BLACKBUCK

                     

 

                      STATUS

IUCN                    :  NT

CAMP                   : LRnt

ZSI                        : Vulnerable

CITES                   : Appendices III

Schedule             : I ( Part I  ) 

Population         : 26,000 in Gujarat

Activity                : Diurnal

Social Group      :  Herds

👉Local name    :   Kaliyar, Khaliya, Reda

👉Physical measurements & life cycle : 👇

Length                       :  120 cm

Tail                             :  10 - 17 cm

Weight                      :  30 - 40 kg

Height                       :  60 - 80 cm

Horns                       :  50 - 70 cm

Maturity                  :  2.5 - 3 years

Gestation                :  165 days

Litter size               :  1

Life span                :  10 - 13 years

Breeding                :  Round the year, late winter is peak breeding season. 

👉Description   :   Round the year, late winter is peak breeding season. Sexually dimorphic, fully grown adult male is chiefly black above with spiral horns. It has white under parts and buttocks. Females and young-one have brownish/ yellowish coat instead of black. Female usually lacks horns (though a female with horns has photographed in Velavadar). 

👉Food  :   Herbivorous. Feeds on fresh grass, leaves grains, crops etc. 

👉Distribution   :   been Saurashtra and North Gujarat regions. Ahmedabad and Vadodara districts. 

👉Habitat    :   Grasslands and fields, not noticed in hilly area. 

👉Behaviour   :   Diurnal lives in herds. Occurs either as a mixed herd of females and fawns or as a male-only herd. 

👉Signs of presence    :  In grassland, male blackbuck makes "Aakhali", i.e., a spot without grass by rubbing its body in lying position. Using this type of the spot as a clue, one can infer its presence. Foot-prints near water-hole and droppings also can indicate their presence. 

👉Population    :   Year  1995    2001

                                 Nos. 14,000  25,025 

( In India, it's population is about one lakh. ) 

👉Blackbuck is a species of antelope found mainly in India. There are also introduced populations in various parts of the world including numerous game ranches in Texas in the United States of America. Game ranch raised blackbucks are plentiful. In 2007, a blackbuck hunt in U.S.A. for a male trophy ranged in price from $750 - $2,500. On the open plain, the blackbuck is one of the fastest mammals and can outrun most predators over long distances. It can run at the speed of 80 km/hour. According to the Hindu mythology blackbuck is considered as the vehicle ('vahana') of the Moon-god (i.e., 'Chandra dev'). Its protected status has gained publicity through a widely reported court case in which one of India's leading film stars was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment for killing blackbuck in Rajasthan state.