196 ANTELOPES 



the neck, where its direction is reversed so that the mane forms a 

 kind of ruff. The record length attained by the graceful horns, 

 which are ridged to within a short distance of their summits, is 36^ 

 inches, or just a yard — an easy figure to remember. In connection 

 with this it should be mentioned that in old bucks the horns frequently 

 become worn down — " stubbed " — by rough usage. 



The range of this handsome antelope — whose partiality for the 

 neighbourhood of water is sufficiently indicated by its name — com- 

 mences on the east coast immediately north of the Limpopo river, 

 whence it extends to the Webbe Shebeyli in southern Somaliland. 

 Zululand, the Transvaal, Mashonaland, Nyasaland, and German and 

 British East Africa thus come within the limits. Nowadays the 

 species, which never seems to have been very common, has, however, 

 a much more curtailed range ; its main strongholds being the unhealthy 

 districts between the Sabi and Zambesi rivers, the tributaries of the 

 latter, and the Chobi, Okavango, and other rivers above Lake Ngami. 



The head of a waterbuck believed to come from the Masai table- 

 land has been made the type of a separate species by Dr. P. Matschie 

 {IVeidzverk in Wort unci Bild, 1906, p. 234), under the name of Cobus 

 adolfi-frederici, on account of the dark colour of the nose, and the 

 absence of a white throat, as well as by the relatively short smooth 

 tips of the horns. If these features prove to be constant, the Masai 

 waterbuck may be regarded as a local race — C. ellipsiprymnus adolji- 

 frederici. 



Waterbuck associate, as a rule, in parties of from about 

 half-a-dozen to a score ; and although, as already mentioned, partial 

 to the immediate neighbourhood of water, they may resort to stony 

 hills or thick covert a mile or so away from the nearest river or lake. 

 When pursued, they generally make for their favourite element, 

 although this is by no means invariably the case. Despite their 

 heavy build and short legs, they are remarkably active animals, 

 ascending stony slopes with surprising agility, and displaying a great 

 turn of speed when galloping on the flat. Occasionally they are 

 found near salt-water creeks on the coast. When hard pressed, they 

 will not unfrequently betake themselves to the dense reed -brakes 

 bordering many of the African rivers, or even to the water itself; and 

 when brought to bay in these or other situations the old bucks should 

 be approached with caution, as they make terrific sweeps and lunges 

 with their spear-like horns. Waterbuck are likewise good swimmers, 

 although a well-merited dread of crocodiles makes them cautious about 

 crossing deep rivers. 



