Impala

Family Antelope Size 28 to 36 inches tall; weight 100 to 135 pounds Diet Grazers and browsers, Impalas eat tender yo...

Family Antelope Size 28 to 36 inches tall; weight 100 to 135 pounds Diet Grazers and browsers, Impalas eat tender young grass shoots in the wet season and herbs and shrubs at other times. During the dry season they drink daily. Habitat Savanna and light woodland. Impalas are found at grassland and woodland edges, usually very close by water. Socialisation Their social organisation allows impalas to adapt to prevailing environmental conditions. When food is plentiful, the males become territorial. In home ranges averaging 3 square miles, six to eight dominant males set up territories. They stand with erect posture, rub scent from face glands and make dung heaps to mark their territory. The ImpalaThe females form herds of 10 to 50 or more and wander in and out of male territories. If they start to leave the territory, the male tries to herd them back to the centre, or he feigns danger just beyond his boundary by taking a stance normally used as a warning sign. He tries to mate with females in oestrus and defends his territory from challenging males. Bachelor males are allowed to remain in male territories if they ignore the females. The territorial males challenger will have worked his way up through the hierarchy of the bachelor group until he becomes the dominant male. He then leaves the group and challenges a territorial male through horn duels. Reproduction Between 6 and 7 months, a single fawn is born. Life span 12 years. Predators Lions, leopards, cheetahs, hyenas and hunting dogs.