males aggressively establish and defend their territories from other males, giving out loud grunts and engaging in serious head-to-head fights, pushing each other using horns.Aggressive display consists of thrusting the neck forward and raising it, folding the ears and raising the tail. The dominant male pursues the female with his nose pointing upward, smells her urine and shows a flehmen response. The female shows her receptivity by waving her tail and thumping the hindlegs on the ground. This is followed by several mounting attempts, and copulation. The whole process may last as long as six hours. The female will remain still for some time after copulation, following which she may start grazing. The male may then move on to mate with another female.

Gestation is typically six months long, after which a single calf is born.Newborn are a light yellow; infant males may have a black patch on the head and the neck.Young are precocial - they can stand on their own soon after birth.Females can mate again after a month of parturition.Juveniles remain active and playful throughout the day. Juvenile males turn black gradually, darkening notably after the third year.The lifespan is typically 10 to 15 years.