BUSHBUCK 329 



then be on the ground not later than 5 p.m., and take up a position 

 from which, though concealed himself, he can command a good view, 

 and wait patiently until they come out to feed. The does and young 

 ones will be the first to appear ; the old bucks rarely venturing out 

 until just before sundown. The does will then have had time to 

 reconnoitre (they appear to rely on their sense of hearing and smell 

 much more than on sight) and settle down to feed ; and until the 

 buck appears, I know of few pleasanter ways of spending an hour 

 or so in the quiet cool of the evening than watching two or three of 

 these beautiful creatures within sometimes less than fifty yards, as 

 they slowly and noiselessly move about, delicately nibbling a blade of 

 grass or a leaf from a bush, and every now and again stopping to 

 listen, with their large ears working backwards and forwards. If by 

 some mischance the does see or scent danger and retreat to covert 

 with their loud warning bark, there will be no chance of the buck 

 putting in an appearance that evening until it is too dark to shoot. 

 The does drop their young during February and March. 



" The measurements and weights of a buck and doe taken on the 

 spot where they fell are as follows : — 



" Buck. — Total length, 5 feet 3 J inches ; height at shoulder, 2 feet i i^ inches ; 



tail, 9 inches; weight, 148 lb. 

 "•^ Doc. — Total length, 4 feet lo^^ inches; height at shoulder, 2 feet 7I inches; 



tail, 7.1 inches ; weight, 92 lb." 



The following (condensed) notes by Mr. F. Vaughan Kirby refer 

 mainly to the Cape {T. s. sylvaticiis) and Chobi {T. s. ornatus) races : — 



" This antelope varies so much in coloration in different parts of 

 the country, and even in limited areas, that, interesting as it is, the 

 subject cannot be dealt with fully here. Roughly speaking, I may 

 consider these bushbuck as inhabiting four districts, and differing in 

 appearance in each. That of the Cape Colony is the darkest, being 

 deep brownish black, at a distance appearing quite black. There are a 

 few white spots on the haunches and flanks, perhaps twelve to fifteen, 

 and from two to four faintly outlined stripes over the back and loins. ^ 

 The Natal and East Coast bushbuck is deep brownish grey, with a few 

 more spots and somewhat better-defined stripes. In the eastern and 

 northern Transvaal and Gazaland the ground-colour is deep brownish 

 grey, warmer on the head and lower part of the limbs, with eighteen 

 to twenty-five spots on the shoulders, flanks, and haunches, and three 



' There appears to be a certain amount of local variation even among the bushbucks of 

 Cape Colony ; Mr. Selous {A Hunter s Wanderings in South Africa, p. 209) stating that the 

 only markings are a very few spots. 



