Bohor Reedbuck 



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to look for it, as it is easier to see and can be fairly stalked. Throughout 

 the rest of the day it is mere chance work coming across them at all. 

 They lie, if anything, closer than an oribi or duiker, and if seen at all 

 when they do move at close quarters, they go off at first with a rush, and 

 in a crouching position with neck held straight out, and head so low as 

 to prevent one from seeing whether it is a buck or doe, and offer a very 

 difficult and uncertain shot with a rifle, as they almost invariably go 

 straight away and double from one side to the other with such extra- 

 ordinary speed that it is almost impossible to draw a bead on them. They 

 are usually found in small herds of two or three together, and sometimes 

 as many as five or six. On one occasion I saw eight. An old buck is 

 frequently found quite by itself. During the rutting season, which is 

 towards the end of June or beginning of July, the young bucks are driven 

 from the herds by the older and stronger beasts, and are then found in 

 small lots of three or four together. These bucks are never worth 

 shooting. The reedbucks found on the Mau plateau are much finer and 

 heavier than those found on the eastern slopes of the escarpment, and in 

 the Masai valley. They also have much finer heads. The best can in 

 no way be compared with the heads of reedbucks from South Africa 

 (C. arundinum), as horns of 10 inches along the curve may be considered 

 very good. Their note of alarm is a shrill whistle, which can be heard 

 at long distances, but is rather difficult to locate. 



If circumstances will allow one to take one's own choice, certainly 

 by far the pleasanter time to look for these bucks is the cool of the 

 evening, when they are on the move and feeding. The wind is then 

 steady, the grass dry, and they are not likely to move far from the spot 

 where they were last seen. Even if alarmed by the warning whistle 

 of another one, which may be standing some distance off and not noticed 

 by the stalker, they will endeavour to escape observation by crouching 

 down in the grass where they stand, rather than seek safety by flight. 



