Snapshot Serengeti Talk

What is this gazelle doing?

  • DanishDyna by DanishDyna

    Is that the gazelle's tongue? Or is that an afterbirth thingy?

    Posted

  • ajg by ajg

    You can see the sequence here thanks to dms246!

    http://talk.snapshotserengeti.org/#/collections/CSGS0001d9

    Posted

  • dms246 by dms246 moderator

    Yeah - I was hoping it might show the actual birth, but I'm afraid she did that off camera somewhere - either shortly before she arrived in front of the camera, or there's a point shortly after she arrives where she lies down. But at no point is there any sight of a newborn calf suckling or anything, so I suspect she may have given birth nearby, cleaned and fed the youngster, then moved a short distance away to deal with the rest of the process. I read that Grant's gazelle babies can't walk or run too well at first, so they're left hiding in undergrowth for the first few days, and the mother visits them 4 times a day to feed them.

    Posted