The bushbuck has geometrically shaped white patches or spots on the most mobile parts of the body – the ears, chin, tail, legs and neck. Males (which have horns) make the markings more visible during highly ritualized displays during which they arch their backs and walk in a tense, high-stepping gait. These displays, used for impressing and intimidating females and rival males, usually make fighting unnecessary. The hierarchy among males is age-based; as they get older and the chestnut color changes to dark brown, the white markings are more conspicuous.
Only male bushbucks have horns, which are between 10 and 20 inches long and grow straight back. At 10 months, young males sprout horns that are strongly twisted and at maturity form the first loop of a spiral. Other antelopes with spiral horns are sitatungas, bongos, elands and kudus.
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Bushbucks are forest-edge antelopes. They live in habitat including rain forests, montane forests, forest-savanna mosaics and bush savannas.
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Bushbucks are basically solitary animals. Most group associations, except for a female and her latest young, are very temporary and only last a few hours or days. These antelopes have small home ranges, which may overlap with those of other bushbuck. Even so, there still is not much contact as adult individuals prefer to stay by themselves in their separate areas. Mature males usually go out of their way to avoid contact with each other.
Usually most active during early morning and part of the night, bushbucks become almost entirely nocturnal in areas where they are apt to be disturbed frequently during the day. When alarmed, individuals react in a variety of ways. If they are in forest or thick bush, they may "freeze" in one position and remain very still, their coloring camouflaging them. Sometimes they will sink to the ground and lie flat, or they may bound away, making a series of hoarse barks. When surprised in the open, they sometimes stand still or slowly walk to the nearest cover.
Bushbucks are not territorial but will defend an area that a female in heat in using. After giving birth, the mother cleans the newborn calf and eats the placenta. She leaves the calf well hidden. When she visits and suckles it, she eats its dung so no scent remains to attract predators. They young calf does not accompany its mother for long periods during the day until it is about 4 months old. A female and her calf often play together, running in circle chasing each other.
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Bushbucks need some water but can subsist on dew if necessary. Foods vary in different habitats, with leguminous herbs and shrubs making up most of the diet, though they may eat grass, fallen fruit, acacia pods, tubers, bark and flowers.
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Some African tribes hunt the bushbuck for its skin, as it makes leather that is supple, thin and sheds its hair easily. Habitat loss is probably the biggest threat to Africa’s bushbuck.
Did You Know?
- The bushbuck's hunched-up gait makes it a slow and clumsy runner, but it is a good swimmer and can jump 6-foot-high fences.
- Although bushbucks live in both moist and dry habitats, their most important requirement is good cover of forest or bush to provide shelter and food.
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