Despite its name, the waterbuck is not truly aquatic nor as much at home in water and swamps as is the sitatunga or lechwe. It does, however, take refuge there to escape predators.
The waterbuck is a large, robust animal; males are generally about 25 percent larger than the females. Waterbucks have large, rounded ears and white patches above the eyes, around the nose and mouth and on the throat. Only the males have horns, which are prominently ringed and as long as 40 inches. The horns are widely spaced and curve gracefully back and up. They are sometimes used with lethal results when males fight one another over territories.
The waterbuck has a shaggy brown-gray coat that emits a smelly, oily secretion thought to be for waterproofing. In East Africa two types occur, the common waterbuck and the defassa waterbuck, distinguished only by the white pattern on the rump. The common waterbuck has a conspicuous white ring encircling a dark rump, while the defassa has wide white patches on either side of the rump. Only male waterbucks have horns.
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As its name would indicate, the waterbuck inhabits areas that are close to water in savanna grasslands, gallery forests and riverine woodlands south of the Sahara. Such habitats not only provide sustenance but long grasses and watery places in which to hide from predators.
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The waterbuck is mainly sedentary and territorial. Young males form bachelor herds; as they get older, they become more attached to their land and less attached to the herd. Female herds are so loosely formed that it may be better to view their social structure as a group of individuals with overlapping home ranges. Females also are more attached to land rather than to a male, consequently it is in a male’s favor to have a larger territory in order to come into contact with females.
Calves are generally born throughout the year, although breeding becomes more seasonal in some areas, after which a single young is born. The mother hides her young for about 3 weeks, returning three to four times a day to suckle it. Each suckling session lasts only about five minutes, during which time the mother cleans the calf so that no odor is left to attract predators. Even so, there is a high rate of calf mortality.
Although the calves begin to eat grass when they are young, they are nursed for as long as 6 to 8 months. After weaning, they begin to wander-off young males often form all-male groups near the occupied territories, while the young females stay in their mother's group. The waterbuck does not reach adult weight until about 31/2 years. Females mate again soon after bearing young (within 2 to 5 weeks) so the population can increase rapidly.
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The waterbuck is more water-dependant than domestic cattle, and must remain close to a water source. However, this habitat furnishes waterbuck with a year-round source of food. Mainly grazers, they consume types of coarse grass seldom eaten by other grazing animals and occasionally browse leaves from certain trees and bushes. They feed in the mornings and at night, and rest and ruminate the remainder of the time.
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Habitat loss and fragmentation pose are among the biggest threats to East Africa’s wildlife populations, including that of the waterbuck.
Did You Know?
- The meat of older waterbuck takes on an unpleasant odor from the waterproofing secretions of its sweat glands, prompting predators to choose other prey.
- If the defessa and common waterbucks have bordering ranges they often interbreed; as a result, some scientists consider the two groups as a single species.
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