The impala is reddish-brown with white hair inside the ears, over each eye and on the chin, upper throat, underparts and buttocks. A narrow black line runs along the middle of the lower back to the tail, and a vertical black stripe appears on the back of each thigh. Impalas have unique brushlike tufts of black hair that cover a scent gland located just above the heel on each hind leg.
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Impalas are found at grassland and woodland edges, usually very close by water.
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The impala’s social organization allows it to adapt to prevailing environmental conditions. When food is plentiful, males become territorial, shepherding females about their land. In dry periods, territories are abandoned as herds must travel farther to find food. Large, mixed tranquil herds of females and males form.
A surprised impala herd will leap in a seemly unorganized “explosion.” However, close observation shows that this reaction actually helps keep the herd together, eventually establishing a general flight path. Initially, an individual impala leaps up, casting about from left to right, which tends to bring individuals into contact with each other. High jumps into the air also allow impalas to release signals from the fetlock scent gland in mid-air. This scent is easier for a rapidly running impala to pick up than one left on the ground.
In East Africa young are born year round, but birth peaks usually coincide with the rains. The female leaves the herd and seeks a secluded spot to bear her fawn. After giving birth she cleans the fawn and eats the afterbirth. If the fawn is born at a time when there are few other young around, the mother will stay with it in seclusion spot for a few days or even leave it lying out for a week or more before returning to the herd. If there are many other fawns, she may take hers back to the herd in a day or two, where a nursery group may form. Because predators have more difficulty selecting an individual from a nursery group, the fawns are safer there.
The young are suckled for 4 to 6 months and grow rapidly, reaching maturity at a little over a year. The young males, however, are evicted from their mothers' groups when they are 6 months old, staying around the edges of the herd until they join a bachelor group. During this transition period they are most vulnerable to predators. Males will not be mature enough to hold a territory until they are 5 or 6 years old.
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Able to both graze and browse, the impala has both a greater and more reliable food supply than animals that do either one or the other. It eats young grass shoots in the wet season and herbs and shrubs at other times.
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Impalas are often found on cattle ranches, where they may be killed for their meat and hides. The southern subspecies of impala is one of the wildlife species of focus in AWF’s southern African Limpopo Heartland. The project hopes to strengthen economic ties between Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe by enhancing tourist opportunities in the region.
Did You Know?
- The female is similar to the male but does not have horns. The male's graceful lyre-shaped horns are 18 to 37 inches long.
- During periods of intense mating the male vocalizes loudly, making a sound between a lion's roar and a dog's bark. Exhausted by such activity, males seldom can hold their territories for more than a few months at a time.
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