gazelles is slim, dainty horn-animals, with high, thin legs, small, triangular claw-hooves and curled horns, that are weaker with the females or are missing. The eyes are notably big, pre-eye-glands are usually existing.
Spread Gazelles populate the northern and eastern Africa, the Arabic peninsula, the two-stream-country and the northwest-like India. A spread-area deviant of those has the crop-gazelle, who seems in wide sharing to Innerasiens. In some areas, several gazelle-types meet. Thomson and Grant-gazelles form to assorted stoves. If they separate again, Grant-gazelles visit the dry hillsides passed by light thornbush. Thomsongazellen rather turn to this of some moister levels with wide short-grass-surfaces.
In the southern Algeria, 3 different gazelle-types live, that are, however, separate after its residence. Edmigazellen live in the mountains, Dorkasgazellen in the stony desert and dune-gazelles in the sand-dune-region.
Dama and Dorkasgazellen meet at its traveling-trains in the southern edge-zone of the Sahara.
Habitat All gazelles prefer open landscapes as habitats. This can drily sand, or stone-deserts, and thornbush-steppes, but also grass - and light tree-savannas is. Some types even live in the treeless high mountain region, like the Edmigazelle.
Social-lives The social arrangement of the gazelles is diverse. On hikes, that are caused by the search of water and food, gigantic herds often stream together. Within these after hundred and thousand counting leagues, only a loose cohesion prevails. If such groups reach in areas with more favorable life-conditions or if the rain-time starts, the large associations dissolve. Bucks often form male-herds up to 50 animals, Z, as well. B. with Grant and Dorkasgazellen. The bucks of the Sömmeringgazellen live as a loner occasionally. With Thomsongazellen, there is beside bachelor-stoves of mixed associations under leadership of an adult female.
Little one herds as well up to 15 animals refines from food-poor regions with gazelles. This applies to Dama and dune-gazelles.
In the combination-time, the males often become territorial, that is, they occupy a precinct and defend it against each rival, Z. B. the bucks of the Thomson - and the Sömmeringgazellen. With Grant-gazelles, the herds exist from a male and up to 12 females.
Hikes Some gazelle-types execute seasonal hikes. Damagazellen live during the rain-time in the Sahara, during the dry-time, they emigrate into the food-richer Sahelzone.
Dorkasgazellen apparently hike between the edge of the atlas and the Sahara back and forth. they have solid changes, that run through the desert like caravan-streets since generations and are used again and again. If Dorkasgazellen rest on the hike, some animals keep watch. If they move or raced, Dorkasgazellen observe exactly the wind-direction. they try to always be there where the wind can report them the weather of a danger the most favorably. The gazelles like to therefore be at hillsides since the wind blows uphill there in general.
Way of life The resistance of the gazelles is astonishing against extreme weathers. Grant-gazelles äsen in the midday-heat, if most steppe-animals retreat. Edmi and crop-gazelles are not sensitive against frost-degrees.
Gazelles are active almost exclusively on the day. With slow movement, they often run in the amble, with faster run, they change to the cloister. Escaping gazelles often execute Prellsprünge, d. h., they leap up for itself with all four into the air, so, as they wanted to overlook the terrain better on that occasion.
The Sinnesorgane of the gazelles, eye, ear and sense of smell are well developed.
Enemies Gazelles have many enemies: Lions, leopards, cheetahs, hyenas, jackals, hyena-dogs, red-dogs, wolves and eagles.
Cheetahs are the typical enemies of the Thomsongazellen. From a herd, the cheetah chooses a certain animal and rushes it. The remaining Thomsongazellen admittedly observe the chase, they let themselves however hardly disturb. A gazelle escapes with a speed of approximately 60 km per hour. A cheetah can catch up with it. However, skillful gazelles far too rarely don't succeed with getting rid of the persecutor of endurance, speed and hook-palpitation. If the effort is too big for it, the cheetah gives up and immediately doesn't look for a new victim for itself.
Leopards carry off gazelles and retreat with it on a tree in order to be able to consume the loot undisturbed.
Reproduction The Tragzeit lasts 5-6 months with the gazelles. Some types toss twice per year and then get 1 young each. The crop-gazelle places only once annually and then brings twins to the world, sometimes, it can be even 3 or 4 young.
In Africa, the combination-period in the north begins in August and lasts until October. In equator-approaches areas it lies in November and December.
Brunftige bucks let a bleating, snore or snort heard. With the Dorkasgazelle, the nose is inflated easily on that occasion. The Spekegazelle can even inflate its nose to tennis ball-size. The skin of the Nasenrückens has a corresponding Faltung.
The Aufreiten of the buck happens with the combination of the gazelles in running.
Hochtragende gazelle-females isolate themselves to the tossing of the herd. Young Thomsongazellen are set aside from the mother in the first life-days, d. h. at a suitable place in laying down been induced. From 50-100 m of distance, the mother guards its young. Jackals try to expel it from its kid while it strives to lure away hyenas. After the short Abliegezeit, mother and kid of a herd join.
Food Gazelles often are enough right. Grass, acacia-foliage and herbs form its main-food. With Thomsongazellen, the red-oat (Themeda) is the food-basis. Dorkasgazellen eat acacia-foliage, hard desert-grass and furthermore succulent (midday-flower-plants, Mesembryanthemum) to the coverage of the liquid-demand. Dorkasgazellen are true thirst-artists. These gazelles eat even locusts and their larvae to probably supplement about the protein-poor desert-food. Damagazellen eat acacia-foliage. In order to reach the upper branches, they rise with the food on the hind legs after type of the giraffe-gazelles.
Meaning for the human being Gazelles are admired particularly by the Arabs. In the Arabic poetry, the beauty of the gazelles with that of a woman is compared.
As hunt-game, gazelles are very sought-after. Game and trophies are equally popular. The fur of the Mongolia-gazelle delivers valuable, warm fur-work.
Endangering Most gazelle-types are threatened in its continuance through excessive and pointless Bejagung. This is Sömmeringgazelle, Dorkasgazelle, applicable dune-gazelle, for the Arabic crop-gazelle and presumably also for Spekegazelle and red-forehead-gazelle, to Edmigazelle, Damagazelle. In the following one, the representatives of the type Gazella are described in the individual one:
Damagazelle (Gazella dama)) To this, the races belong: Red-neck, Zentralafrikanische Dama, and Mhorr-Gazelle; Shoulder-height: 90-110 cm; Weight: 70 kg; big, leggy; Fur reddish-brown and white in different expansion, according to race and season; Face at least partially knows; white neck-stain, no flank-stripe; Horns shortly, turned to the back; live in deserts and outskirts of the thornbush-savanna of the Sahelzone.
Sömmeringgazelle (Gazella soemmeringi)) Shoulder-height: 80-90 cm; Weight: 45 kg; big, long-headed, short-neck-y; Fur pale yellow-bay; put white underside at the flank keenly from the upper side; Forehead and nose-backs black; white mirror prolonged until on the croup; Tail knows with black top; Horns to the back and outside, turned at the top inside; populate the bush and grass-savanna.
Grant-gazelle (Gazella granti)) Shoulder-height: 80-90 cm; Weight: 45-80 kg; several races, Z. B. Roberts' gazelle with far outside glum horns; Fur brightly tawny, underside knows, mirrors above with pointed finishing widening to the croup, black club-strip as lateral Einrahmung; dark flank-stripe more or less clear; powerful face-drawing with black stain on the nose-back; populate semi-deserts dry, short-grass-y savannas, thornbush-savannas; in national-parks relatively frequently, continuance at present doesn't endanger.
Edmigazelle (Gazella gazella)) To it the races: Syrian, Arabic, Indian gazelle; Shoulder-height: 60-70 cm; Weight: 25 kg; gray-tawny with unclear flank-stripe; Face-drawing bay on white reason; Horns steeply, swung easily; live in grass and desert-steppes in level and mountains.
Dorkasgazelle (Gazella dorcas)) Shoulder-height: 55-65 cm; Weight: 20-23 kg; pale sand-colored with somewhat darker flank-stripe; active face-drawing, white underside; white mirror; lyre-shaped horns; Wrists (front-knees) with showy hair-tufts; Habitat: Stone-halls and sand-surfaces, in deserts and semi-deserts; in many areas of its original spread-area largely wiped out; in Israel protected.
Dune-gazelle (Gazella leptoceros)) Shoulder-height: 65 cm; Weight: 25 kg; lighten sand-colored, white underside, white mirror, pale face-drawing; long, slim, stretched horns; Hooves widen as adaptation to the habitat: Desert-dunes and highland; in wide sharing of its spread-area wiped out.
Red-forehead-gazelle (Gazella rufifrons)) Shoulder-height: 70 cm; Weight: 25-30 kg; strengthen reddish-brown, black flank-stripe, among them reddish-brown shadow-strip; white mirror, white underside; Horns easily S-förmig. Forehead and nose-backs bay; populate the open dry-savanna; in wide sharing of the spread-area already wiped out.
Thomsongazelle (Gazella thomsoni)) Shoulder-height: 65 cm; Weight: 20-30 kg; powerfully tawny-sand-colored; more broadly black flank-stripe; white mirror, bordered black; Horns weakly S-förmig, turned easily to the back; populate the short-grass-savanna and light tree-savanna; particularly in national-parks frequent; Existed endangered not at present.
Spekegazelle (Gazella spekei)) Shoulder-height: 60 cm; Weight: 18 kg; smallest gazelle; Nose with cross-pleats, that can be inflated with the bucks to a tennis ball-big structure; pale sand-colored, more broadly dark brown flank-stripe, underside and mirrors knows; Shine gloomily bordered; Horns weakly S-förmig, directed easily to the back; populated plateaus with stones, grass and thornbushes.
Crop-gazelle (Gazella subgutturosa)) Shoulder-height: 60-65 cm; Weight: 20 kg; dun sand-colored, flank-stripe somewhat darker; Underside, nose-backs and mirrors knows; adult bucks with exalted "crop (= Adam's apple)"; dark hairbrush at the wrist (front-knees); Horns lyre-shaped, turned to the back; Females horn-loose; populate treeless grass and desert-steppes; in some parts of its spread-area wiped out.
Further types The llama-gazelle, the giraffe-gazelle, the stag-goat-antelope and the springbok are the gazelles near antelopes.
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