Nilgai

Nilgai

Nilgai is the largest antelope in asia it can grow from 5.6 to 6.9 feet it prefers to live in short bushes or scattered trees these animals are herbivores and they are diurnal they have a sloping back with a deep neck and a white spot in there neck they also have a short mane of hair behind and along there neck.

Description

The Nigal has a sloping back with a deep neck and a white spot in there neck they also have a short mane of hair behind and along there neck Nilgai is the largest antelope in asia it can grow from 5.6 to 6.9 feet Males weigh 109–288 kilograms the maximum weight recorded is 308 kilograms.Females are lighter, weighing 100–213 kilograms. And they have two white spots each on its face, ears, cheeks, lips and chin.

Behaviour

In 1991 a study investigated the daily routine of the antelope and found feeding peaks at dawn, in the morning, in the afternoon and during the evening. Females and juveniles do not interact appreciably with males, except during the mating season. Groups are generally small, with ten or fewer individuals, though groups of 20 to 70 individuals can occur at times. Typically tame, the nilgai may appear timid and cautious if harassed or alarmed; instead of seeking cover like duikers it would flee up to 300 metres (980 ft)-or even 700 metres (2,300 ft) on galloping-away from the danger. Though generally quiet, nilgai have been reported to make short guttural grunts when alarmed, and females to make clicking noises when nursing young Alarmed individuals, mainly juveniles below five months, give out a coughing roar (whose pitch is highest in case of the juveniles) that lasts half a second, but can be heard by herds less than 500 metres (1,600 ft) away and responded to similarly.

Reproduction

Observations of females in southern Texas revealed that ovaries are developed by two years of age and the first birth takes place typically a year later, though in a few cases females as young as one-and-a-half years may mate successfully Females can breed again around a year after parturition. Males in the same location were found to have active testes by the age of three years, that matured considerably by the next year Males become sexually active at four or five years. Mating may occur throughout the year, with peaks of three to four months. The time of the year when these peaks occur varies geographically. In Texas, a peak is apparent from December to March In (Rajasthan, India) the breeding season is from October to February, peaking in November and December. The Sariska reserve witnesses a similar peak in December and January.

Habitat

Nilgai prefer areas with short bushes and scattered trees in scrub forests and grassy plains. They are common in agricultural lands, but hardly occur in dense woods. In southern Texas, it roams in the prairies, scrub forests and oak forests. It is a generalist animal-it can adapt to a variety of habitats. Though sedentary and less dependent on water, nilgai may desert their territories if all water sources in and around it dry up.Territories in Texas are 0.6 to 8.1 square kilometres (0.23 to 3.13 sq mi) large.

In class we got to pick what type of writing we do. I did a report on the Nilgai it is a animal I knew nothing about but know I do.