298 ANTELOPES 



as I have seen them on the road between Sode Gara and the Mababi 

 Plain, and also between the latter and Goh-hah Hill ; and I also found 

 them not uncommon along both banks of the Chobi. In the flat 

 coast-country between the mouth of the Buzi river and the Zambesi, 

 roan antelope are, to the best of my belief, unknown, and are also 

 absent from the low-lying country on both sides of the Zambesi as 

 far as the Victoria Falls. In fact, I cannot remember to have met 

 with them in any part of south-east Africa where the altitude of the 

 country was much less than 3000 feet above sea- level ; and all 

 mountainous districts must be eliminated from their range, as I have 

 never seen them among broken hilly country where there were no 

 fairly level expanses of forest and plain. It is difficult in the case 

 of the roan antelope to say confidently what kind of country is best 

 suited to its habits. In western and southern Matabililand, and 

 throughout the countries watered by the tributaries of the Limpopo, 

 the land is almost everywhere covered either with open forests or 

 thickets of dense thorny bush. 



" The roan antelope is generally distributed through these countries, 

 and those who have only met them amidst such surroundings would 

 pronounce them to be a distinctly forest-loving species, like the sable 

 antelope. In Mashonaland they seem, however, to prefer the most 

 open parts of the country ; and they used to frequent the high open 

 downs of that part of South Africa in common with the tsessebe, the 

 ostrich, and the blue wildebeest. They were also numerous on the 

 broad treeless turf-valleys at a somewhat lower level, where, in 

 addition to the two former species, they had as companions oribi and 

 Burchell's zebra. I have always noticed that if there are large open 

 spaces of ground free from forest or bush in districts frequented by 

 roan antelopes, they are more likely to be met with in such open 

 places than elsewhere. When I have seen them to the north of the 

 Zambesi, the country has always been very open, and of the same 

 character as the high plateau of Mashonaland. I have never met 

 with roan antelope in very large herds like eland or sable antelope, 

 but have usually found them in bands of from five to a dozen, and 

 have seldom if ever seen upwards of twenty or twenty-five together. 

 Old bulls are generally found alone. 



" Usually there will be only one full-grown bull with a herd, but 

 I have occasionally seen two adult males living together in apparent 

 amity with perhaps a dozen females. Though the two species are 

 apparently nearly allied, I never remember to have seen roan antelope 

 consorting with sable antelope, though the former often feed in 



