Trivia question for Jul-07-2011

Posted on Jul 7, 2011 in Trivia

Carter was doing more research on Africa and came up with this cool little mammal.  These are delicately built mammals that rarely stray far from the safety of dense cover.  They are wary and secretive, owing to the constant threat of attack from a host of predators.

These guys live in grasslands of southern Africa. They seek habitats with plentiful supply of edible plants such as shrubs, but prefer foliage that is not so tall as to obstruct their sight lines. They live in open plains amongst other grass-eaters such as giraffes, zebras, and antelopes. They may live in places as varied as dense forest or open plain, but they must have good cover and not too much tall grass or plants. They also uses the small plants for food, and to hide from predators. They will move when the grass grows too tall for them to see over.

So here are Carter’s questions:  Tell us what this species is called and what is so peculiar about their snouts?  Also tell us where these guys get their names from.  And finally, of the four species which one is considered endangered due to hunting by humans in their select range?

Good Luck ‘-)

Answer:

Congratulations to Tami from Bellingham, Washington for being the first with the correct answer. The shy little antelope we featured is the Dik-Diks.

A dik-dik, pronounced “dĭk’ dĭk”, is a small antelope of the Genus Madoqua that lives in the bushes of East Africa, Angola and Namibia. Dik-diks stand 30–40 cm (approx. 12–16 inches) at the shoulder, are 50–70 cm (approx. 20-28 inches) long, weigh 3–6 kg (approx. 7-16 pounds) and can live for up to 10 years. Dik-diks are named for the alarm calls of the females, which make a dik-dik, or zik-zik sound.

The highly developed and elongated snout has bellows like muscles that helps them cool blood by airflow and evaporation.  The only species of concern to conservationists is the silver dik-dik, confined to the coast of southeastern Somalia.  It numbers less than 2,500 and is decreasing due to hunting for its fur.  Here is more on these little guys:  Dik-Diks

Thanks for playing along 😉