DUYKER-BOK,—Cephdlopus mergens. 
parts of the body and outside of the limbs, deepening into warm chestnut-brown along 
the back, and becoming pure white on the abdomen, chest, inner surface of the limbs, and 
around the root of the call It is a native of Abyssinia, where it was discovered by Bruce, 
and is said to inhabit mountainous districts, where it lives in pairs. 
The DuyKEr-Box, or Impoon, has derived its name of Duyker, or Diver, from its habit 
of diving suddenly, when alarmed, into the heavy brushwood among which it lives, and 
of disappearing from the sight of the hunter. For the following valuable account of the 
animal I am again indebted to Captain Drayson’s MS. notes on the fauna of Southern 
Africa, which he has kindly placed at my disposal. 
“On the borders of the bush, the Antelope which is most commonly met is the 
Duyker, a solitary and very cunning animal. 
If the sportsman should happen to overtake this buck, it will lie still, watching him 
attentively, and will not move until it is aware that it is observed. It will then jump up 
and start off, making a series of sharp turns and dives, sometimes over bushes, and at 
others through them. When it conceives that it is observed, it will crouch in the long 
grass or behind a bush, as though it were going to lie down. This conduct is, however, 
nothing but a ruse for the purpose of concealing its retreat, as it will then crawl along 
under the foliage for several yards, and when it has gone to some distance in this sly 
manner, will again bound away. It is therefore very difficult to follow the course of a 
Duyker, as it makes so many sharp turns and leaps, that both ‘spoorer’ and dogs are 
frequently bafiled. 
If the course of the buck can be watched, and the place discovered where it lies 
down after its erratic manceuvrings, it can be easily stalked by approaching it from the 
leeward side. One must, however, be a good shot to secure a Duyker with certainty, for 
the little creature is so tenacious of life that it will carry off a large charge of buck-shot 
without any difficulty, and the irregular course which it then pursues requires great 
perfection and quickness in shooting \ with a single ball. 
The Duyker is not a very swift animal, and almost any ordinary dog can pull one 
down. An old pewter, which served me as a dog of all work, frequently caught and held 
a Duyker until I came to the death. 
