XIII A SOJOURN AT RESHIAT AND KERE 303 



NOTE ON A NEW ANTELOPE 



By the Hon. Walter Rothschild 



Bitbalis neuDiatjni^ sp. n. 



Mr. Arthur H. Neumann, during his recent travels in some of the most 

 interesting' parts of Africa, on the east shore of and to the north-east of 

 Lake Rudolph, met with a hartebeeste which I cannot refer to any of the 

 already known forms, and which I wish to name after its discoverer. I 

 have before me two skulls with horns of a male and of a female, and the 

 skin of the body of one. 



The horns differ widely from those of Biibalis Wf^ry'fr (BIyth) of West 

 Africa, and B. biiselaphiis (Pall.) of Northern Africa and Arabia, in being 

 slenderer and in their tips being inverted, instead of pointing outwards or 

 straight behind. The nearest ally seems to be B. torn (Gray) of Upper 

 Nubia, Abyssinia, and Kordofan, which, however, has more slender horns, 

 with more distinct rings, reaching almost round, a broader forehead, and 

 a generally paler coloration. The horns also diverge much more in B. tora, 

 as shown at a glance by the distances between the tips of the horns, 

 as recorded in Rowland Ward's Horn Measurements. B. iieitnianni has 

 evidently nothing to do with Acronotus lehvel, Heugl. {Reisc N.O.-Afr. ii. 

 p. 124), in which the tips of the horns point' straight outwards. Matschie 

 has referred A. lelwel to the West-African Bubal, but Sclater and Thomas 

 have more correctly placed it among the synonyms of B. biiselapJiiis. 

 However, a query should be added to the name, the description not being 

 exact enough to make out what the name means. The type is not in the 

 museum at Stuttgart, according to kind information of Professor Lampert, 

 nor can it be found elsewhere at present. 



The horns of B. neianantti measure as follows : — 



Circumference at base, (^ 273 millim., $ 183 ; total length along the 

 curves, (^420, 9 345 ; tip to tip, <^ 206, $ 249. 



The rings of the horns are not \er)- prominent, and do not reach all 

 round. 



Breadth of skull at forehead, S 100 millim., 9 80; length of skull 

 from base of horn to up|)er lip, along the side in a straight line, S 43°, 

 9 403 millim. 



Colour of hair fulvous fawn, much richer on the back, where there are 

 also some darker spots, which may be stains or natural ; below, very much 

 paler. Chin blackish, tip of tail black. The male is brighter and darker 

 in colour than the female. There arc also on the back some patches with 

 longer, thicker, almost whitish-buff hair, perhaps remains of the winter fur.^ 



' There is no winter in licjuatorial .\frica. — A. H. X. 



