The Sitatunga Antelopes

The Rare Sitatunga Antelopes of Uganda

The most aquatic of all antelope species is the Sitatunga which is also an accomplished swimmer, it is also referred to as the East African only amphibious antelope.

The Sitatunga Antelopes Status:
According to The World Conservation Union the Sitatunga is a threatened species. The Antelope Specialist Group maintain that populations of the Sitatunga have been going down over the years. According to the African Wildlife Foundation, Sitatungas are still found in larger populations around lake Victoria and the Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania, as well as in several river basins in Uganda.

The Uganda Wildlife Authority, describes the Katonga Wildlife Reserve, which protects a network of forest-fringed swamps along the Katonga river, as "one of the best places in Africa" to search for the Sitatunga antelopes.

The Behavior and Habitat of the Sitatunga Antelopes:
These rare animals live in thickly vegetated muddy swamps and marshes. These elusive creatures spend most of their time standing on mats of floating vegetation to feed, often half-submerged in water. The Sitatunga is said to be so elusive that it will dive deeper to a point where only the nose is above the water should it suspect some danger. Sighting the Sitatunga during the day is hard because these animals prefer to leave in the swamp under the protective cover of darkness.
Essentially being solitary animals the Sitatunga pair themselves in associates for short periods during mating, and sometimes, temporary social groups may be formed. They survive on sedges, leaves of bushes in the swamp, and grass in adjacent riverine forests. Sitatungas also eat fallen fruit and chew the bark of some trees.
Sitatunga can live for up to 19 years in the zoo, its lifespan in the wild is not known.

The survival of the Sitatunga hinges on the extent to which its habitat, the marshy swamp, can be protected. In Uganda, the creation of the Katonga Wildlife Reserve was an important step in the conservation of these antelopes which are so popular among tourists. Hence more need for conservation and education especially among the rural folks who continue to hunt down the Sitatunga for meat

These are the facts about the rare Sitatunga antelopes:

1 The rare Sitatunga antelope mostly live in swamps

2 The Sitatunga antelopes have an unusual leg length

3 The Sitatunga coats have distinctive markings

4 The Sitatunga antelopes are in the same family as cows

5 The Sitatunga antelopes are sedentary

6 The males are much bigger than females

7 The Sitatunga aren't technically waterbucks

8 The Sitatunga antelopes are weirdly shaped like bananas

9 The Sitatunga get darker with age

10 The Sitatunga are social but avoid crowds

11 The Biggest Threat to Sitatunga is Habitat Degradation