Overview
Distribution
Range Description
The Western Giant Eland has been formerly reported from Senegal to Togo, though its occurrence in Togo might have been a mistaken confusion with Bongo Tragalephaus eurycerus (Grubb et al. 1998). The subspecies still occurs in southeastern Senegal, the far north of Guinea, probably south-western Mali and possibly eastern Guinea-Bissau (East 1999; Darroze 2004; Planton and Michaux in press).
Eastern Giant Elands occur in the central African region, and were formerly distributed from north-eastern Nigeria to north-west Uganda. They now survive mainly in north-east Central African Republic. A separate population lives in northern Cameroon, with herds crossing the Chad border to the east; occasional vagrants may enter Nigerian territory. They may still occur in south-western Sudan, from which they may visit north-eastern DR Congo and north-west Uganda (East 1999; Planton and Michaux in press).
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Geographic Range
The Giant Eland's home range extends from Senegal through southern Sudan.
Biogeographic Regions: ethiopian (Native )
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Physical Description
Morphology
Physical Description
Male giant elands tend to be larger than females, weighing between 400 and 1000 kg. Females weigh between 300 and 600 kg. Shoulder height ranges from 130 to 180 cm, and body length ranges from 210 to 345 cm. Their massive, spiraled horns can extend up to 123 cm on males and 66 cm on females. The giant eland has sandy grey pelage with 8 to 12 whitish vertical stripes on its sides. There are black marks on the ears and hocks, and mature males have a black neck with a large dewlap extending from chin to chest.
Range mass: 1000 (high) kg.
Average mass: 1000 kg.
Range length: 210 to 345 cm.
Other Physical Features: endothermic ; homoiothermic; bilateral symmetry
Sexual Dimorphism: male larger; ornamentation
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Ecology
Habitat
Habitat and Ecology
Systems
- Terrestrial
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Habitat
Giant elands are found in sparse forest during the day, where they take shelter from the heat. They search surrounding savannahs and grasslands for food during the morning and evening when it is cooler. Elands are found in mountainous regions up to altitudes of 4500 meters.
Terrestrial Biomes: savanna or grassland ; scrub forest
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Trophic Strategy
Food Habits
The diet of the giant eland consists of leaves and fruits from trees, grasses, and herbs. Their long horns are sometimes used to break branches high up on trees to get at the leaves.
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Life History and Behavior
Life Expectancy
Lifespan/Longevity
Range lifespan
Status: captivity: 20.3 (high) years.
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Lifespan, longevity, and ageing
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Reproduction
Reproduction
Mating usually falls within the wet season. Dominant males will mate with several females. Estrus lasts about 3 days. Gestation lasts 8 to 9 months producing a single calf. Young associate loosely with their mothers. Weaning occurs after 4 to 6 months after which the juvenile leaves its mother permanently, joining a group of other juveniles. Sexual maturity is reached at about 2 years of age. Life expectancy of giant elands is up to 25 years.
Range number of offspring: 1 (low) .
Average number of offspring: 1.
Range gestation period: 8 to 9 months.
Range weaning age: 4 to 6 months.
Average number of offspring: 1.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)
Sex: female: 1107 days.
Parental Investment: altricial
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Conservation
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List Assessment
Red List Category
Red List Criteria
Version
Year Assessed
Assessor/s
Reviewer/s
Justification
History
- 1996Lower Risk/near threatened
- 1994Vulnerable(Groombridge 1994)
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Conservation Status
Populations of the giant eland have been declining due to excessive hunting, habitat destruction by agricultural expansion, and the spread of rinderpest. Most of the remaining numbers live in the protected park areas of southeastern Senegal.
US Federal List: endangered
CITES: no special status
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern
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Trends
Population
East (1999) estimated that there are probably more than 15,000 Eastern Giant Eland remaining, with over 12,500 in the CAR. Numbers have increased in CAR, Cameroon and Chad since the 1990s. The numbers that survive in Sudan are unknown, but could be substantial. This suggests a total population of the Eastern Giant Eland in the order of at least 15,000~20,000. Its numbers are probably more or less stable over large areas of its range in Central African Republic and Cameroon where human population densities are very low. However, the Eastern Giant Eland’s overall, long-term population trend is probably gradually downwards (East 1999).
Population Trend
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Threats
Threats
The Eastern Giant Eland occurs in much larger numbers and still has extensive areas of available habitat which are almost uninhabited and are not subjected to development pressures, particularly in northern and eastern Central African Republic and south-western Sudan. However, political instability and armed conflict are major barriers to the implementation of effective protection and management over large parts of the eastern subspecies’ remaining range. If these problems are not overcome, the eastern giant eland’s numbers will gradually decline until its survival is eventually threatened and it becomes restricted to a few protected areas.
In the past, Giant Eland have suffered heavy mortality from rinderpest, to which it is said to be more susceptible than any other antelope. Its demise in The Gambia has been attributed primarily to the devastating effects of this disease (Camara 1990). Populations in the Central African region crashed by 60-80% during and after the 1983-1984 rinderpest outbreak, but have almost recovered now (East 1999).
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Management
Conservation Actions
Effective long-term management of national parks and hunting zones in regions such as Cameroon’s North Province and northern and eastern Central African Republic would ensure the survival of Eastern Giant Eland. Safari hunting is the most likely justification for the long-term preservation of the substantial areas of unmodified savanna woodland which this antelope requires, and sustainable trophy hunting is a key to the Giant Eland’s future. Mature bulls are one of the world’s most prized big game trophies (East 1999).
The survival of the Western Giant Eand depends on continued protection of the Niokolo-Koba population in Senegal. This subspecies’ prospects will remain precarious as long as there is only a single protected population but would be enhanced if additional populations can be protected (East 1999).
Individuals of both subspecies are held in captivity (East 1999; Planton and Michaux in press). A captive breeding group of Western Giant Eland using founders from Niokolo-Koba was established in 2000 in Bandia Reserve, Senegal. There have been 30 births at Bandia between 2000 and 2006 (M. Antonínová and P. Hejcmanová, in Planton and Michaux in press), and a second enclosure has been built in Fathala Reserve, to which a male-only group (9) and a breeding nucleus (1, 3) were translocated in mid-2006 (Antonínová et al. 2006).
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Relevance to Humans and Ecosystems
Benefits
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
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Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Giant elands are a source of large quantities of tender meat, quality hides, and milk with higher protein and fat content than milk from dairy cows. These characteristics, along with the docile nature of the giant eland, have made it the target of domestication efforts in Africa and Russia.
Positive Impacts: food ; body parts are source of valuable material
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Wikipedia
Giant eland
The giant eland (Taurotragus derbianus also known as the Lord Derby eland) is an open forest savannah antelope. It is found in Central African Republic, South Sudan, Cameroon and Senegal. There are two subspecies: the endangered T. d. derbianus, found in Senegal's Niokolo-Koba National Park, and the low risk T. d. gigas, found in Central Africa, especially in Cameroon and the Central African Republic.
Contents |
Characteristics
Giant eland are typically between 220–290 cm (7.2–9.5 ft) in length, stand approximately 150 to 175 cm (4.9 to 5.74 ft) at the shoulder, and weigh 440–900 kg (970–2,000 lb). Despite its common name, it is of very similar size to the common eland. The smooth coat is reddish-brown to chestnut, usually darker in males than females, with several well-defined vertical white stripes on the torso. A crest of short black hair extends down the neck to the middle of the back, and is especially prominent on the shoulders. The slender legs are slightly lighter on their inner surfaces, with black and white markings just above the hooves. There are large black spots on the upper forelegs. The bridge of the nose is charcoal black, and there is a thin, indistinct tan-coloured chevron between the eyes. The lips are white, along with several dots along the jaw-line. A pendulous dewlap, larger in males then females, originates from between the jowls and hangs to the upper chest, with a fringe of hair on its edge. The tail is long, and ends with a dark tuft of hair. Both sexes have tightly spiralled horns, which are relatively straight. In males the horns form a wide "V" and can grow to 120 cm (3.9 ft) in length, slightly longer than on females.
Ontogeny and reproduction
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Gestation period: 9 months
Young per birth: 1
Weaning: After 6 months.
Sexual maturity: Females at 15–36 months, males at 4–5 years.
Lifespan: Up to 25 years.
Ecology and behavior
Primarily nocturnal, giant elands are highly nomadic, with large home ranges and seasonal migration patterns. During the day, herds often rest in sheltered areas. A gregarious species, giant eland herds usually consist of twenty or more animals and do not disband during the wet season, suggesting that social rather than ecological factors are responsible for herding. There is no evidence of territoriality, and males rarely display aggression, even during the breeding season. Giant eland are alert and wary, making them difficult to approach and observe. They move quickly, running at over 70 km/h (43 mph), and despite their size are exceptional jumpers, easily clearing heights of 1.5 m (4.9 ft). Giant eland live in open forest and savannah where they eat grass, leaves, and branches. Their primary predators are the lion, spotted hyena and perhaps leopards.
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Distribution and subspecies
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Broad-leafed savanna and glades in two isolated pockets in central and western Africa, which correspond to the two recognized subspecies, the Western giant eland (T. d. derbianus) and the Eastern giant eland or Lord Derby´s eland (T. d. gigas). The Western giant eland is largely restricted to Niokolo Koba National Park in Senegal. The Eastern giant eland is found in several reserves, for example in Bénoué National Park, Faro National Park and Bouba Njida National Park in Cameroon and in Manovo-Gounda St. Floris National Park in the Central African Republic.[1]
References
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Taurotragus derbianus |
- ^ a b IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group (2008). Tragelaphus derbianus. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 29 March 2009. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is of least concern.
- Happold, D. C. D. 1987. The Mammals of Nigeria. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
- IEA (Institute of Applied Ecology) 1998. Taurotragus derbianus. In African Mammals Databank - A Databank for the Conservation and Management of the African Mammals Vol 1 and 2. Bruxelles: European Commission Directorate. Available online at http://gorilla.bio.uniroma1.it/amd/amd333b.html
- Kingdon, J. 1997. The Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals. Academic Press, London and New York: NaturalWorld.
- Nowak, R. M. [editor]. 1991. Walker's Mammals of the World (Fifth Edition). Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press.
- Grubb, Peter (16 November 2005). "Order Artiodactyla (pp. 637-722)". In Wilson, Don E., and Reeder, DeeAnn M., eds. Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2 vols. (2142 pp.). ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494. http://www.bucknell.edu/msw3/browse.asp?id=14200714.
- Project Giant Eland Conservation. Available online at http://www.gianteland.com/
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Tragelaphus derbianus
 | This article is an orphan, as few or no other articles link to it. Please introduce links to this page from related articles; suggestions may be available. (February 2009) |
The Giant Eland (Tragelaphus derbianus) is a species of even-toed ungulate in the Bovidae family. It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, Togo, and Uganda.
Source
- Antelope Specialist Group 1996. Tragelaphus derbianus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 30 July 2007.
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