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common wildebeest
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A herd of wildebeest, including calves, moves across a dusty savanna in Africa with scattered trees visible in the background.
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common wildebeest

mammal
Also known as: Connochaetes taurinus
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A herd of wildebeest, including calves, moves across a dusty savanna in Africa with scattered trees visible in the background.
Common wildebeest A herd of common wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) migrating across a dusty savanna in Africa. The animal is a keystone species (i.e., a species with a disproportionately large effect on its biological community) in plains and acacia savanna ecosystems from southeastern Africa to central Kenya.

The common wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) is a large African antelope belonging to the Bovidae family. It is a keystone species found in savanna ecosystems across southeastern Africa and into Kenya.1

Key Characteristics:
* Appearance: Slate gray to dark brown coat with vertical black stripes on its forequarters, and black markings on its forehead, mane, and tail. Both sexes have cowlike horns.1
* Adaptations: Highly gregarious and adapted for a migratory existence, they are efficient grazers of short grasses.1
* Subspecies: There are five recognized subspecies, including the blue wildebeest (also known as the brindled gnu) and the black wildebeest. The blue wildebeest is larger, while the black wildebeest is smaller and has a distinctive white tail.1
* Reproduction: Wildebeest typically have an annual rut in June, with a short birth peak occurring between rainy seasons. Calves are precocial, able to stand and follow their mothers soon after birth.1

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
4 Britannica Sources
  1. gnu
  2. blue wildebeest
  3. perissodactyl - Reproduction
  4. hartebeest

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