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The Blue Wildebeest

15 Nov 2014

blue wildebeest

Ranger Rom Hi guys!

What goes “Gnuuuuuuuuuuuuu” in the bush?

The blue wildebeest is found in southern Africa in the african savanna, unlike the black wildebeest which is found in the Karoo and grasslands. Wildebeest is a type of large antelope that is part of the Bovidae family.

The blue wildebeest is a herbivore and you will often see them grazing with zebras as they prefer short grasses.

They are also known as gnu, because of the sound they make. Try and say it now “Ga-nuuuuuuuuuuu”. That is exactly how they sound! Very noisy creatures indeed. Wildebeest is a dutch/afrikaans name which means “wild beast”.

So what is the difference between the blue and black wildebeest? The black wildebeest has a white tail and horns pointing forward. The blue wildebeest has a dark tail with horns pointing upwards.

The blue wildebeest are susceptible to diseases. Fences are used to keep common farm animals that carry diseases such as foot and mouth disease disease away.

Most wildebeest are now only found grazing in small game reserves in the southern parts of Africa. This means that they do not migrate to greener and more fertile plains as they once did many years ago when the African plains were untouched by humans.

Due to restrictions on reserves a majority now rely on man-made water holes. Some lucky wildebeest that live in larger reserves like the Serengeti can still migrate.

Lions and the spotted hyena are its most common enemies, which predate on them.

The Black Wildebeest

black wildebeest

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