Thomson's Gazelle
Gazella thomsoni
Conservation status
Conservation Dependent
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Artiodactyla Family: Bovidae Subfamily: Antilopinae Genus: Gazella Species: G. thomsoni
Binomial name
Gazella thomsoni Günther, 1884

Male Thompson's gazelle. Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania.

Thomson's Gazelle

A Thompson's gazelle running at full speed while being pursued by a cheetah. Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Gazella thomsonii

The Thomson's Gazelle (Gazella thomsoni) is one of the best-known gazelles. It is named after explorer Joseph Thomson, and is often referred to as the "tommy". It is considered by some (e.g. Kingdon 1997) to be a subspecies of the Red-fronted Gazelle (G. rufifrons). PD image of gazelle from http://hawaii. ... The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species continuing to survive either in the present day or the future. ... Image File history File links Status_iucn2. ... Conservation Dependent (LR/cd) was an IUCN category assigned to species or lower taxa which were dependent on conservation efforts to prevent the taxon becoming threatened with extinction. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. ... For other uses, see Animal (disambiguation). ... Typical Classes See below Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates. ... Subclasses & Infraclasses Subclass †Allotheria* Subclass Prototheria Subclass Theria Infraclass †Trituberculata Infraclass Metatheria Infraclass Eutheria Mammals (class Mammalia) are warm-blooded, vertebrate animals characterized by the production of milk in female mammary glands and by the presence of: hair, three middle ear bones used in hearing, and a neocortex region in... Families Suidae Hippopotamidae Tayassuidae Camelidae Tragulidae Moschidae Cervidae Giraffidae Antilocapridae Bovidae The even-toed ungulates form the mammal order Artiodactyla. ... Subfamilies Bovinae Cephalophinae Hippotraginae Antilopinae Caprinae A bovid is any of almost 140 species of cloven-hoofed mammals belonging to the family Bovidae. ... Genera See text Antilopinae is a subfamily of Bovidae. ... Species Several, see text A gazelle is an antelope of the genus Gazella. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Albrecht Carl Ludwig Gotthilf Günther. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 704 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (2404 × 2046 pixel, file size: 719 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Male Thompsons gazelle. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 704 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (2404 × 2046 pixel, file size: 719 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Male Thompsons gazelle. ... Image File history File links Thompsons gazelle. ... Image File history File links Thompsons gazelle. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 548 pixelsFull resolution (2454 × 1680 pixel, file size: 176 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Thomsons gazelle in flight from a cheetah attack. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 548 pixelsFull resolution (2454 × 1680 pixel, file size: 176 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Thomsons gazelle in flight from a cheetah attack. ... Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Joseph Thomson (February 14, 1858 - August 2, 1895) was a Scottish geologist and explorer who played an important part in the Scramble for Africa. ... Binomial name (Gray, 1846) The Red-fronted Gazelle (Gazella rufifrons) is a species of gazelle that is widely but unevenly distributed across the middle Africa from Senegal to north-eastern Ethiopia. ...

Thomson's Gazelles live in Africa's savannas and grassland habitats, particularly the Serengeti region of Kenya and Tanzania, though they can also be found in Ethiopia, Somalia, and Sudan. They eat low vegetation and grass. Most of the water they need comes from what they eat. The Serengeti is a region of grasslands and woodlands in Mara Region in Tanzania. ...

Description

Thomson's Gazelles are 60–90 cm (24-35 in) tall and weigh 13–16 kg (29-35 lb). They have light brown coats with white underparts and a distinctive black stripe. Their horns are long and pointed with slight curvature. The white patch on their rump extends to underneath the tail but no further. An error sometimes made is the misidentification of Grant's Gazelles as Thomson's Gazelles. Although some Grant's do have the black stripe running across their sides, the white on their rump always extends above the tail. They can reach a speed of 80 km/h (50 mph)^[1] when chased by their enemy, the cheetah. Binomial name Gazella granti Brooke, 1872 Subspecies Gazella granti lacuum Gazella granti granti Gazella granti brighti Gazella granti petersi Gazella granti robertsi Grants Gazelle, Gazella granti, is a species of large, pale, fawn-colored African gazelle with long legs and lyre-shaped horns. ... This article is about the animal. ...

A noticeable behaviour of Thomson's Gazelles is their bounding leap, known as stotting or pronking, used to startle predators and display strength. They often congregate with other hoofed mammals, or ungulates, such as wildebeest and zebra and usually live and migrate in herds with hundreds or thousands of other Thomson's Gazelles. Stotting is a behavior of gazelles, particularly Thomsons Gazelles, involving leaping straight up during pursuit by a predator, typically a cheetah or lion. ... Orders & Clades Order Perissodactyla Eparctocyona Order Arctostylonia (extinct) Order Mesonychia (extinct) Cetartiodactyla Order Cetacea Order Artiodactyla Bulbulodentata (extinct) Family Hyopsodontidae Meridiungulata (extinct) Order Litopterna Notoungulata (extinct) Order Toxodontia Order Typotheria Ungulates (meaning roughly being hoofed or hoofed animal) are several groups of mammals most of which use the tips of... Species Connochaetes gnou Connochaetes taurinus The wildebeest (plural, wildebeest or wildebeests), also called the gnu (pronounced or ), is an antelope of the genus Connochaetes. ... For other uses, see Zebra (disambiguation). ...

Social structure and behaviour

The social structure of gazelles consists of several types of groups. Male gazelles are territorial throughout their adult lives, though not usually before 2–3 years of age. During the non-territorial periods males usually spend their time in bachelor groups or as part of a mixed herd. Likewise females will form migratory female groups that travel through the males' territory. As the female groups pass through, the territorial males will try to herd them to prevent them from leaving. Adult male bucks with adjoining territories will engage in combat several times a day, fighting with their horns to establish dominance and the boundaries of their territories. In this way, the accepted boundaries of the territory can change on a daily basis. If a lone male, a bachelor group, or in some cases even an adolescent male fawn of a female gazelle should be passing through a territorial male's region, the male will chase the offender out of his territory. Interestingly, this territoriality does not extend to males of other species. The territory of a Thomson's gazelle and several other types of ungulates may overlap with no problem whatsoever. Occasionally, a Thomson's gazelle and a zebra or other ungulate will even appear to enjoy one another's company with great sociability.

Breeding and life expectancy

Female Thomson's Gazelles give birth to single fawns after a 5–6 month gestational period. They are unusual among other ungulates in that they can give birth twice yearly, rather than just once.

In the wild, Thomson's Gazelles can live up to 10–15 years, although they are preyed on by most African big cats and hyenas, and are (depending on the location), sometimes the preferred prey of cheetahs. Cheetahs are able to attain higher speeds, but Thomson's Gazelles can outlast cheetahs in long chases and are able to make turns more speedily. Half of all the fawns born will be lost to predators before reaching adulthood.^{[citation needed]} This article is about the animal. ...

References

• Kingdon, Jonathan (1997) The Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals. Academic Press, San Diego and London. Pp. 411–413. (ISBN 0-12-408355-2)
• Antelope Specialist Group 1996. Gazella thomsonii. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 30 July 2007.