The blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra), also known as the Indian antelope, is a medium-sized antelope native to India and Nepal. It inhabits grassy plains and lightly forested areas with perennial water sources.

It stands up to high at the shoulder. Males weigh , with an average of . Females are lighter, weighing or on average. Males have long corkscrew horns, and females occasionally develop horns, as well. The white fur on the chin and around the eyes is in sharp contrast with the black stripes on the face. Both sexes' coats feature a two-tone colouration; in males, the majority of the body is dark brown to black, with white circles around the eyes, white ears and tail, and the belly, lower jaw, and inner legs also white. Females and juveniles are yellowish-fawn to tan and display the same white areas, only with more of a beige tone than the males. Females also feature a more pronounced horizontal white side-stripe, starting around the shoulder and ending at the rump. The blackbuck is the sole living member of the genus Antilope and was described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized.

The blackbuck is active mainly during the day. It forms three types of small groups: female, male, and young bachelor herds. Males often adopt lekking as a strategy to garner females for mating. While other males are not allowed into these territories, females often visit these places to forage. The male can thus attempt mating with her. The blackbuck is an herbivore and grazes on low grasses, occasionally browsing as well. Females become sexually mature at the age of eight months, but mate no earlier than two years of age. Males mature later, at 1.5 years. Mating takes place throughout the year. Gestation is typically six months long, after which a single calf is born. The lifespan is typically 10 to 15 years.

The antelope is native to and occurs mainly in India, while it is locally extinct in Pakistan and Bangladesh. It was formerly widespread; today small and scattered herds are largely confined to protected areas. During the 20th century, blackbuck numbers declined sharply due to excessive hunting, deforestation, and habitat destruction.

The blackbuck has been introduced in Argentina, Australia and the United States, primarily on hunting ranches. In Argentina, the population is surviving well. In India, hunting of blackbuck is prohibited under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. The blackbuck has significance in Hinduism; Indian and Nepali villagers do not harm the antelope.

Etymology

The scientific name of the blackbuck Antilope cervicapra stems from the Latin word antalopus ("horned animal"). The specific name cervicapra is composed of the Latin words cervus ("deer") and capra ("she-goat"). The vernacular name "blackbuck" is a reference to the dark brown to black colour of the dorsal part of the coat of the males. The earliest recorded use of this name dates back to 1850.

Taxonomy and evolution

The blackbuck is the sole living member of the genus Antilope and is classified in the family Bovidae. The species was described and given its binomial name by Swedish zoologist Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae in 1758. Antilope also includes fossil species, such as Antilope subtorta and Antilope intermedia.

Antilope, Eudorcas, Gazella, and Nanger form a clade within their tribe Antilopini. A 1995 study of the detailed karyotype of Antilope suggested that within this clade, Antilope is closest to the Gazella group. A 1999 phylogenetic analysis confirmed that Antilope is the closest sister taxon to Gazella, although an earlier phylogeny, proposed in 1976, placed Antilope as sister to Nanger. In a more recent revision of the phylogeny of the Antilopini on the basis of sequences from multiple nuclear and mitochondrial loci in 2013, Eva Verena Bärmann (of the University of Cambridge) and colleagues re-examined the phylogenetic relationships and found Antilope and Gazella to be sister genera distinct from the sister genera Nanger and Eudorcas.

Two subspecies are recognised,

  • A. c. cervicapra <small>(Linnaeus, 1758)</small>, known as the southeastern blackbuck, occurs in southern, eastern, and central India. The white eye ring of the male is narrow above the eye and the neck is all black in the male and the white on the underside is largely restricted to the belly in both males and females. The black leg stripe is well defined and reaches all along the leg.
  • A. c. rajputanae (<small>Zukowsky, 1927)</small>, known as the northwestern blackbuck, occurs in northwestern India. Males have a grey sheen to the dark parts during the breeding season. The white on the underside extends up to half way on the sides of the body and the lower base of the neck of males is white. The white eye ring is broad all around the eye with the leg-stripe going only down to the shanks.

Genetics

The blackbuck shows variation in its diploid chromosome number. Males have 31–33, while females have 30–32. Males have an XY1Y2 sex chromosome. Unusually large sex chromosomes had earlier been described only in a few species, all of which belonged to Rodentia. However, in 1968, a study found that two artiodactyls, the blackbuck and the sitatunga, too, showed this abnormality. Generally, the X chromosome constitutes 5% of the haploid chromosomal complement, but the X chromosome of the blackbuck this percentage is 14.96. Portions of both peculiarly large chromosomes show delayed replication.

A 1997 study found lower variation in blood protein polymorphism in Antilope in comparison with Antidorcas, Eudorcas, and Gazella. This was attributed to a history of rapid evolution of an autapomorphic phenotype of Antilope. This might have been aided by a particularly strong selection of a few dominant males due to their lekking behaviour.

Characteristics

thumb|Male blackbuck

The blackbuck has white fur on the chin and around the eyes, which is in sharp contrast with the black stripes on the face. The coats of males show two-tone colouration; while the upper parts and outsides of the legs are dark brown to black, the underparts and the insides of the legs are all white. Darkness typically increases as the male ages; females and juveniles are yellowish fawn to tan. In Texas, blackbuck moult in spring, following which the males look notably lighter, though darkness persists on the face and the legs. On the contrary, males grow darker as the breeding season approaches. and albinism have been observed in wild blackbuck. Albino blackbuck are often zoo attractions as in the Indira Gandhi Zoological Park.

The blackbuck is a moderately sized antelope. It stands up to high at the shoulder; the head-to-body length is nearly .

Blackbuck bear a close resemblance to gazelles, and are distinguished mainly by the fact that while gazelles are brown in the dorsal parts, blackbuck develop a dark brown or black colour in these parts.

A few blackbucks are present in the Indian Institute of Technology Madras campus.

The blackbuck is considered locally extinct in Pakistan and Bangladesh.

In 2013, an antelope that appeared to be a blackbuck was sighted at Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory.

In 2015, a blackbuck was sighted near Warrnambool, Victoria, which was later captured and sent to Mansfield Zoo.

The blackbuck is a declared pest in Queensland In Victoria, blackbuck and American bison are considered both "regulated pest animals" and livestock.

The antelope was introduced in Texas in the Edwards Plateau in 1932. By 1988, the population had increased and the antelope was the most populous exotic animal in Texas after the chital.

Ecology and behaviour

thumb|Blackbuck herd in [[Gujarat]]

The blackbuck is a diurnal antelope, though is less active at noon when summer temperatures rise. It can run at a speed of . Herd size reduces in summer. The males actively defend resources in their territories, nearly in size; While other males are not allowed into these territories, females are allowed to visit these places to forage. The male can attempt mating with visiting females. Lekking is a demanding strategy, as the males often have to bear injuries &ndash; thus it is a tactic typically adopted by strong, dominant males. Males may either defend their mates or try to forcibly copulate with them. Weaker males, who may not be dominant, might choose the second method.

The blackbuck is severely affected by natural calamities such as floods and droughts, from which it can take as long as five years to recover. Old rutting bulls might be especially vulnerable prey. The golden jackal hunts juveniles. Village dogs are reported to kill fawns, but are unlikely to successfully hunt and kill adults.

Blackbucks in Great Indian Bustard Sanctuary show flexible habitat use as the resources and risks change seasonally in the landscape. They use small patches in the area of about . Human activities strongly influenced the movement of herds, but the presence of small refuges allowed them to persist in the landscape.

Diet

thumb|Blackbuck prefer grass

The blackbuck is a herbivore and grazes on low grasses, occasionally browsing as well. It prefers sedges, fall witchgrass, mesquite, and live oak and was occasionally observed browsing on acacia trees in the Cholistan Desert. In Velavadar Black Buck Sanctuary, Dichanthium annulatum comprised 35% of the diet. Digestion of nutrients, especially crude proteins, was poor in summer, but more efficient in the rainy and winter seasons. Crude protein intake in summer was very low, even below the recommended value. Blackbuck consumed less food in summer than in winter, and often foraged on the fruits of Prosopis juliflora. Prosopis becomes a significant food item if grasses are scarce. Water is a daily requirement of the blackbuck. Rutting males aggressively establish and defend their territories from other males, giving out loud grunts and engaging in serious head-to-head fights, pushing each other using horns.

Gestation typically lasts six months, after which a single calf is born.

Conservation

The blackbuck is listed under Appendix III of CITES. It inhabits several protected areas of India, including

  • in Gujarat: Velavadar National Park, Gir Forest National Park;
  • in Bihar: Kaimur Wildlife Sanctuary;
  • in Maharashtra: Great Indian Bustard Sanctuary;
  • in Madhya Pradesh: Kanha National Park
  • in Rajasthan: Tal Chhapar Sanctuary, National Chambal Sanctuary, Ranthambhore National Park
  • in Karnataka: Ranibennur Blackbuck Sanctuary;
  • in Tamil Nadu: Point Calimere Wildlife and Bird Sanctuary, Guindy National Park.
  • in Punjab: Abohar Wildlife Sanctuary and Mehrgarh. The blackbuck is routinely depicted in miniature paintings of the Mughal era of 16th to 19th centuries depicting royal hunts often using cheetahs. Villagers in India and Nepal generally do not harm the blackbuck. Tribes such as the Bishnois revere and care for most animals including the blackbuck. In Tamil Nadu, the blackbuck is considered to be the vehicle of the Hindu goddess Korravai. In Rajasthan, the goddess Karni Mata is believed to protect the blackbuck.

The hide of the blackbuck is deemed to be sacred in Hinduism. According to the scriptures, it is to be sat upon only by Brahmin priests, sadhus and yogis, forest-dwellers and bhikshu mendicants. Blackbuck meat is highly regarded in Texas. In an analysis, blackbuck milk was found to have 6.9% protein, 9.3% fat, and 4.3% lactose.

In some agricultural areas in northern India, the blackbuck are found in large numbers and raid crop fields. However, the damage caused by blackbuck is far lower than that caused by the nilgai.

In 2018, Bollywood actor Salman Khan was sentenced to five years imprisonment for poaching a blackbuck in 1998.

See also

  • Barasingha
  • Sambar deer

References

  • BBC Nature: Blackbuck