Lichtenstein's Hartebeest

[Richprins]

Kruger Sightings
‏Verified account @LatestKruger
20h20 hours ago

10:15
1 Lichensteins Hartebeest
H2-2, Voortrekker Road approx 1km E from jock’s birthplace turnoff
Eating
Near Pretoriuskop
Visual 5/5
Tinged by Tara and Debbie

[Richprins]

Lichtenstein's Hartebeest [Alcelaphus lichtensteinii]
There are some biologists who classify the Lichtenstein's Hartebeest as Sigmoceros lichtensteinii.

Appearance

Lichtenstein's Hartebeests are large antelope with humped shoulders, sloping back and elongated head. Cows can weigh 180 Kg and adult bulls over 200 Kg. At the shoulder the height of both sexes measures 1.25m. Their body colour is a light tawny, with a rufous saddle extending from the base of the tail to the shoulders.
Rump, hind legs and under parts of tail are off-white. Fronts of lower legs are black, as is the tip of the tail. A characteristic dark patch is visible on the flanks due to continuous rubbing of the face on the flanks. Dust sticking to the secretion rubs off onto the flanks from the preorbital glands situated on the face. Backward curving s-shaped horns are found on both sexes. The bulls' horns are thicker at the base.

Diet

This is a grazer dependant on perennial grasses. They prefer new growth in burnt areas, when available. It grazes in the cool of early mornings and late afternoons.

Breeding

Following a gestation period of 240 days females calve during August and September. Within herds calves are born at the same time, which is an anti-predator mechanism. Calves weigh 15 kg at birth. Females are sexually mature between 16-18 months. The calves are weaned by about 12 months and reach sexual maturity around 24 months. The Lichtenstein's Hartebeest has a lifespan of potentially 20 years.

Behaviour

Gregarious antelope, with herds consisting of about ten animals. A territorial bull can have six or seven adult females together with their offspring. Young bulls are expelled from the herd at the age of 10-12 months and young females leave the group from 15-18 months.The territorial bull defends his territory during the rut. Their territorial system breaks down during calving period, which may also be an anti-predator adaptation, affording protection to the young calves by moving around.

Habitat

They prefer an open habitat with adequate drinking water, hence its distribution in areas of higher rainfall.

Where they are found



Region map that they are most found in.In South Africa it occurred marginally only in the region of the present day Kruger National Park, where it became extinct. A new population has been established be relocating animals from Malawi. They are very rare in the subregion.

Predators

Lion, Leopard, Cheetah, Spotted Hyena and Cape Hunting Dog.

http://www.krugerpark.co.za/africa_hartebeest.html



South Africa has only one very small population of about 50 Lichtenstein’s Hartebeest occurring in the Kruger National Park, to where they were reintroduced from Malawi in the 1980’s after being hunted to local extinction at the end of the 19th century. We’ve been lucky to have a handful of sightings of them in Kruger near Punda Maria, Mopani and Pretoriuskop. Lichtenstein’s Hartebeest are still numerous enough, especially in Tanzania and Zambia, for the IUCN to consider their populations stable and their conservation status as “Least Concern“, with an estimated population of around 82,000, though they also do highlight that the subspecies is vulnerable to poaching and reliant on continued protection in formal conservation areas.

Some authorities consider Lichtenstein’s Hartebeest to be a seperate species from other races of the Common Hartebeest (A. buselaphus), also represented in South Africa by the Red Hartbeest (A. buselaphus caama).

https://dewetswild.com/2016/08/26/licht ... artebeest/


The Lichtenstein's Hartebeest is the rarest antelope in the Kruger and extremely difficult to see. Below is a guide of where to specifically look for Lichtenstein's Hartebeest in the Kruger National Park, its starts off with a list of the best areas to visit and roads to drive and there is a distribution map of the hotspots of where this animal occurs most frequently.


The Ship Mountain area
Jocks birth place turn off
Fayi Loop
Mahonie loop



http://www.thekruger.com/wheretofind/li ... ebeest.htm

[Richprins]

In July 1985 Lichtenstein's hartebeest were reintroduced to the park. An initial 26 had been caught and quarantined in Malawi's Kasungu National Park, but after heavy losses due to capture myopathy, only 9 were released in the park. In 1986 a further 15 animals were translocated to the park. (Wikipedia)


The first bunch were kept at the Nwaswitshumbe Camp near Klopperfontein, with some moved to the Hlangwine rare antelope camp south of Pretoriuskop so as to be far away should disease break out. the whole process proved to be somewhat of an overzealous failure in the end, and survivors were simply released from both camps eventually. That some still survive is remarkable and probably due to low predator density in both areas.

A rare 1990 pic by Prof Bothma, from Shingwedzi area:




https://repository.up.ac.za/handle/2263/36841

[Richprins]

Members' photos :


RP - Boyela 2007 (flirting with tsessebe female!):

Shisha Stream area 2009:

9.jpg (129.34 KiB) Viewed 1439 times

Kremetart area 2010:

nan - Far North (circa 2012)






flying cheetah, Tihononyeni 2012:





mposthumus:

22 Dec '14, Pretoriuskop H2-2 Voortrekker Rd, 10:14am Approximately 500m from the road, 8 that I could see

[Flutterby]

[Richprins]

They are often in the company of other antelope (tsessebe, wildbeest, impala).

Best area to see them is Vlakteplaas section (Babalala-Klopperfontein).

[nan]

for posting one of mine

[okie]

On H-1-8 near Kloppersfontein area , on 30 September 2007 .

[Richprins]

Those are tsessebe, okie!

[okie]

Ag sis man I made a mistake and posted the wrong pics - too much running around today

Same general area , but 22 September 2010