Impala
From Free net encyclopedia
- For other uses, see Impala (disambiguation).
{{Taxobox | color = pink | name = Impala | status = Conservation status: Lower risk | image = Black-faced_impala.jpg | image_width = 210px | image_caption = An Impala in Etosha National Park, Namibia | regnum = Animalia | phylum = Chordata | classis = Mammalia | ordo = Artiodactyla | familia = Bovidae | subfamilia = Aepycerotinae | subfamilia_authority = Gray, 1872 | genus = Aepyceros | genus_authority = Sundevall, 1847 | species = A. melampus | binomial = Aepyceros melampus | binomial_authority = (Lichtenstein, 1812) }}
An impala (Aepyceros melampus Greek aipos "high" ceros "horn" + melas "black" pous "foot") is a medium-sized African deer. The name impala comes from the Zulu language. They are found in savannas in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, southern Angola and northeastern South Africa.
Impala are between 75 and 95 centimetres tall at the shoulder and weigh about 50 kilogrammes. They are reddish-brown in colour with lighter flanks, and have white underbellies. males have lyre-shaped horns which can reach up to 90 centimetres in length. Impala are among the most beautiful and graceful of the antelopes. They are among the dominant species in many savannas.
Exceedingly agile, impala are capable of leaping over 10 m in a single bound. They are gregarious creatures and are usually found in herds, often a male with many females. Their food consists of a mixture of grasses and leaves. Impala are active both during the day and at night.
Many species of predators eat impala. This fact, and the distinctive M shape on the backside gave the impala its nickname as "the McDonald's of the African plains".
Image:Impala.JPG Image:Impala.jpg Image:Aepyceros melampus petersi.jpg Image:Aepyceros melampus.png Image:Animaux1.jpg Image:Gazelle in South Africa.jpg
Social structure
Young male Impala form bachelor herds of around thirty individuals. Females and young form herds of up to two hundred individuals. Mature males hold territories, and lead any female herds that wander into their territory.
External Links
af:Rooibok de:Impala es:Aepyceros melampus eo:Impalo fr:Impala it:Aepyceros melampus lb:Impala lt:Impalos ms:Impala nl:Impala ja:インパラ pt:Impala uk:Імпала zh:高角羚