The greater kudu Tragelaphus strepsiceros is found primarily in savannas, which are a transitional form between forests and bare steppe in Eastern and Southern Africa.
Kudu wool has six to ten vertical stripes on average. Kudu has large rounded ears and a rather long tail at times. Males have large screwed-up horns that grow on their heads and can grow up to 1 metre in length. The larger they are, the higher the male's social status.
Males form separate bachelor groups or live alone, joining females only during mating seasons. During the rainy season, one cub weighing about 16 kg is typically born.
Kudus are active during the day or at night, depending on their habitat. Their diet consists primarily of foliage and young branches, and they are not picky. Large kudus also feed on plants that other animals avoid due to their venom.
kudu, two spiral-horned antelope species (tribe Tragelaphini, family Bovidae). Greater kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) is a common sight in southern African wildlife reserves. The elusive lesser kudu (T. imberbis) lives in arid lowland thornbush in northeast and East Africa. Both species have corkscrew horns (only in males), rely on cover for food and concealment, and live in small groups.
After the eland, the greater kudu is the tallest antelope; males stand 130-150 cm (51-59 inches) tall but are narrow-bodied, weighing an average of 257 kg (567 pounds) and reaching a maximum of 315 kg (694 pounds). Females have an average height of 120 cm (47 inches) and weight of 170 kg (370 pounds). The colour ranges from reddish brown to blue-gray with white markings, which include 6-10 vertical torso stripes, a short spinal crest, a nose chevron, and small cheek patches for concealment. White forelegs with dark garters and a black-tipped tail distinguish the greater kudu. Males grow a beard and have the longest horns of any antelope, measuring 120-180 cm (47-71 inches) along the curve. It takes six years for these horns to grow two full turns; the horn's size and shape correspond to and advertise the bearer's dominance status.
The lesser kudu is only 100 cm (39 inches) tall and weighs 92-108 kg (202–238 pounds). Males have a slate-gray coat that is bright rufous on females and young. Eleven to fifteen vertical white stripes, broad chest and throat patches, a nose chevron, and cheek patches distinguish the lesser kudu. The legs are tawny with black and white patches, the tail is bushy with a white underside and a black tip, and there is no beard but a short, erectile dorsal crest. Mature males' horns have two and a half turns (rarely three) and measure 60-90 cm (24-35 inches) along the outer curve.
Both kudus are cover-dependent browsers that consume over 100 different trees, shrubs, vines, herbs, seedpods, and fruits, as well as a small amount of new grass. Although eating greens allows them to live in waterless areas, greater kudus still drink at water holes on a regular basis. During the dry season, both species rely on green growth along watercourses, and during the rainy season, they disperse through deciduous woodlands. Home ranges can be as small as 55 hectares (136 acres) or as large as 600 hectares (1,500 acres), with bulls migrating between wet- and dry-season ranges covering 11 square kilometre (4 square miles) in South Africa. In Kenya's Tsavo National Park, both sexes of lesser kudu had ranges averaging 230 hectares (570 acres), with an average density of only one kudu per square km (three kudus per square mile).
The greater kudu is still widely distributed in southern Africa's lowland Bushveld. Humans have pushed it out of the lowlands in northeastern and East Africa, and it is now mostly confined to mountains with dense woodland and thickets. Despite this, its secrecy and nocturnal activity allow it to survive unusually close to civilization. The lesser kudu lives in dense thornbush below 1,200 metres (3,900 feet) above sea level, both within and outside of East African parks.
Kudus are perfectly camouflaged in thickets and stand motionless in the baking heat of midday. If hiding fails, kudus take off with soaring bounds and frequently utter loud, hoarse barks. Both species form transitory herds of up to 25 animals on occasion, but the average group consists of two to three females and their offspring. Kudus have stronger social bonds (possibly kinship) than other tragelaphine antelopes (e.g., the eland and nyala). Except for mating, the sexes are separated. Males leave female herds when their horns grow past their ears and thus advertise their gender, at which point they form loose bachelor herds. Up to ten greater kudu bulls can sometimes be seen together, which is a spectacular sight, but males become increasingly solitary as they age. Kudus are especially susceptible to cattle-borne diseases like rinderpest, which wiped out their populations in the 1890s.
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