Mammals · Artiodactyla · Bovidae

Oribi

Ourebia ourebi

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

A small, slender antelope with a slightly arched back, long neck and legs and large, erect ears. The coat, yellowish to reddish brown and glossy, contrasts with the white of the chin, throat, belly and rump. Below each ear it has a bare black patch that is a gland.

Weight

12 kg – 22 kg

Size

50 cm – 1.1 m

Lifespan

14 years

Diet

Herbivore

Feeds mainly on plants.

Activity

Diurnal

Active mainly during the day.

Social structure

Herd

Lives in large groups as a strategy against predators.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

Estimated population

Around 750,000 individuals, half of them in protected areas

SavannaGrasslandHerbivore Diurnal In herds Savanna Grassland Mammal

43countries 23parks86same family

Fun facts

GeneralIt marks its territory with a black secretion from a gland below the eye.
Only the males have horns: thin, straight and ringed at the base, 8 to 18 cm long.
It is one of the few mammals that benefits from fire: it returns to burnt ground as soon as the flames die down, to take advantage of the tender regrowth.
Its defence combines two opposite strategies: it crouches motionless in the grass, or bounds away and stops upright on a termite mound to scan for danger.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (mammal)
Habitat & environment: Open grassland and short-grass savannah
Sexual maturity: Females can conceive at ten months; males are active at fourteen
Gestation / incubation: 6 - 7 months
Litter / clutch size: A single young per birth
Lifespan in captivity: Up to 14 years

Sources consulted: IUCN Red List; Estes 1991, The Behavior Guide to African Mammals; Kingdon 2015, The Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals; Brashares y Arcese 2002, Journal of Animal Ecology 71; Animal Diversity Web; SANBI (Sudáfrica)