THE GEMSBUCK (< ORYX GAZELLA) 
AND ITS CONGENERS 
L ARGEST and handsomest of the genus of antelopes to which it 
belongs, the gemsbuck, or South African oryx, is certainly one 
of the most beautiful of all African animals. In this species, as in 
all its near allies, both the males and the females carry horns, 
and there is less disparity in size between the sexes than is 
-M^the case with any other large antelopes. The old bulls may be 
of slightly stouter build than the cows, but they stand no higher, and 
though their horns are thicker, they are also shorter than in the latter. 
Standing some four feet at the shoulder, the gemsbuck is a very heavily- 
bodied animal, with somewhat short legs, but nevertheless presents an 
appearance not only of great strength, but also of perfect symmetry. In 
general colour these antelopes are of a greyish fawn with a tinge of pink 
in it. The face is boldly marked with black and white, much after the 
fashion of the roan and sable antelope, and a black dorsal stripe spreads 
into a broad patch over the rump. There is also a black stripe running down 
the centre of the throat to the chest, whilst a broad band of black runs 
from behind the shoulder to the flank and thigh, separating the white 
belly from the grey of the body. The tail is long, with a very thick, heavy 
tassel, which almost sweeps the ground. The horns grow from the top of 
the head, just above the eyes, in a straight line with the plane of the face, 
or else have a slight backward curve. They are black in colour, and 
ringed from the base upwards for about a third of their length. In the 
females they sometimes approach a length of four feet, but in the males 
very seldom, if ever, exceed a measurement of three feet six inches. The 
record pair of gemsbuck horns is forty-seven and a half inches in length. 
The animal which bore them was killed by a native in the Southern Kala- 
hari, near the native town of Morokwaine. This pair of horns was given 
to me by a trader, but as it was not the spoil of my own rifle I gave it to a 
friend, by whom it was brought to England. I have never been in any 
country where gemsbuck were very plentiful, but altogether I think I must 
certainly have seen more than two hundred of these animals, and of these 
I shot the two which seemed to carry the longest horns. These were both 
females, and in each case their horns measured forty-three and a half 
inches when they were first killed. Therefore I should say that a measure - 
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