In the family of waterbucks, there is a species that immediately catches the eye of the observer: it’s the Ellipse waterbuck. You recognize them by their white circular drawing on the rump, which also gave these animals their name. The second part of their name reveals where these animals like to be: close to and often in the water! Their coat has a water-repellent oil layer that protects them from moisture.
If you stroked these animals, your hands would quickly pick up a turpentine or strong musky smell from the oily secretion on sweat glands. Waterbucks are spread over large areas of sub-Saharan Africa. The reproduction takes place depending on the landscape in different seasons. Gestation period lasts for over eight months. Pregnant females give birth to offspring, which they hide in vegetation for several weeks. After this time, the calf begins to join the herd, using the mother’s raised tail as a signal to follow. Young males make their own bachelor herds; and females and cubs live together in groups of up to 30 individuals which move freely through male territories. When a young male becomes sexually mature, older and stronger, it tries to drive an older buck from its rutting ground and settle in its territory.
