Impala

The impala is a medium-sized, slender antelope of eastern and southern Africa with a glossy reddish-brown coat; males carry slender, lyre-shaped horns. Two subspecies are recognised: the common impala of grassland and woodland, and the larger, darker black-faced impala of drier scrub in south-western Angola and north-western Namibia. It lives in woodlands, sometimes at the edge of savannah, near water, and is active mainly by day. It both grazes and browses, taking grasses, forbs, fruits and acacia pods when available. Territorial males, bachelor herds and female herds form its social groups, and two characteristic leaps serve as an anti-predator strategy.

About the impala

The impala is a medium-sized, slender antelope of eastern and southern Africa, living in woodland and along the woodland edge near water. It belongs to the family Bovidae and is the only living species in its genus, Aepyceros. Males carry long, lyre-shaped horns, and the species is famous for spectacular leaps used to escape predators.

Its scientific name is Aepyceros melampus, which translates as "black-footed high-horn." The English name comes from Zulu; the Afrikaans name rooibok, "red buck," is also used. Two subspecies are recognized: the widespread common impala and the larger, darker black-faced impala of Namibia and Angola.

Impala stand 70 to 92 cm (28–36 in) at the shoulder, with a head-and-body length of about 130 cm (51 in). Males weigh 53 to 76 kg (117–168 lb) and females 40 to 53 kg (88–117 lb). Only males have horns. These are slender, strongly ridged and widely spread, 45 to 92 cm (18–36 in) long, and their arched shape lets fighting males lock horns.

The glossy coat is two-toned: a reddish-brown back over tan flanks, set off by a white belly. White rings circle the eyes, the ears are tipped with black, and black streaks run from the rump down the upper hind legs. The bushy white tail, about 30 cm (12 in) long, has a black stripe down the middle. A black tuft of hair on each hind leg covers a scent gland.

One unusual detail is in the mouth. The front lower teeth form a toothcomb, similar to the toothcomb of strepsirrhine primates, which impala use to comb the head and neck fur of herd mates and remove parasites. Evolution has changed the impala very little: it has kept its basic form for at least five million years.

Behavior and diet

Impala are diurnal, though they rest during the hottest midday hours and feed and rest at night. Their social life has three parts: territorial males, bachelor herds of fewer than 30 males, and female herds of 6 to 100 animals. Territorial males mark their ground with urine and dung. How territorial impala are depends on climate and region. In southern Africa, males hold territories only during the few months of the rut, while in eastern Africa territoriality is minimal.

Grooming is central to herd life. Impala appear to be the only hoofed mammals that both groom themselves and groom each other, and they adjust how much they groom to the seasonal tick load. This helps keep ticks in check, and oxpeckers help too, picking ticks from the ears, neck and other spots an impala cannot reach.

Impala both browse and graze. Their diet includes grasses and other monocots, broad-leaved plants, forbs, fruit and acacia pods. One analysis found a mix of about 45 percent monocots, 45 percent dicots and 10 percent fruit. After the first rains, grass can rise to as much as 90 percent of the diet. They prefer to stay near water and switch to juicy plants when water is scarce.

Impala are important prey for cheetahs, leopards, African wild dogs, lions, hyenas, crocodiles and pythons. Their defense is athletic. An impala can leap up to 3 m (9.8 ft) high over bushes or even other impala, covering up to 10 m (33 ft). It also performs a series of bouncing jumps, kicking its hind legs in midair, and it scatters in different directions, probably to confuse a predator. The male's roar, a mix of snorts and deep grunts, can be heard up to 2 km (1.2 mi) away.

The rut lasts about three weeks near the end of the wet season, typically in May. Rival males roar, chase and display their necks and horns. Gestation lasts six to seven months, and a single calf is born, usually around midday, and hidden in cover for its first weeks. Calves nurse for four to six months. Young males are pushed out to join bachelor herds, while young females may stay. Males can breed at a year old but rarely mate successfully before age four.

Range and habitat

Impala live in eastern and southern Africa, from central and southern Kenya and northeastern Uganda south to northern KwaZulu-Natal and west to Namibia and southern Angola. The historical range is largely intact, though the species has disappeared from a few places such as Burundi. It has been reintroduced to protected areas in Gabon and across southern Africa.

They prefer woodland for its shade, and the edge where woodland meets savanna, always near water. In southern Africa they are associated with mopane and acacia woodland. Impala avoid tall grass, where predators can hide, and are not usually found in mountains, though they have been recorded up to 1,400 m (4,600 ft) in KwaZulu-Natal.

Common impala vs black-faced impala

The two impala subspecies look alike at a glance but are genetically quite distinct, and no hybrids between them have been reported.

Conservation status

The impala is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (2016). The common impala numbered around two million in 2008, and about a quarter of its populations live in protected areas such as Kruger, Serengeti and the Okavango Delta.

The black-faced impala is a different story. It is classified as Vulnerable, with fewer than 1,000 estimated in the wild as of 2008, and its status has not been monitored since the 2000s. Poaching and natural disasters drove its decline, and moving animals to new sites may help it recover.