“Gazella soemmerringiis the common Gazelle of the interior of Somaliland, supplanting the two GazellesG. spekeiandG. pelzelni, which inhabit the country lying to the south of the Golis Mountains and the barren ground along the coast respectively. Its native name is ‘Aoul,’ and it is found in the open plains, as a rule in herds of from four to sixty beasts, although occasionally I have come across an old buck by himself. On July 14th, 1894, I saw a small herd of these Gazelles about long. 44° 30´ E. and lat. 9° 48´ N., which is the most northerly point at which I have found them, whilst to the east they are not met with till even farther south. Herds of Speke’s Gazelle are seen in company with Soemmerring’s Gazelle as far south as lat. 9° 6´ N., after whichGazella soemmerringiis alone found.“Whilst in the Haud in 1894 I saw Oryx, and Waller’s, Speke’s, and Soemmerring’s Gazelles all together at the same time. The Soemmerring’s Gazelles prefer the open plains, although they are also found in bushy park like country, but never in the Khansa forests likeGazella walleri. When sighting anything strange they bunch together and stare; they are the least timid besides being the most plentiful of the Somali Antelopes, but in the open plains they will often allow you to walk past them at 200 yards distance, whilst any Oryx that are with them decamp long before. The horns of the female are much more slender than those of the male, they are also shorter and more irregular.“The flesh of this Gazelle is preferred by the Somalis to any other, and on several occasions I have been asked by sick men to shoot one for them, especially in cases of fever, when it is considered to be very strengthening. When in the Arusa Galla country in 1894–5 I did not come across this Gazelle between the Webbe Shabeyli and long. 40° 30´ E., lat. 7° N.; in fact once across the Webbe I did not meet it again till my return to Somaliland, the country beyond being absolutely unsuited to it. In the Aulihan district opposite Bari, however, I met with it on the farther side of the Webbe.“In February 1897, whilst camping in the Haud along with Mr. Percy V. Aylmer,we met with examples of this Gazelle at least 35 miles from the nearest water as the crow flies. As it was the dry season these animals could have obtained no moisture except dew unless they travelled that distance. Although at present the most plentiful, this, I fear, will be one of the first of the Antelopes of Somaliland to disappear, and the Reservation, as now laid down, will be of little or no use in protecting it.â€
“Gazella soemmerringiis the common Gazelle of the interior of Somaliland, supplanting the two GazellesG. spekeiandG. pelzelni, which inhabit the country lying to the south of the Golis Mountains and the barren ground along the coast respectively. Its native name is ‘Aoul,’ and it is found in the open plains, as a rule in herds of from four to sixty beasts, although occasionally I have come across an old buck by himself. On July 14th, 1894, I saw a small herd of these Gazelles about long. 44° 30´ E. and lat. 9° 48´ N., which is the most northerly point at which I have found them, whilst to the east they are not met with till even farther south. Herds of Speke’s Gazelle are seen in company with Soemmerring’s Gazelle as far south as lat. 9° 6´ N., after whichGazella soemmerringiis alone found.
“Whilst in the Haud in 1894 I saw Oryx, and Waller’s, Speke’s, and Soemmerring’s Gazelles all together at the same time. The Soemmerring’s Gazelles prefer the open plains, although they are also found in bushy park like country, but never in the Khansa forests likeGazella walleri. When sighting anything strange they bunch together and stare; they are the least timid besides being the most plentiful of the Somali Antelopes, but in the open plains they will often allow you to walk past them at 200 yards distance, whilst any Oryx that are with them decamp long before. The horns of the female are much more slender than those of the male, they are also shorter and more irregular.
“The flesh of this Gazelle is preferred by the Somalis to any other, and on several occasions I have been asked by sick men to shoot one for them, especially in cases of fever, when it is considered to be very strengthening. When in the Arusa Galla country in 1894–5 I did not come across this Gazelle between the Webbe Shabeyli and long. 40° 30´ E., lat. 7° N.; in fact once across the Webbe I did not meet it again till my return to Somaliland, the country beyond being absolutely unsuited to it. In the Aulihan district opposite Bari, however, I met with it on the farther side of the Webbe.
“In February 1897, whilst camping in the Haud along with Mr. Percy V. Aylmer,we met with examples of this Gazelle at least 35 miles from the nearest water as the crow flies. As it was the dry season these animals could have obtained no moisture except dew unless they travelled that distance. Although at present the most plentiful, this, I fear, will be one of the first of the Antelopes of Somaliland to disappear, and the Reservation, as now laid down, will be of little or no use in protecting it.â€
To Mr. Alfred E. Pease, M.P., F.Z.S., we are greatly indebted for the following notes on his experiences with this Antelope.—
“Soemmerring’s Antelope is widely distributed throughout Somaliland. In the following notes my remarks are confined to my own personal observations of this species during two expeditions. The first was in the north-western corner of the British Somali Protectorate, the second across the Haud into Ogaden and the country south of Harrar frequented by the Rer Mellingowr Ogaden. The average height of an adult male Soemmerring’s Gazelle is about 35 inches at the shoulder, with a girth behind the elbow of 32 inches. Unfortunately I never weighed any specimen. In colour they are amongst the most beautiful of the African Antelopes, and to see large herds of them moving about as the first bright gleams of the sun in the early morning touch them is one of the prettiest of the many charming sights that meets the traveller’s eye in this part of Africa. Their colour is an extremely rich clear pale orange on the body, spread evenly over the back, flanks, and running in narrowing bands down the four legs; this colour is set off by a wide margin of snowy white, which not only covers the whole of the belly and inner side of the legs, but which cuts back into the rump, so that when the Gazelle is standing with its tail towards you, you see little else but the snowy stern. Their heads are beautifully marked, the pervading tint forming the groundwork being of a slightly browner and fainter hue than the body, relieved by an almost black band running down from between the horns to the nostrils, and covering both sides of the nose and facial ridge; a short band, also very distinct, of the same colour runs down the tear-mark below the eye. In old bucks these dark stripes are often very nearly jet-black; in younger males and females the colouring varies from pale to dark brown. The throat is sometimes white, and when not altogether so, generally wears a more or less distinct crescent of white about two-thirds down the lower part of the underside of the neck. Both males and females carry heavy horns for animals of their size. The female’s horns are quite as long as, and perhaps slightly longer in proportion to their age than, the male’s, but they are weaker and less regular, though almost as deeply notched and annulated as in the buck. In general form they may be described as lyrate in a front view; the tips often point exactly towards each other, being separated sometimes two inches, sometimes even more than six. Sometimes the tips point backwards, and sometimes distinctly forwards.“The ‘Aoul,’ as the Somalis call this Antelope, is almost ubiquitous in Somaliland. I have seen it within a few hours of Bulhar and Berbera on the maritime plain, whilst in 1896 we observed herds of it on the prairies to the south of the Elmas Mountains. Once in the mountains, whether in the ranges of the Gadabürsi country or of the Golis, you lose it and do not find it again, unless it be in some interlying plain, tillyou reach the region of the Haud. On the great prairies of the Haud I have seen an astonishing number of great herds from a single point of view. When travelling with Mr. E. N. Buxton and Mr. A. E. Leatham we first came on to the great Marar Prairie these Gazelles were seen in incredible quantities, and not having been hunted by even the Midgans (who devoted their time to pursuing the Oryx with their dogs and poisoned arrows) I found them astonishingly tame, so much so that after securing two or three specimens I never had the heart to betray their confidence, and have often walked past them in the thin bush that lines the northern edge of the plain within 20 paces, and on some occasions so near that I could almost have touched them with a long stick. At such times they have just lifted their heads till I had passed, and on looking back they had resumed feeding within a minute. I mention this as it is so very much in contrast with my experience when crossing the Toyoo Plain to the east in December 1896, when, though there were vast numbers of them, they were most extraordinarily wild and went off full gallop if you came within 400 yards of them. This was no doubt the result of having been shot at by English shikaris, who often take this route into Ogaden. On the Ogaden side of the Haud we found them frequently both in the long dhur grass, the home of the Dibatag (Ammodorcas clarkei), and also in open glades in the regular bush. When we were west of Milmil we came across these Gazelles occasionally till we reached the neighbourhood of the Tug Sulul; but I do not remember seeing them again in the more broken country that lies west of this Tug, and which continues practically hilly right up to the mountains of Bourka. From what I have been able to observe of the habits of this Antelope, I should think the traveller might expect to find it in any part of this corner of Africa where there are grass plains or where the bush is level and not too thick. It seems to thrive as well at sea-level as on the Haud at an elevation of 5000 feet.“In the larger herds (say from 40 to 150 or more) the sexes are generally mixed, with a large preponderance of females. Some large herds are all females. Small herds may be either mixed, or all females, or all bucks. I do not call to mind having seen more than 14 old bucks alone together. The solitaires are, as a rule, old bucks, though you do not often see one quite alone at any distance from a herd. I have seen Speke’s Gazelle on the Toyoo Plain feeding in the same herd as the Aoul, and the latter are frequently in the company of the Hartebeest. The ‘Aoul’ is, in my opinion, identical with the Ariel, which is common in Abyssinia and the neighbourhood of Suakin, but it appears to diminish in size somewhat to the north.â€
“Soemmerring’s Antelope is widely distributed throughout Somaliland. In the following notes my remarks are confined to my own personal observations of this species during two expeditions. The first was in the north-western corner of the British Somali Protectorate, the second across the Haud into Ogaden and the country south of Harrar frequented by the Rer Mellingowr Ogaden. The average height of an adult male Soemmerring’s Gazelle is about 35 inches at the shoulder, with a girth behind the elbow of 32 inches. Unfortunately I never weighed any specimen. In colour they are amongst the most beautiful of the African Antelopes, and to see large herds of them moving about as the first bright gleams of the sun in the early morning touch them is one of the prettiest of the many charming sights that meets the traveller’s eye in this part of Africa. Their colour is an extremely rich clear pale orange on the body, spread evenly over the back, flanks, and running in narrowing bands down the four legs; this colour is set off by a wide margin of snowy white, which not only covers the whole of the belly and inner side of the legs, but which cuts back into the rump, so that when the Gazelle is standing with its tail towards you, you see little else but the snowy stern. Their heads are beautifully marked, the pervading tint forming the groundwork being of a slightly browner and fainter hue than the body, relieved by an almost black band running down from between the horns to the nostrils, and covering both sides of the nose and facial ridge; a short band, also very distinct, of the same colour runs down the tear-mark below the eye. In old bucks these dark stripes are often very nearly jet-black; in younger males and females the colouring varies from pale to dark brown. The throat is sometimes white, and when not altogether so, generally wears a more or less distinct crescent of white about two-thirds down the lower part of the underside of the neck. Both males and females carry heavy horns for animals of their size. The female’s horns are quite as long as, and perhaps slightly longer in proportion to their age than, the male’s, but they are weaker and less regular, though almost as deeply notched and annulated as in the buck. In general form they may be described as lyrate in a front view; the tips often point exactly towards each other, being separated sometimes two inches, sometimes even more than six. Sometimes the tips point backwards, and sometimes distinctly forwards.
“The ‘Aoul,’ as the Somalis call this Antelope, is almost ubiquitous in Somaliland. I have seen it within a few hours of Bulhar and Berbera on the maritime plain, whilst in 1896 we observed herds of it on the prairies to the south of the Elmas Mountains. Once in the mountains, whether in the ranges of the Gadabürsi country or of the Golis, you lose it and do not find it again, unless it be in some interlying plain, tillyou reach the region of the Haud. On the great prairies of the Haud I have seen an astonishing number of great herds from a single point of view. When travelling with Mr. E. N. Buxton and Mr. A. E. Leatham we first came on to the great Marar Prairie these Gazelles were seen in incredible quantities, and not having been hunted by even the Midgans (who devoted their time to pursuing the Oryx with their dogs and poisoned arrows) I found them astonishingly tame, so much so that after securing two or three specimens I never had the heart to betray their confidence, and have often walked past them in the thin bush that lines the northern edge of the plain within 20 paces, and on some occasions so near that I could almost have touched them with a long stick. At such times they have just lifted their heads till I had passed, and on looking back they had resumed feeding within a minute. I mention this as it is so very much in contrast with my experience when crossing the Toyoo Plain to the east in December 1896, when, though there were vast numbers of them, they were most extraordinarily wild and went off full gallop if you came within 400 yards of them. This was no doubt the result of having been shot at by English shikaris, who often take this route into Ogaden. On the Ogaden side of the Haud we found them frequently both in the long dhur grass, the home of the Dibatag (Ammodorcas clarkei), and also in open glades in the regular bush. When we were west of Milmil we came across these Gazelles occasionally till we reached the neighbourhood of the Tug Sulul; but I do not remember seeing them again in the more broken country that lies west of this Tug, and which continues practically hilly right up to the mountains of Bourka. From what I have been able to observe of the habits of this Antelope, I should think the traveller might expect to find it in any part of this corner of Africa where there are grass plains or where the bush is level and not too thick. It seems to thrive as well at sea-level as on the Haud at an elevation of 5000 feet.
“In the larger herds (say from 40 to 150 or more) the sexes are generally mixed, with a large preponderance of females. Some large herds are all females. Small herds may be either mixed, or all females, or all bucks. I do not call to mind having seen more than 14 old bucks alone together. The solitaires are, as a rule, old bucks, though you do not often see one quite alone at any distance from a herd. I have seen Speke’s Gazelle on the Toyoo Plain feeding in the same herd as the Aoul, and the latter are frequently in the company of the Hartebeest. The ‘Aoul’ is, in my opinion, identical with the Ariel, which is common in Abyssinia and the neighbourhood of Suakin, but it appears to diminish in size somewhat to the north.â€
Of the typical form of this Antelope the British Museum possesses an adult male specimen (mounted, but not exhibited), obtained by Esler in the Bogos country, and purchased in 1873, also a female from Sennaar received from the Stockholm Museum, in exchange, in 1846—probably one of those collected by Hedenborg. It has likewise a young male from Abyssinia procured by Rüppell, the original discoverer of the species, and received in exchange from the Frankfort Museum; a skull of a male obtained by Mr. W. Jesseduring the Abyssinian Expedition; and several heads and skins from Suakin collected and presented by Major W. Sparkes, of the Welsh Regiment, now attached to the Egyptian army.
Of the southern subspecies,Gazella soemmerringi berberana, the National Collection possesses a stuffed adult male specimen obtained on the Shebeyli River, Somaliland, and presented by Col. Arthur Paget, who has also given to the Museum two heads (male and female) from the Bourdap Mountains in the same country. In the British Museum there are likewise a mounted head and skins of both sexes of this Antelope collected by Capt. Swayne in Somaliland and presented by Sclater.
The first living examples of Soemmerring’s Gazelle received by the Zoological Society were purchased of a dealer in August 1867. The announcement of their arrival, which appeared in the ‘Proceedings’ for November 14th of that year, was accompanied by a beautiful lithographic plate of the young pair drawn by Mr. Wolf. In 1871 a fine young male example of this Antelope was presented by Mr. Charles McIver, Jun., with the information that the specimen had been obtained in the desert on the Red Sea coast about 100 miles south of Suez. If this was correct, the range of this Antelope would appear to extend considerably further north than we know of upon any other authority. Other specimens of this Antelope were obtained in 1877, 1879, 1892, and 1895, including a fine pair from Suakin presented by Col. Holled Smith, C.B., in July 1892. At the present moment, also, there is a fine male of this Antelope in the Society’s Gardens, obtained by purchase in 1897.
Our representation of this Antelope (Plate LXX.) was drawn by Mr. Wolf under Sir Victor Brooke’s directions, and put upon the stone by Smit. It is that of an adult male example, but we unfortunately do not know from what specimen it was taken.
September,1898.
THE BOOK OF ANTELOPES, PL. LXXIJ. Smit del. et lith.Hanhart imp.The Red-necked Gazelle.GAZELLA RUFICOLLIS.Published by R. H. Porter.
THE BOOK OF ANTELOPES, PL. LXXI
J. Smit del. et lith.
Hanhart imp.
The Red-necked Gazelle.
GAZELLA RUFICOLLIS.
Published by R. H. Porter.
Antilope dama,Licht.Abh. Ak. Berl. 1824, p. 226 (1826) (necPall.);id.Darst. Säug. pls. iii. (ad. & jr. ♂), iv. (♀ & jr.) (1827);Cretzschm.Atl. Rüpp. Reis. pp. 39 & 43, pls. xiv.-xvi. (1826) (Abyssinia);H. Sm.Griff. An. K. v. p. 331 (1827) (partim);Hempr. & Ehr.Symb. Phys., Mamm. pl. vi. (1828), text (1833) (Dongola);Rüpp.N. Wirb. Abyss. p. 25 (1835);Waterh.Cat. Mamm. Mus. Z. S. (2) p. 41 (1838);Rüpp.Verz. Senck. Mus. p. 38 (1842);Sund.K. Vet.-Ak. Handl. 1842, p. 201 (1843);Wagn.Schr. Säug., Suppl. iv. p. 408 (1844), v. p. 404 (1855);Schinz, Syn. Mamm. ii. p. 424 (1845);id.Mon. Antil. p. 25, pi. xxvi. (1848);Gieb.Säug. p. 308 (1853);Heugl.Ant. u. Büff. N.O.-Afr. (N. Act. Leop. xxx. pt. 2) p. 6 (1863);Hartm.Z. Ges. Erdk. Berl. iii. p. 253 (1868);Heugl.N.O.-Afr. ii. p. 103 (1877).Gazella dama,Fitz.SB. Wien, lix. pt. 1, p. 158 (1869);Brooke, P. Z. S. 1873, p. 547;Jent.Cat. Ost. Leyd. Mus. (Mus. Pays-Bas, ix.) p. 137 (1887);id.Cat. Mamm.Leyd.Mus. (op. cit. xi.) p. 169 (1892);Lyd.Horns and Hoofs, p. 235 (1893).Antilope ruficollis,H. Sm.Griff. An. K. iv. p. 205 (1827).Gazella ruficollis,Gray, Ann. Mag. N. H. (1) xviii. p. 231 (1846);id.Knowsl. Men. p. 5 (1850);id.P. Z. S. 1850, p. 114;id.Cat. Ung. B. M. p. 60 (1862);Temm.Esq. Zool. Guin. p. 193 (1853);Gray, Cat. Rum. B. M. p. 39 (1872);id.Hand-l. Rum. B. M. p. 108 (1873);Ward, Horn Meas. (1) p. 117 (1892), (2) p. 159 (1896).Antilope (Dama) addra,Benn.P. Z. S. 1833, p. 2;id.Tr. Z. S. i. p. 7 (1833);Less.Compl. Buff. x. p. 288 (1836);Gerv.Dict. Sci. Nat., Suppl. i. p. 261 (1840);Reichenb.Säug. iii. p. 116, pi. xxxv. fig. 207 (1845).Antilope dama, var.orientalis,Sund.Pecora, K. Vet.-Ak. Handl. 1845, p. 266 (1847);id.Hornschuch’s Transl., Arch. Skand. Beitr. p. 262;id.Reprint, p. 82 (1848).Vernacular Names:—Addrain Dongola (Hemprich & Ehrenberg);ArielorRīlin Arabic (Heuglin).
Antilope dama,Licht.Abh. Ak. Berl. 1824, p. 226 (1826) (necPall.);id.Darst. Säug. pls. iii. (ad. & jr. ♂), iv. (♀ & jr.) (1827);Cretzschm.Atl. Rüpp. Reis. pp. 39 & 43, pls. xiv.-xvi. (1826) (Abyssinia);H. Sm.Griff. An. K. v. p. 331 (1827) (partim);Hempr. & Ehr.Symb. Phys., Mamm. pl. vi. (1828), text (1833) (Dongola);Rüpp.N. Wirb. Abyss. p. 25 (1835);Waterh.Cat. Mamm. Mus. Z. S. (2) p. 41 (1838);Rüpp.Verz. Senck. Mus. p. 38 (1842);Sund.K. Vet.-Ak. Handl. 1842, p. 201 (1843);Wagn.Schr. Säug., Suppl. iv. p. 408 (1844), v. p. 404 (1855);Schinz, Syn. Mamm. ii. p. 424 (1845);id.Mon. Antil. p. 25, pi. xxvi. (1848);Gieb.Säug. p. 308 (1853);Heugl.Ant. u. Büff. N.O.-Afr. (N. Act. Leop. xxx. pt. 2) p. 6 (1863);Hartm.Z. Ges. Erdk. Berl. iii. p. 253 (1868);Heugl.N.O.-Afr. ii. p. 103 (1877).
Gazella dama,Fitz.SB. Wien, lix. pt. 1, p. 158 (1869);Brooke, P. Z. S. 1873, p. 547;Jent.Cat. Ost. Leyd. Mus. (Mus. Pays-Bas, ix.) p. 137 (1887);id.Cat. Mamm.Leyd.Mus. (op. cit. xi.) p. 169 (1892);Lyd.Horns and Hoofs, p. 235 (1893).
Antilope ruficollis,H. Sm.Griff. An. K. iv. p. 205 (1827).
Gazella ruficollis,Gray, Ann. Mag. N. H. (1) xviii. p. 231 (1846);id.Knowsl. Men. p. 5 (1850);id.P. Z. S. 1850, p. 114;id.Cat. Ung. B. M. p. 60 (1862);Temm.Esq. Zool. Guin. p. 193 (1853);Gray, Cat. Rum. B. M. p. 39 (1872);id.Hand-l. Rum. B. M. p. 108 (1873);Ward, Horn Meas. (1) p. 117 (1892), (2) p. 159 (1896).
Antilope (Dama) addra,Benn.P. Z. S. 1833, p. 2;id.Tr. Z. S. i. p. 7 (1833);Less.Compl. Buff. x. p. 288 (1836);Gerv.Dict. Sci. Nat., Suppl. i. p. 261 (1840);Reichenb.Säug. iii. p. 116, pi. xxxv. fig. 207 (1845).
Antilope dama, var.orientalis,Sund.Pecora, K. Vet.-Ak. Handl. 1845, p. 266 (1847);id.Hornschuch’s Transl., Arch. Skand. Beitr. p. 262;id.Reprint, p. 82 (1848).
Vernacular Names:—Addrain Dongola (Hemprich & Ehrenberg);ArielorRīlin Arabic (Heuglin).
Size large, form graceful. Colour nearly all over white, the only parts which are of the usual rufous shade being the neck and anterior back, the sides and rump gradually shading off into white. Head and ears white, a faint rufous tinge on the centre line of the face. Neck deep rufous all round, except for a white spot on its anterior surface. Lower part of fore legs faintly rufous, rest of limbs and whole of tail white. Knee-brushes present.
Skull, basal length in an immature male 8·85 inches, greatest breadth 4·15, muzzle to orbit 5·3.
Horns of male thick, curved strongly backwards below, then hooked inwards and forwards above. Horns of female almost equally long, but comparatively thin, slightly curved, and not hooked terminally.
Hab.Dongola and Sennaar.
Hab.Dongola and Sennaar.
In concluding our account of the true Gazelles we come, at the end of the list, to a small but attractive group of three species which are closely related to one another, and take each other’s places as representatives in the different countries where they have been found. These three Antelopes are certainly nearly allied, and it is by no means improbable that, although all the accessible specimens known to us are distinguishable, intermediate forms will ultimately be found to link them together. It is especially likely that this will prove to be the case with the two western species,G. damaandG. mhorr. All the three species of this group are exceedingly rare in collections, and we have been able to obtain but very little information about them, and very little material for comparison, the British Museum being badly off for specimens of all of them. It is to be hoped, however, that the prospective opening of the Soudan, by France on one side and England on the other, will lead to an increase of our knowledge of this group of Antelopes, and of the many other interesting forms of the great North-African desert.
We will commence our account of these three Gazelles with the one which inhabits the eastern part of the Soudan, where our own countrymen may soon be expected to meet with it.
The first notice of the existence of a species of this form in North-eastern Africa appears to have been given by Lichtenstein, who read a paper on the Antelopes of Northern Africa before the Academy of Sciences of Berlin on March 11th, 1824. Amongst the four Antelopes discussed in this learnedtreatise, which was mainly based upon the specimens sent to the Royal Collections by the well-known travellers Hemprich and Ehrenberg from Dongola and Sennaar, were several representatives of the present species which Lichtenstein not unnaturally referred to theAntilope damaof Pallas. The same course was pursued by Hemprich and Ehrenberg themselves, who shortly afterwards published full descriptions and figures of it in their ‘Symbolæ Physicæ.’ They inform us that they met with specimens of this Antelope in Southern Dongola in the month of July 1822, and hunted it along with the Addax and Leucoryx, which occurred in the same district. They found it plentiful in herds and easy of access, even without the use of horses. Like the other species mentioned, it feeds principally on the acacias. They did not meet with this Antelope until they arrived at 20° N. lat. going south, after which they found it abundant. The Arabs, who much esteem the flesh and sell it when dried, call it “Addra.†It did not appear to approach the banks of the Nile, but kept entirely to the desert and to the valleys which traverse it, especially to the Chor-el-Lebben.
Not far from the same date another distinguished German traveller and naturalist, Rüppell, whose name we have already had frequent occasion to mention, also met with this Antelope. Rüppell sent his specimens to Frankfort-on-the-Main, where they were described and figured by Cretzschmar on the part of the Senckenbergian Society of Naturalists in 1826. Cretzschmar also referred these specimens toAntilope dama; but Hamilton Smith, after examining them in the Senckenbergian Museum, came to the correct conclusion that they belonged to a different species, on which he proposed to bestow the nameAntilope ruficollis. We must therefore useGazella ruficollisas the correct scientific designation of this animal. A third German naturalist, Heuglin, who has recorded his experiences of this species, tells us that he met with it, generally in pairs or small families, and often mixed up with herds of other Gazelles, in the desert districts of Dongola and Kordofan, where it is known to the Arabs as the “Adra†or “Ledra.†From this native name, Bennett, in his memoir onGazella mhorr, to which we shall presently refer, proposed to call the present speciesAntilope addra, but, as has been already stated, Hamilton Smith’s name has precedence.
Gazella ruficollisis, we regret to say, represented in the British Museum by two specimens only, neither of which is suitable for exhibition in theGallery. One of these is a stuffed female from Sennaar, received from the Stockholm Museum, in exchange, in 1846, and the other an imperfect skin of a male from Kordofan, purchased of a dealer in 1848.
We are not aware that this Gazelle has ever been brought to Europe alive.
Our figure (Plate LXXI.) has been drawn from the stuffed female in the British Museum.
September,1898.
Le Nanguer,Buff.Hist. Nat. xii. p. 213, pl. xxxiv. (1764), whenceAntilope dama,Pall.Misc. Zool. p. 5 (1766);id.Spic. Zool. fasc. i. p. 8 (1767), fasc. xii. p. 13 (1777);Müll.Natursyst. Suppl. p. 53 (1776);Erxl.Syst. R. A. p. 280 (1777);Zimm.Spec. Zool. Geogr. p. 541 (1777);id.Geogr. Gesch. ii. p. 114 (1780);Gatt.Brev. Zool. i. p. 81 (1780);Herm.Tabl. Affin. Anim. p. 108 (1783);Schreb.Säug. pl. cclxiv. (1785);Bodd.Elench. Anim. p. 141 (1785);Gmel.Linn. S. N. i. p. 183 (1788);Kerr, Linn. An. K. p. 308 (1792);Donnd.Zool. Beytr. i. p. 623 (1792);Link, Beytr. Nat. ii. p. 98 (1795);Bechst.Syst. Uebers. vierf. Th. ii. p. 643 (1800);Shaw, Gen. Zool. ii. pt. 2, p. 359 (1801);Turt.Linn. S. N. i. p. 112 (1802);G. Cuv.Dict. Sci. Nat. ii. p. 243 (1804);Desm.N. Dict. d’H. N. (1) xv. p. 334, xxiv. Tabl. p. 32 (1804);Tiedem.Zool. i. p. 408 (1808);Licht.Mag. nat. Freund. vi. p. 170 (1814);G. Fisch.Zoogn. iii. p. 409 (1814);Afz.N. Act. Ups. vii. p. 220 (1815);Desm.N. Dict. d’H. N. (2) ii. p. 189 (1816);G. Cuv.R. A. i. p. 263 (1817);Goldf.Schr. Säug. v. p. 1199 (1818);Schinz, Cuv. Thierr. i. p. 394 (1821);Desm.Mamm. ii. p. 458 (1822);H. Sm.Griff. An. K. iv. p. 206, v. p. 330 (1827);Less.Man. Mamm. p. 375 (1827);J. B. Fisch.Syn. Mamm. p. 463 (1829);Less.Compl. Buff. x. p. 288 (1836);Oken, Allg. Nat. vii. p. 1375 (1838);Laurill.Dict. Univ. d’H. N. i. p. 616 (1839);Less.N. Tabl. R. A., Mamm. p. 177 (1842);Reichenb.Säug. iii. p. 115 (1845).Cerophorus (Cervicapra) dama,Blainv.Bull. Soc. Philom. 1816, p. 75.Cemas dama,Oken, Lehrb. Nat. iii. pt. 2, p. 741 (1816).Gazella dama,Gray, Ann. Mag. N. H. (1) xviii. p. 231 (1846);id.Knowsl. Men. p. 5 (1850);id.P. Z. S. 1850, p. 114;Scl.List An. Z. S. (8) p. 142 (1883);Kohl, Ann. Mus. Wien, i. p. 79, pl. v. fig. 2 (skull) (1886) (partim);Ward, Horn Meas. (1) p. 116 (1892), (2) p. 158 (1896).Antilope (Dama) nanguer,Benn.P. Z. S. 1833, p. 2;id.Trans. Z. S. i. p. 7 (1833);Gerv.Dict. Sci. Nat. Suppl. i. p. 261 (1840);Less.N. Tabl. R. A., Mamm. p. 177 (1842).Gazella nanguer,Fitz.SB. Wien, lix. pt. 1, p. 158 (1869).Antilope mhorr, var. β,Wagn.Schr. Säug. Suppl. iv. p. 410 (1844), v. p. 404 (1855).Gazella mohr,Gray, Cat. Rum. B. M. p. 39 (1872) (partim);Brooke, P. Z. S. 1873, p. 648 (partim).Antilope dama, var.occidentalis,Sund.Pecora, K. Vet.-Ak. Handl. 1845, p. 266 (1847);id.Hornschuch’s Transl., Arch. Skand. Beitr. ii. p. 262; Reprint, p. 82 (1848).Vernacular Name:—Nanguerin Senegal (Buffon).
Le Nanguer,Buff.Hist. Nat. xii. p. 213, pl. xxxiv. (1764), whence
Antilope dama,Pall.Misc. Zool. p. 5 (1766);id.Spic. Zool. fasc. i. p. 8 (1767), fasc. xii. p. 13 (1777);Müll.Natursyst. Suppl. p. 53 (1776);Erxl.Syst. R. A. p. 280 (1777);Zimm.Spec. Zool. Geogr. p. 541 (1777);id.Geogr. Gesch. ii. p. 114 (1780);Gatt.Brev. Zool. i. p. 81 (1780);Herm.Tabl. Affin. Anim. p. 108 (1783);Schreb.Säug. pl. cclxiv. (1785);Bodd.Elench. Anim. p. 141 (1785);Gmel.Linn. S. N. i. p. 183 (1788);Kerr, Linn. An. K. p. 308 (1792);Donnd.Zool. Beytr. i. p. 623 (1792);Link, Beytr. Nat. ii. p. 98 (1795);Bechst.Syst. Uebers. vierf. Th. ii. p. 643 (1800);Shaw, Gen. Zool. ii. pt. 2, p. 359 (1801);Turt.Linn. S. N. i. p. 112 (1802);G. Cuv.Dict. Sci. Nat. ii. p. 243 (1804);Desm.N. Dict. d’H. N. (1) xv. p. 334, xxiv. Tabl. p. 32 (1804);Tiedem.Zool. i. p. 408 (1808);Licht.Mag. nat. Freund. vi. p. 170 (1814);G. Fisch.Zoogn. iii. p. 409 (1814);Afz.N. Act. Ups. vii. p. 220 (1815);Desm.N. Dict. d’H. N. (2) ii. p. 189 (1816);G. Cuv.R. A. i. p. 263 (1817);Goldf.Schr. Säug. v. p. 1199 (1818);Schinz, Cuv. Thierr. i. p. 394 (1821);Desm.Mamm. ii. p. 458 (1822);H. Sm.Griff. An. K. iv. p. 206, v. p. 330 (1827);Less.Man. Mamm. p. 375 (1827);J. B. Fisch.Syn. Mamm. p. 463 (1829);Less.Compl. Buff. x. p. 288 (1836);Oken, Allg. Nat. vii. p. 1375 (1838);Laurill.Dict. Univ. d’H. N. i. p. 616 (1839);Less.N. Tabl. R. A., Mamm. p. 177 (1842);Reichenb.Säug. iii. p. 115 (1845).
Cerophorus (Cervicapra) dama,Blainv.Bull. Soc. Philom. 1816, p. 75.
Cemas dama,Oken, Lehrb. Nat. iii. pt. 2, p. 741 (1816).
Gazella dama,Gray, Ann. Mag. N. H. (1) xviii. p. 231 (1846);id.Knowsl. Men. p. 5 (1850);id.P. Z. S. 1850, p. 114;Scl.List An. Z. S. (8) p. 142 (1883);Kohl, Ann. Mus. Wien, i. p. 79, pl. v. fig. 2 (skull) (1886) (partim);Ward, Horn Meas. (1) p. 116 (1892), (2) p. 158 (1896).
Antilope (Dama) nanguer,Benn.P. Z. S. 1833, p. 2;id.Trans. Z. S. i. p. 7 (1833);Gerv.Dict. Sci. Nat. Suppl. i. p. 261 (1840);Less.N. Tabl. R. A., Mamm. p. 177 (1842).
Gazella nanguer,Fitz.SB. Wien, lix. pt. 1, p. 158 (1869).
Antilope mhorr, var. β,Wagn.Schr. Säug. Suppl. iv. p. 410 (1844), v. p. 404 (1855).
Gazella mohr,Gray, Cat. Rum. B. M. p. 39 (1872) (partim);Brooke, P. Z. S. 1873, p. 648 (partim).
Antilope dama, var.occidentalis,Sund.Pecora, K. Vet.-Ak. Handl. 1845, p. 266 (1847);id.Hornschuch’s Transl., Arch. Skand. Beitr. ii. p. 262; Reprint, p. 82 (1848).
Vernacular Name:—Nanguerin Senegal (Buffon).
Size about as inG. ruficollisandG. mhorr. Markings throughout very much as in the next species,Gazella mhorr, but the white of the rump-patch, although less than inG. ruficollis, where it spreads all over the body, is considerably more extended, uniting on the thighs with the white of the sides of the belly, and therefore cutting off the dark colour of the outer sides of the hind limbs from that of the back. Other characters very much as inG. mhorr.
Hab.Senegal and Gambia.
Hab.Senegal and Gambia.
Passing now to the western end of Northern Africa we find this group of Antelopes represented by the “Dama†Gazelle, a species which has been known to naturalists ever since the time of Buffon. By him it was described and figured in the twelfth volume of his ‘Histoire Naturelle,’ under the name of “Le Nanguer†the appellation stated by Adanson to be given to it in Senegal. Upon the “Nanguer†of Buffon, Pallas in 1766 established hisAntilope dama, so that there can be no question as toGazella damabeing the correct name of the representative species of this group in Senegal. But whether Pallas was right in assigning the term “dama†of Pliny to the present animal is a matter open to much question. The late Mr. E. T. Bennett has discussed this subject in his article on the Mhorr Antelope published in the first volume of the Zoological Society’s ‘Transactions,’ to which we may refer our readers. But there can be little doubt that the ordinary “Dama†of the Romans was not the present animal, but the well-known Fallow-Deer,Cervus dama.
For many years the naturalists following Buffon and Pallas gave us no further information concerning this Antelope, and merely copied what their predecessors had said of it. Sundevall, in his well-known treatise on the “Pecora,†united the three members of this group together under “Antilopedama,†designating the forms of Morocco and Senegal as “var.occidentalis,†and stating that he had examined a specimen of it in the Frankfort Museum. If the locality and the references given by Rüppell in his catalogue of the Senckenbergian Collection are correct, the specimen in that collection must be the “Mhorr†of Morocco, and not the “Nanguer†of Senegal. We are told by Gray (‘Gleanings from the Knowsley Menagerie,’ p. 5) that the Frankfort specimen was originally received from the Zoological Society of London.
Among the numerous Antelopes procured from the Gambia for the Derby Menagerie by Lord Derby’s agent Whitfield were several examples of this species. Dr. Gray, in the letterpress to the ‘Gleanings,’ tells us that at the time of his writing (April 1850) there was a fine male ofGazella damaliving at Knowsley, and that a female, procured by the same collector, which died on its passage home, was preserved in the British Museum. This specimen, a skin of an immature animal, is still in the Museum, to which it was presented by the Earl of Derby, and, strange to say, is still the only example of this Antelope in the National Collection.
In 1865 a pair of this Gazelle (as recorded in the Society’s ‘Proceedings,’ 1865, p. 675) were acquired by the Zoological Society of London, from the Zoological Gardens, Antwerp. About the same period Sclater recollects having seen other examples of this Antelope in the Antwerp Gardens, but does not remember to have noticed them in any other of the continental Gardens which he has visited from time to time for many years.
In some MS. notes on the Antelopes of the Gambia which Sir Robert Llewelyn, K.C.M.G., the Governor of the Colony, has kindly sent to Sclater, “the Springbuck,†or “Kongko-tong†of the Mandingos, is stated to be “common all over the south bank of the river.†This “Springbuck†can be hardly any other Antelope than the present species. If such is the case, it is remarkable that a beautiful animal, so abundant in a British Colony a few days’ steam from our shores, should be still so little known in our Museums and Menageries.
September,1898.
THE BOOK OF ANTELOPES, PL. LXXII.Wolf del. J. Smit lith.Hanhart imp.The Mhorr Gazelle.GAZELLA MHORR.Published by R. H. Porter.
THE BOOK OF ANTELOPES, PL. LXXII.
Wolf del. J. Smit lith.
Hanhart imp.
The Mhorr Gazelle.
GAZELLA MHORR.
Published by R. H. Porter.
Nanguer,F. Cuv.H. N. Mamm. (fol.) iv. livr. 67 (1833) (necBuff.).Antilope (Dama) mhorr,Benn.P. Z. S. 1833, p. 1 (Mogador);id.Tr. Z. S. i. p. 7, pl. i. (1833);Gerv.Dict. Sci. Nat. Supp. i. p. 261 (1840).Antilope mhorr,Waterh.Cat. Mamm. Mus. Z. S. (2) p. 41 (1838);Rüpp.Verz. Senck. Mus. p. 38 (1842);Wagn.Schr. Säug. Supp. iv. p. 410 (1844) (partim);Reichenb.Säug. iii. p. 116, pl. xxxv. fig. 212 (1845);Schinz, Syn. Mamm. ii. p. 426 (1845);id.Mon. Antil. p. 25, pl. xxvi. (1848).Nanger mhorr,Lataste, Mamm. Barb. (Act. Soc. Linn. Bord. xxxix.) sep. cop. p. 173 (1885).Antilope mhoks,Less.Compl. Buff. x. p. 288 (1836).Gazella mohr,Gray, Ann. Mag. N. H. (1) xviii. p. 231 (1846);id.Knowsl. Men. p. 5 (1850);id.P. Z. S. 1850, p. 114;id.Cat. Ung. B. M. p. 59 (1852);Gerr.Cat. Bones Mamm. B. M. p. 233 (1862);Fitz.SB. Wien, lix. pt. 1, p. 158 (1869);Gray, Cat. Rum. B. M. p. 39 (1872);id.Hand-l. Rum. B. M. p. 108 (1873);Brooke, P. Z. S. 1873, p. 548 (in part.);Kohl, Ann. Mus. Wien, i. p. 78 (1886);Flow. & Lyd.Mamm. p. 342 (1891);Jent.Cat. Mamm. Leyd. Mus. (Mus. Pays-Bas, xi.) p. 168 (1892);Lyd.Horns and Hoofs, p. 235 (1893).Gazella mohrr,Temm.Esq. Zool. Guin. p. 193 (1853).Vernacular Name:—Mhorr, in Morocco (Bennett).
Nanguer,F. Cuv.H. N. Mamm. (fol.) iv. livr. 67 (1833) (necBuff.).
Antilope (Dama) mhorr,Benn.P. Z. S. 1833, p. 1 (Mogador);id.Tr. Z. S. i. p. 7, pl. i. (1833);Gerv.Dict. Sci. Nat. Supp. i. p. 261 (1840).
Antilope mhorr,Waterh.Cat. Mamm. Mus. Z. S. (2) p. 41 (1838);Rüpp.Verz. Senck. Mus. p. 38 (1842);Wagn.Schr. Säug. Supp. iv. p. 410 (1844) (partim);Reichenb.Säug. iii. p. 116, pl. xxxv. fig. 212 (1845);Schinz, Syn. Mamm. ii. p. 426 (1845);id.Mon. Antil. p. 25, pl. xxvi. (1848).
Nanger mhorr,Lataste, Mamm. Barb. (Act. Soc. Linn. Bord. xxxix.) sep. cop. p. 173 (1885).
Antilope mhoks,Less.Compl. Buff. x. p. 288 (1836).
Gazella mohr,Gray, Ann. Mag. N. H. (1) xviii. p. 231 (1846);id.Knowsl. Men. p. 5 (1850);id.P. Z. S. 1850, p. 114;id.Cat. Ung. B. M. p. 59 (1852);Gerr.Cat. Bones Mamm. B. M. p. 233 (1862);Fitz.SB. Wien, lix. pt. 1, p. 158 (1869);Gray, Cat. Rum. B. M. p. 39 (1872);id.Hand-l. Rum. B. M. p. 108 (1873);Brooke, P. Z. S. 1873, p. 548 (in part.);Kohl, Ann. Mus. Wien, i. p. 78 (1886);Flow. & Lyd.Mamm. p. 342 (1891);Jent.Cat. Mamm. Leyd. Mus. (Mus. Pays-Bas, xi.) p. 168 (1892);Lyd.Horns and Hoofs, p. 235 (1893).
Gazella mohrr,Temm.Esq. Zool. Guin. p. 193 (1853).
Vernacular Name:—Mhorr, in Morocco (Bennett).
Size large, height of a male not fully adult 35½ inches. General colour dull rufous or rufous-fawn, becoming a deeper and richer rufous anteriorly. Face, cheeks, and chin whitish or whitish-fawn, the forehead beneath the horns and an inconspicuous dark cheek-streak blackish. Neck deep rufous, a conspicuous white spot on its front surface. No dark or lightlateral bands present, nor pygal bands. White of belly extending rather high up on the sides, the line of white passing across the outer sides of the forearms on to the chest, where it contrasts conspicuously with the dark red of the neck. White of rump much as inG. soemmerringi, including the tail, and extending angularly forwards on each side into the body-colour, but not uniting with the belly-colour across the outer sides of the thighs. All the boundary-lines between the rufous and white well defined. Knee-brushes small. Tail white, a small brownish or fawn-coloured tuft at its extremity.
Horns of male thick, strongly bent backwards below, recurved upwards and forwards above.
Female.Similar to the male, but horns shorter and thinner.
Hab.South-western Morocco.
Hab.South-western Morocco.
The last species of the group, and also of the genusGazella, is the Mhorr, the Moroccan representative of the Dama Gazelle, to which, as we have already stated, it is very closely allied. Indeed, we have not inconsiderable doubts as to their real specific distinctness. Southern Morocco and Senegal approach so nearly together that it is not likelyprima faciethat the Gazelles of their deserts would be specifically different.
The well-known zoologist, Mr. E. T. Bennett, who was Secretary to the Zoological Society of London in its early days, was the first describer of the “M’horr†as distinct fromGazella dama, and brought his account of it before a Meeting of that Society on January 8th, 1833. His full memoir on this subject was afterwards published in the Society’s ‘Transactions,’ where it occupies the first pages of the first volume of that standard work.
Bennett’s observations were made on two specimens of this Gazelle which were presented, while living, to the Zoological Society by Mr. E. W. A. Drummond-Hay, C.M.Z.S., then British Consul-General at Tangier, for whom they had been procured by Mr. E. W. Willshire, C.M.Z.S., British Vice-Consul at Mogador. Bennett also had before him a third specimen in the shape of an imperfect skin of this Antelope, also presented to the Society by Mr. Drummond-Hay. All these specimens are stated to have been brought “from the territories of the Sheik of Wednoon, twelve days’ journey inland from the latter placeâ€; but, in spite of the expression “inland,†we suppose “Ouednoon,†as it should be more correctly written, to be the valleyof the River Noon in the extreme southern coast district of Morocco, opposite the Canary Islands.
In the article in question, which is accompanied by an excellent coloured figure of the “M’hoor,†Bennett informs us that this Antelope “is regarded in the kingdom of Morocco as an exceedingly rare animal,†and continues as follows:—
“Mr. Willshire states that the one earliest obtained by him was the first individual of the race which had been seen in Mogador. It is highly esteemed, according to Mr. Drummond-Hay, on account of its producing the bezoars, so precious in Oriental medicine, which are known in Morocco as the Baid-al-Mhorr, or eggs of the M’horr. Mr. Hay conjectures that Baid-Mhorr may possibly be the source whence, rather than from the Persian Pazahar, the name of Bezoar has sprung. It is pretended that two of these calculous concretions are met with in the intestines of every individual of the race, but none were found in that which died in the Society’s collection, and which, as is stated by Mr. Spooner and Mr. Langstaff, who examined it after death, agreed in its visceral anatomy with the Antelopes in general.â€
“Mr. Willshire states that the one earliest obtained by him was the first individual of the race which had been seen in Mogador. It is highly esteemed, according to Mr. Drummond-Hay, on account of its producing the bezoars, so precious in Oriental medicine, which are known in Morocco as the Baid-al-Mhorr, or eggs of the M’horr. Mr. Hay conjectures that Baid-Mhorr may possibly be the source whence, rather than from the Persian Pazahar, the name of Bezoar has sprung. It is pretended that two of these calculous concretions are met with in the intestines of every individual of the race, but none were found in that which died in the Society’s collection, and which, as is stated by Mr. Spooner and Mr. Langstaff, who examined it after death, agreed in its visceral anatomy with the Antelopes in general.â€
About the same time as the Zoological Society’s specimens arrived in England it would appear that living examples of the same Antelope reached the Jardin des Plantes at Paris. One of these, an immature female, was figured by Geoffrey St.-Hilaire and F. Cuvier on the 375th plate of their ‘Histoire Naturelle des Mammifères.’ In the letterpress accompanying this plate we are informed that two young living examples (male and female) had been received there, and that the female had lived in good health for two years without changing her colour, only varying in the size of her body and in the shape of her horns. The authors inform us that when the “Nanguers†arrived at Paris they had only very short horns, about 4 or 5 inches in length, which were at that period strongly and uniformly curved towards the front. The male having died when young did not change the character of his horns, but those of the female having had time to develop became recurved behind and divergent one from the other. These Gazelles had neither tear-bags nor knee-brushes. When the figure was drawn the female stood about 2 feet 10 inches in height, but seemed to be not fully grown.
The authors of the ‘Histoire Naturelle des Mammifères’ refer these specimens to the “Nanguer†of Buffon, and do not say from what country they were received, but from their figure and description there can be nodoubt that they belonged to theGazella mhorrof Morocco and not to the trueG. damaof Senegal, if these two species are held to be distinct.
The only example ofGazella mhorrin the British Museum is the mounted adult male from Morocco presented to the Zoological Society by Mr. Willshire in 1833, and formerly in that Society’s collection. It is no doubt the specimen from which Bennett’s figure in the ‘Transactions’ was taken, and is also, we believe, the original of our illustration (Plate LXXII.), which was put upon the stone by Mr. Smit under the direction of the late Sir Victor Brooke. Further information concerning this and other animals of Southern Morocco is much required, but until the present political conditions of that country are altered we are hardly likely to obtain it.
September,1898.