286 BIG GAME SHOOTING 



ELAND 



The striped variety of the eland is the only one found in 

 East Africa. It is known to the Swahilis as ' Mpofu,' and is 

 decidedly a local beast. It is seen more often in open bush 

 -and country thinly wooded with mimosa-trees than quite out 

 in the open. In 1887 it was plentiful round Taveta, where I 

 have seen as many as sixty to seventy in one herd. In the open 

 bush country west of Mount Kisigao elands are fairly numerous. 

 Other places in which they are found are the park-like country 

 below Ndi in Teita ; the open country east of Ndara and north 

 of Mount Maungu ; and the Siringeti plains. I have also 

 seen them between Lakes Nakuro and Baringo, and again in 

 Turkwel, in the Suk country. As a rule they go about in herds 

 of four or five up to fifteen or twenty. Sometimes two or three 

 bulls will be found together, and very often an old bull quite 

 by himself. 



Very old beasts, both bulls and cows, are of a dark slatey- 

 blue colour, owing to the skin showing through their scanty 

 covering of hair, and these old fellows lose all trace of the 

 white stripes. The bulls grow to a huge size and become 

 enormously fat. Elands are decidedly difficult to stalk, both 

 on account of the watchfulness of the cows and the nature of 

 the ground they generally frequent. They are, however, fairly 

 asy to drive. I remember having one eland drive which was 

 one of the grandest sights I ever witnessed, on account of the 

 enormous number of game which passed close to me. 



I had gone up to the top of a large ' earth boil ' to reconnoitre 

 the country, and from it saw a large herd of some fifty elands, a 

 herd of about 120 buffaloes, besides innumerable hartebeests 

 -and zebras, two rhinos, and a small herd of five giraffes. 

 Although they were all well to windward, a stalk was out of the 

 question, as the grass had lately been burnt and the zebras and 

 hartebeests were scattered in all directions. 



As I had not yet shot a good eland, and was particularly 

 anxious to get one, I decided on a drive, for which the country 



