iji Great and Small Game of Africa 



Mau plateau and down the Nyando River to near Lake Victoria 

 Nyanza, and that it ranges round the north of Mount Elgon into Uganda, 

 Budu, and Toru, on which side of the lake it is common. But it is not 

 found anywhere throughout the extensive region lying between the coast 

 belt and Lake Rudolph ; for on my expedition to that lake I met with 

 no signs of it after leaving the neighbourhood of the coast until I reached 

 the Bay of Lalia, half-way up the east side of that lake. It was here, on 

 this northern half of the east coast of Lake Rudolph, that I became 

 intimately acquainted with the species, and especially towards the north- 

 east corner, where I met with it in immense numbers, and had ample 

 opportunities of observing it. 1 



It would appear as if this antelope had some special predilection for 

 the vicinity of large bodies of water, although it may be found some 

 considerable distance away from the actual shore. Thus it occurs not far 

 from the sea, from the neighbourhood of Mbungu (a short distance inland 

 from Mombasa) northward, but I think nowhere on the coast to the south 

 of that latitude ; and again in the neighbourhood of the inland lakes. 

 Probably there is some peculiar condition of soil in such localities favouring 

 the particular kind of pasturage adapted to its wants. 



I may here quote my allusion in Elephant Hunting in East Equatorial 

 Africa to the herds of topi in the neighbourhood of Reshiat. " There 

 was a broad level valley behind, overlooked by my ridge, and in this the 

 topi antelope used often to collect towards evening or in the early morning. 

 They were sometimes literally in thousands, the flat for a mile or more 

 being covered with them, collected in one enormous herd. During March 

 all the cows seemed to have calved, and I used to enjoy watching the 

 gambols of the troops of light fawn-coloured calves racing fleetly up and 



1 It is a remarkable thing that no mention is to be found of this antelope in Von Hohncl's most 

 interesting account of the discovery by Count Tclcki and himself of Lakes Rudolph and Stefanic, 

 although he frequently enumerates the kinds of game they met with. Can it be that it migrates? 



