THE BLUE WILDEBEEST 97 



a will. Females with young are extremely watchful 

 and suspicious. One of these cows which was 

 being photographed soon became restless, though 

 the camera was at a considerable distance away 

 from her. Switching her tail from side to 

 side, she stood uneasily watching every move- 

 ment. At last she uttered a loud, braying snort : 

 the calf which had been lying in the grass at her 

 feet immediately got up, and stood peering in the 

 direction of the supposed danger. Although only 

 one or two snapshots were taken, she remained 

 restless for fully an hour afterwards, and continued 



to utter her alarm note at frequent intervals. 



. 

 The first blue wildebeest ever bred in the 



London Zoological Gardens was born in 1900. 

 The calf was a curious little creature, all legs and 

 no horns, its quaint proportions, fawn-coloured 

 dress, and skittish gambols bearing little re- 

 semblance to the heavy-fronted appearance, blue- 

 grey coat, and lumbering gait of the mother. The 

 following description of it is based on notes taken 

 when the calf was five weeks old : 



" General colour of animal blackish brown ; 

 vertex, forehead, and median region of face warm 

 dark brown, the future facial tuft being indicated 

 by a darker vertical patch. Horns blunt, widely- 

 separated, thimble-like projections ; back of ears 

 deep blackish brown : circumocular fur black. 



