A stocky gazelle from India in which males are a distinctive black and white and have long twisted horns, while females are fawn coloured with no horns.

Meaning of scientific name
'Antilope' from 'anthalops' (Greek) a horned animal; 'cervicapra' from 'cervus' (Latin) a deer and 'capra' (Latin) a she-goat.

Life span
10-12 years, but 18 has been recorded.

Statistics
100-150cm long with a 10-17cm tail, standing 60-83cm at the shoulder and weighing 25-45kg.

Physical description
A stocky gazelle. Males dark brown to black with white chin, eyes and underparts. Females and young light fawn. Horns long and straight with spiral twist, and found in males only.

Distribution
Indian subcontinent.

Habitat
Semidesert to open woodland.

Diet
Mixed browse with some grass.

Behaviour
Blackbuck are active during the day when it is cool, or at dawn and dusk during hot seasons. They are very fast runners, and leap to demonstrate their stamina to predators, as do other gazelles. Outside the breeding season, blackbuck are foudn in mixed groups, but as the breeding season approaches, the males form batchelor groups or manage to defend a territory individually. Males mark their territories with scent glands in front of the eye as well as dung and urine, and posture to each other and to females.

Reproduction
Breeding can occur throughout the year but peaks in March-May and August-October. One youngster is born after a gestation period of 5-6 months. The young are weaned after about 6 months, and become sexually mature at 1.5-2 yeas, when the males start to develop horns and then darken in colour.

Conservation status
Vulnerable.

Notes
Once one of the most abundant hoofed animals in India, the blackbuck was decimated by hunting for meat and sport as well as habitat loss. Populations have been introduced to Texas and Argentina, where they have thrived.