The Ugandan kob (Kobus kob thomasi) is a subspecies of the kob. It appears on the coat of arms of Uganda, along with a Grey crowned crane, representing the abundant wildlife present in the country.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
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GraminivoreIn zoology, a graminivore (not to be confused with a granivore) is an herbivorous animal that feeds primarily on grass. Graminivory is a form of g...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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ViviparousAmong animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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GrazingGrazing is a method of feeding in which a herbivore feeds on plants such as grasses, or other multicellular organisms such as algae. In agriculture...
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CursorialA cursorial organism is one that is adapted specifically to run. An animal can be considered cursorial if it has the ability to run fast (e.g. chee...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
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HerdingA herd is a social grouping of certain animals of the same species, either wild or domestic. The form of collective animal behavior associated with...
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Dominance hierarchyA dominance hierarchy (formerly and colloquially called a pecking order) is a type of social hierarchy that arises when members of animal social gr...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe Ugandan kob is similar in appearance to the impala but it is more sturdily built. Only the males have horns, which are lyre-shaped, strongly ridged, and divergent. Males are slightly larger than females. Apart from the throat patch, muzzle, eye ring, and inner ear, which are white, the coat is golden to reddish-brown, the color differentiating it from other kob subspecies. The belly and inside of the legs are white, and the front of the forelegs are black.
Ugandan kobs occur in South Sudan, to the west of the Nile, Uganda, and the north-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. They live in open or wooded savanna, near water, and also in grasslands near rivers and lakes.
Ugandan kobs are social animals and live in groups. Females and young males form loose groups of varying sizes which range according to food availability; they often move along watercourses and graze in valley bottoms. One group in South Sudan was recorded traveling 150 to 200 km (93 to 124 mi) during the dry season. Sometimes non-breeding males form their own groups. Kobs are diurnal animals, but usually inactive during the heat of the day.
Ugandan kobs are herbivores (graminivores) and feed largely on grasses and reeds.
In general, kobs have a lek mating system; the females live in loose groups and only visit the traditional breeding grounds in order to mate. For this purpose, males hold small territories of up to 200 m (660 ft) in diameter, the smallest territories being in the centre of crowded leks. After a gestation period of about 9 months, females give birth to only one calf usually in November or December. For their first month, calves remain hidden in dense vegetation and mother and calf identify each other by their noses. As the calves get older, they gather into crèches. Young females become reproductively mature in their second year, but males do not start breeding until they are older.
The major threat to Ugandan kobs is hunting. Their habit of lying out in open grassland makes them an accessible target for poachers; even though 98% of the present population is found in national parks and other protected areas hunting continues even there.
The IUCN Red List and other sources don’t provide the number of the Ugandan kob total population size. Currently, this subspecies is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...