Ammelaphus imberbis (Blyth, 1869)

Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2011, Bovidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 2 Hoofed Mammals, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 444-779 : 613

33.

Northern Lesser Kudu

Ammelaphus imberbis

French: Petit Koudou / German: Nordlicher Kleinkudu / Spanish: Kudi menor septentrional

Taxonomy. Strepsiceros imberbis Blyth, 1869 ,

Somalia.

The type species (i.e. no beard) was initially described as paler gray than the southern form australis . Recent evaluations of museum specimens by C. P. Groves and P. Grubb show that the two forms of lesser kudu are diagnostically different and here are placed under Heller’s genus Ammelaphus . Monotypic.

Distribution. Lowlands of EC Ethiopia (Awash area) and NW Somalia. The exact southern limit of the Northern Lesser Kudu'’s distribution in eastern Ethiopia requires additional research.

Descriptive notes. Head—body 163-178 cm (males) and 140 cm (a female), tail 38— 46 cm, shoulder height 98-118 cm (males) and 103 cm (a female). No specific weights are available, but male Northern Lesser Kudus are about 154% heavier than females. Kudus are very slender in their frontal profile. Male Northern Lesser Kudus are paler gray, with less contrasting white markings than male Southern Lesser Kudus (A. australis ). Their back and the whole tail are dark. Females and young are bright reddishbrown. Both sexes have two white spots on the posterior jaw line, a small but defined upper throat patch, and a lower neck patch that is widened to a chevron, but often not as pronounced as on the Southern Lesser Kudu. Males have a partial chevron on the nose just below the eyes and a dorsal crest from the withers, whereit is longest, to the tail. The crest is often whitish but can more closely match the coat color. A light mane is occasionally evident on the back of the lower neck but often absent. There is no throat beard. The number of vertical body stripes on the Northern Lesser Kudu is 10-14 and may not be of equal number on both sides of the body of a single individual. The stripes begin farther back on the shoulders of the Northern Lesser Kudu than on the Southern Lesser Kudu. The last 2-3 stripes tend to wrap across the haunch and converge near the front of the knee, characteristically becoming oblique. The lower legs are tawny-orange. The hind pasterns of the Northern Lesser Kudu generally are completely black but occasionally white. Male-only horns are widely spiraled, like an open corkscrew. The horns are dark and can be white-tipped on some mature males. The average straight-line horn length of male Northern Lesser Kudus is 52: 7 cm, the average tip-to-tip length is 26-1 cm, and the length along the outer curve is 60-90 cm. The number of horn spirals varies, but there are generally fewer on a mature male Northern Lesser Kudu (2-2-5 turns) than on a mature male Southern Lesser Kudu (2-5-3 turns). The horn keels are less pronounced than on other tragelaphine antelopes. Dental formulais 10/3, C0/1,P 3/3, M 3/3 (x2) = 32. The diploid number of chromosomes is 38, and unlike other tragelaphines, both the Xand Y-chromosomes are fused with autosomes, suggesting an early evolutionary separation from other related taxa.

Habitat. The Northern Lesser Kudu is associated with northern reaches of the Somali-Masai Arid Zone in the northern Horn of Africa, dominated by semi-arid thornbush lowlands. It remains close to protective cover.

Food and Feeding. There is no specific information available for this species, but no doubt it is primarily a browser, as is the Southern Lesser Kudu. Lesser kudus do not have to remain close to water; they can satisfy most of their water requirements from the vegetation they eat.

Breeding. There is no specific information available for this species, but likely comparable to the Southern Lesser Kudu.

Activity patterns. There is no specific information available for this species, but likely crepuscular and active at night, comparable to the Southern Lesser Kudu.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. There is no specific information available for this species, but likely sedentary and occupying relatively small home ranges in female groups of 2-4, comparable to the Southern Lesser Kudu.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Near Threatened on The IUCN Red List (under-Tragelaphus); it does not differentiate the two species of lesser kudu identified here. Naturally absent in north-eastern Somalia and extinct in Djibouti. Purported to have occurred in Saudi Arabia and Yemen based on two sets of horns, but those records have never been verified and are not accepted as valid. In the late 1990s, the number of lesser kudus range-wide was estimated at about 118,000, with 30% of them in protected areas. Now, populations are decreasing, with the prospect of their status changing to Vulnerable in the future. The Northern Lesser Kudu is clearly the rarer of the two species, and current population levels are unknown. Awash National Park in the Great Rift Valley, Ethiopia, sustains a substantial protected population of the Northern Lesser Kudu. The lesser kudu’s preference for dense cover, cryptic coloration, and tendency to freeze when threatened make them difficult to survey but may lessen poaching for the bushmeat markets. Highly valued as a hunting trophy, properly managed populations can bring needed revenue to conservation efforts.

Bibliography. Benirschke et al. (1980), Bro-Jorgensen (2008), Drake-Brockman (1910), East (1999), Estes (1991a, 1991b), Groves & Grubb (2011), Heckel & Houssein (2008), Huffman (2004p), IUCN/SSC Antelope Specialist Group (2008bg), Kingdon (1982), Nowak (1999), Walther (1990c).

Figures

On following pages: 35. Cape Kudu (Strepsiceros strepsiceros); 36. Zambezi Kudu (Strepsiceros zambesiensis); 37. Northern Kudu (Strepsiceros chora); 38. Western Kudu (Strepsiceros cotton); 39. Common Eland (Taurotragus oryx); 40. Giant Eland (Taurotragus derbianus).

Distribution. Lowlands of EC Ethiopia (Awash area) and NW Somalia . The exact southern limit of the Northern Lesser Kudu'’s distribution in eastern Ethiopia requires additional research.