THE HORNED ANIMALS— WATER-BUCKS. 



497 



sized forms, are of sturdy organization, and have 

 a comparatively large tail. The male alone is pos- 

 sessed of horns, which are round, ringed at the base 

 and curved forward at the tips. 

 TheRiet-Bok Typ- The Riet-bok {Redunca eleotragus) is 

 ical of the Reed the best known species of this ge- 

 Antelopes. nus. This beautiful animal attains 

 a length of from four feet eight inches to five feet, 

 inclusive of the tail; it is about thirty-eight inches 

 high at the withers and thirty-two at the croup. On 

 the whole the Riet-bok resembles the Roe-buck, but 

 is of a more slender organization. The Riet-bok is a 

 native of south Africa, as well as of the eastern parts 

 of central Africa. It is found only beyond the great 

 swamps of the upper Nile and lives in couples in the 



*• 





developed, and the animals have glands between the 



digits of their hoofs and are ornamented with a lonn- 



tail-tuft. 



The Water-buck's The Water-buck {Kobus ellipsiprym- 



Rojtge and nus) is a stately animal of nearly the 



Habits. same physical proportions as the 



larger species of Deer. Its total length is six feet 



eight inches, the length of the tail being twenty 



inches, and the height at the croup four feet four 



inches. The prevailing color is gray. The horns 



attain a length of thirty-two inches, measured along 



the curvature, and usually show thick, triangular, 



transverse rings, except near their extremities. 



A. Smith found the Water-buck in south Africa in 

 small herds, numbering from eight to ten, their favo- 





THE WATER BUCK, One of the best known of the African species of Antelopes is the Water-buck, which has be^n given its name from its habit 



of frequenting rivers and its abilities as a swimmer. The large curved horns are borne only by the male. . The picture appropriately shows these animals, 

 one male and two females, in a damp African forest amid aquatic vegetation and with the companionship of water fowl. (Kobus elli^sifrymnus.) 



rite haunts being the banks of rivei^s. Von Heuglin, 

 and later Schweinfurth, met it in the northeastern 

 part of central Africa, and Pechuel-Loesche found 

 it to be plentiful in some localities on the western 

 Congo. Despite its almost clumsy appearing form 

 the Water-buck produces a favorable impression on 

 the spectator. Its eyes are lustrous and expressive, 

 reflecting an independent, if not fierce spirit, and 

 its movements are comparatively graceful. Accord- 

 ing to Heuglin's observations it is by no means a 

 genuine habitual swamp-dweller, but delights in 

 spots which are overgrown with reeds higher than 

 a Man's head. Like the Black Antelope it is wont 

 to ascend Ant-hills, and assuming a statuesque atti- 

 tude, survey its swampy domicile from them. If 

 the leader scents danger, it hurries off at a frenzied 



thick brush-wood in the neighborhood of water- 

 courses or bogs, as well as in the rush-banks and 

 cane brakes and the high sedge grass along the mar- 

 gins of swampy, periodically inundating or tempo- 

 rarily flowing rivers. In consequence of its secluded 

 mode of life one sees it much more rarely than its 

 frequency would seem to warrant. 



THE WATER-BUCKS. 



The Water-bucks {Kobus) are regarded as nearly 

 allied to the Reed Antelope. They are large Ante- 

 lopes of symmetrical shape, long-haired, and often 

 haying manes, the males being equipped with long, 

 pointed, ringed horns, which bend backward and 

 then forward in a soft curve, and lastly in an upward 

 •and outward direction. The muzzle is moderately 



