Grant's and Thomson's interbreeding?

• by DanishDyna

  I'm pretty sure this is a Grant's gazelle (the white area at the rump extends above the black). But look at how pronounced the black stripe along the side is! I've seen several pictures where a Grant's gazelle had a dark area there, but never this dark. Do these two types of gazelles sometimes interbreed or is this one just an outlier?

  Posted January 16, 2013 11:01 AM

• by wilderzone moderator

  Interesting. I don't think I've seen a Grant's with a stripe this dark either. Hopefully one of the scientists can clarify.

  Posted January 16, 2013 8:39 PM

• by ajg

  I have seen a few over all the seasons, but usually the teenage/young ones without much horn yet. This one's got some good horns.

  Posted January 16, 2013 8:41 PM

• by kosmala scientist in response to DanishDyna's comment.

  This is a Grant's gazelle. And as you noted, typically adults don't have much of a band along the flank. While Grant's and Thomson's gazelles are closely related, I couldn't find any information about them hybridizing. It is known, however, that Grant's gazelle have a lot of variation within the species. So this could just be a rare version of Grant's gazelle.

  Posted January 17, 2013 1:27 AM