282 
UNGULATES. 
black area on the haunches extending as a line on the back, and continued over 
the whole of the tail. In addition to this, there is also black on the upper-parts 
of the limbs, on the front of the legs above the fetlocks, and along the throat; the 
throat-stripe dividing and run¬ 
ning up the sides of the head 
nearly to the ears. On the face 
a black stripe runs from each 
horn through the eye nearly to 
the muzzle, which is connected 
by a narrow stripe with a broad 
black patch on the centre of the 
forehead, thus completely isolat- 
head of gemsbok. —After Nicoiis and Eglington. ing the white of the muzzle 
from that of the upper part of 
the face. Mr. Selous states that the longest male horns of this species which he 
saw measured 42 inches in length, while those of the female may reach 464 inches. 
Horns have, however, been recorded measuring 474 inches. 
Distribution and Gemsbok inhabit the desert regions of South-Western Africa, 
Habits. and are still fairly common in the Kalahari Desert, while in 
Damaraland they are reported to occur in large herds ; north of the Chobi 
River they appear to be unknown. On the west coast they occur in Senegambia, 
Timbuctu, and the Niger district. Mr. Selous says that they are generally met 
with where the country is either completely open or covered with stunted scrub. 
Gordon Cumming writes that the gemsbok “ thrives and attains high condition 
in barren regions where it might be imagined that a locust would not find 
subsistence; and, burning as is the climate, it is perfectly independent of water, 
which, from my own observation and the repeated reports both of the Boers and 
aborigines, I am convinced it never by any chance tastes. Its flesh is deservedly 
esteemed, and ranks next to the eland.” Mr. Selous states that the gemsbok is by 
no means fleet, and that it can be run to a standstill by a hunter on foot. According 
to Boer reports, the gemsbok is enabled to beat off the lion with its spear-like 
horns; and several instances are recorded where the skeletons of the two animals 
have been found together, the body of the lion having been transfixed by the horns 
of the antelope, which remained too firmly fixed in the flesh to admit of their 
withdrawal during life. 
In Abyssinia and Somaliland as well as on the Red Sea littoral 
B6isa«. ^ 
near Suakin, the gemsbok is replaced by the beisa (0. beisa), 
readily distinguished by the absence of the tuft of hair on the throat, and 
by the black patch on the front of the face being completely separated from 
the stripe running through the eye. There is no black on the haunches and 
thighs, and the horns also are shorter and less divergent, their maximum 
recorded length being 36 inches in the male and 37 inches in the female. The 
beisa is probably the true oryx of the ancients, and may be the animal which 
gave rise to the legend of the unicorn. Mr. Blanford says that in Abyssinia these 
animals are found in herds of considerable size, when they present an imposing 
appearance. Their favourite pace is a quick walk or trot, and they only break 
