Dik-dik
Dik-dik | |
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A male Kirk's dik-dik at Etosha National Park, Namibia | |
Female mate of the male dik-dik in the above picture | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Artiodactyla |
Family: | Bovidae |
Subfamily: | Antilopinae |
Tribe: | Neotragini |
Genus: | Madoqua (Ogilby, 1837) |
Type species | |
Antilope saltiana Desmarest, 1816
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Species[1] | |
Synonyms[2] | |
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A dik-dik is the name for any of four species of small antelope in the genus Madoqua that live in the bushlands of eastern and southern Africa.[1]
Dik-diks stand about 30–40 centimetres (12–15.5 in) at the shoulder, are 50–70 cm (19.5–27.5 in) long, weigh 3–6 kilograms (6.6–13.2 lb) and can live for up to 10 years. Dik-diks are named for the alarm calls of the females. In addition to the females' alarm call, both the male and female make a shrill, whistling sound. These calls may alert other animals to predators.
Name
The name dik-dik comes from an onomatopoeia of the repetitive dik sound female dik-diks whistle through their long, tubular snouts when they feel threatened.[3]
Physical characteristics
Female dik-diks are somewhat larger than males. The males have horns, which are small (about 7.6 centimetres or 3 in), slanted backwards and longitudinally grooved. The hair on the crown forms an upright tuft that sometimes partially conceals the short, ribbed horns of the male. The upper body is gray-brown, while the lower parts of the body, including the legs, belly, crest, and flanks, are tan. A bare black spot below the inside corner of each eye contains a preorbital gland that produces a dark, sticky secretion. Dik-diks insert grass stems and twigs into the gland to scent-mark their territories.
Perhaps to prevent overheating, dik-diks (especially Guenther's dik-diks) have elongated snouts with bellows-like muscles through which blood is pumped. Airflow and subsequent evaporation cools this blood before it is recirculated to the body. However, this panting is only implemented in extreme conditions; dik-diks can tolerate air temperatures of up to 40 °C (104 °F).[4]
Adaptations for desert environments
Dik-diks have special physiological adaptations to help them survive in arid environments.
Habitat
Dik-diks live in shrublands and savannas of eastern Africa. Dik-diks seek
Diet
Dik-diks are
Reproduction
Dik-diks are monogamous,[9][10] and conflicts between territorial neighbors are rare. When they occur, the males from each territory dash at each other, either stop short or make head-to-head contact, then back off for another round, with head crests erected. Males mark their territories with dung piles, and cover the females' dung with their own.[10] One suggestion for monogamy in dik-diks is that it may be an evolutionary response to predation;[11] surrounded by predators, it is dangerous to explore, looking for new partners.[12] Pairs spend about 64% of their time together. Males, but not females, will attempt to initiate extra-pair mating if an opportunity arises.[9]
Females are sexually mature at six months and males at 12 months. The female gestates for 169 to 174 days and bears a single offspring. This happens up to twice a year (at the start and finish of the rainy season). Unlike other ruminants which are born forefeet first, the dik-dik is born nose first, with its forelegs laid back alongside its body. Females weigh about 560 to 680 g (1.23 to 1.50 lb) at birth, while males weigh 725 to 795 g (1.598 to 1.753 lb). The mother lactates for six weeks, feeding her fawn for no longer than a few minutes at a time. The survival rate for young dik-diks is 50%. The young stay concealed for a time after birth, but grow quickly and reach full size by seven months. At that age, the young are forced to leave their parents' territory. The fathers run the sons off the territory and the mothers run off the daughters.[13]
Predators
Dik-diks are hunted by
Species
The four species of dik-dik are:[1]
- Madoqua guntheri Thomas, 1894 – Günther's dik-dik
- M. kirkii (Günther, 1880) – Kirk's dik-dik
- M. piacentinii Drake-Brockman, 1911 – Silver dik-dik
- M. saltiana (de Blainville, 1816) – Salt's dik-dik
References
- ^ OCLC 62265494.
- ^ Madoqua . Retrieved through: Interim Register of Marine and Nonmarine Genera on 24 May 2022.
- ^ "9 Fun Facts About the Dik-Dik". mentalfloss.com. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 20 March 2018.
- ^ a b Dik dik. African Wildlife Foundation. Web. 4 February 2010.
- ^ S2CID 36066798.
- ^ PMID 2904322.
- ^ Brynn Schaffner and Kenneth Robinson. Savanna. Blue Planet Biomes.
- ^ a b The Living Afridca: Wildlife Bovid Family Archived 8 January 2006 at the Wayback Machine. library.thinkquest.org
- ^ PMID 9178540.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-520-08085-0.
dik-dik.
- S2CID 8913278.
- National Geographic"Earth Almanac", June 1996
- ^ Scheibe, E. (1999). Madoqua kirkii. Animal Diversity. University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. Web. 27 January 2010.