Mammals · Artiodactyla · Bovidae

Bongo

Tragelaphus eurycerus

Near Threatened

It could become endangered in the near future if current threats go unchecked. See full glossary

The bongo is the largest forest antelope in Africa and one of the most spectacular: an intense chestnut-red coat crossed by a dozen fine vertical white stripes, and spiral horns present in both sexes. It lives in the closed understorey of the forest and browses leaves, shoots and bark. The mountain subspecies, restricted to a few massifs in Kenya, is one of the most threatened on the continent, with barely a hundred animals in the wild.

Weight

150 kg – 405 kg

Size

1.7 m – 2.5 m

Lifespan

19 years

Diet

Herbivore

Feeds mainly on plants.

Activity

Nocturnal

Active mainly at night.

Sighting difficulty

Moderate

RainforestMountainHerbivore Nocturnal Near Threatened Rainforest Mountain Mammal

22countries 6parks86same family

Fun facts

GeneralThe largest forest antelope; males lose their chestnut colour with age.
adaptaciónIt is one of the largest forest antelopes in Africa, and the white vertical stripes on its body help hide it among the shafts of light that pierce the dense canopy.
Its vertical white stripes, which break up its outline in the gloom of the understorey, are as individual as a fingerprint and allow each animal to be identified.
The mountain subspecies survives with little more than a hundred animals spread across four massifs in Kenya, while zoos around the world hold considerably more than there are in the wild.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (mammal)
Habitat & environment: Dense understorey of lowland rainforest and montane forest of central and eastern Africa
Sexual maturity: 2.2 years
Gestation / incubation: 9.5 months
Litter / clutch size: 1

Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tragelaphus_eurycerus