290 EASTERN ETHIOPIA xxm 



a favourite prey of the wild dogs. Impalla run together 

 in herds which may contain any number from ten to 

 sixty. 



These antelopes are famous for their powers of leap- 

 ing, which is especially displayed when the herd is 

 alarmed. They do not mix much with other 

 antelopes but they have been seen with oryx, hartebeest, 

 and waterbuck. When a number of impalla are 

 scattered in an acacia grove I found it difficult to 

 distinguish them among the trees unless they moved. 

 Although beautiful and graceful, impallas are very 

 pugnacious among themselves and the bucks are 

 apparently very jealous. Dugmore states that an 

 amorous impalla buck "is a beautiful sight," for it 

 spreads, or displays, the long hairs of the rump, and 

 the vertical dark streak on either side of the rosettes 

 forms a natural border or fringes to them. The excited 

 buck causes consternation among the herd, emitting 

 repeated loud roaring grunts, chasing first one and then 

 another of the does. 



The Gerenuk is a very curious antelope ; it has long 

 legs, a giraffe-like neck and an elongated muzzle. The 

 Swahilis call it the " little giraffe." The horns, present 

 only in the male, are massive and annulated. The 

 gerenuk skull is so hard that it has received the specific 

 name lithocranius. By itself the long-legged gerenuk 

 appears eccentric among gazelles, but the Dibatag of 

 Somaliland and the Addra gazelle, of the Soudan, 

 bridge the gap between gazelles and gerenuks. 



The gerenuk browses on the branches and leaves of 

 trees and shrubs ; in order to reach the young green 

 shoots it will stand up on its hind-legs with its fore-legs 

 resting on the branches like a goat. When trotting 



o o o 



it stretches its head and neck forward until these parts 

 are nearly on the same plane as its back and they look 

 like greyhounds. They occur in small herds of six or 

 seven and are wary animals. It is stated that the 

 Somalis will not eat the fiesh of the gerenuk though 



