Chimp & See Talk

Bushbuck or sitatunga at Green Snowflake?

  • AnLand by AnLand moderator

    I realized that we might have sitatungas here at this site, especially as we are thinking that it is a bit swampy here at several paces which is why we have so many butterflies and the wood-eating. I am not really sure how we can distinguish bushbucks and sitatungas. The guide says that sitatungas are a bit heavier.

    The one thing is that we distinguish them on the species level and tag, the other is that bushbucks are classified as "small antelope" and sitatungas at "large ungulate".

    I will try to find same examples for review, but maybe people with more experience could give their opinion (and maybe example videos), too.

    I had this video ACP000dly6 for classification and just remembered a sitatunga discussion and checked its distribution. (For now I tagged with #bushbuck.)

    enter image description here

    Posted

  • Boleyn by Boleyn moderator

    @jwidness also commented on a video that it might be a sitatunga. ACP000dov8
    In this case I "voted" for bushbuck because of the horns. As far as I know Sitatungas have quite thick horns and longer ones than bushbucks, but then I'm not the expert. What do you think?

    enter image description here

    Posted

  • Boleyn by Boleyn moderator

    While scanning through the recents I found a video commented by @Batfan ACP000dot8 in which she referred to ACP000dot7
    Now I think this could actually be a sitatunga. It looks bigger and darker than a bushbuck and the horns are long and thick.

    Front view in video
    back view here
    enter image description here

    Posted

  • jwidness by jwidness moderator

    ACP000dot7 is absolutely a sitatunga -- their horns have larger maximum size, both in circumference and length, and are more likely to have white tips. Compared to bushbuck horns, sitatunga horns are often further apart at the tips and they usually angle out more from the skull at the base. But remember that both sitatunga and bushbuck start with small horns, so an individual with big horns is likely a sitatunga, but one with smaller horns may be a younger sitatunga or a bushbuck. Both have horns that spiral.

    More comparisons:

    Fur:
    Sitatunga females have basically the same color and pattern as bushbuck females, but sitatunga males tend to be darker than bushbuck (as in ACP000dot7). Both male and female sitatunga have longer, shaggier coats than bushbuck, making sitatunga markings look a bit less distinct. Bushbuck are more likely to have a dark "collar" around the neck. Sitatunga usually have white across the bridge of the nose, bushbuck only sometimes have this.

    Tail:
    Although sitatunga have shaggier coats, they actually have thinner tails than bushbuck. Because their tails are narrower, they tend to look longer and "looser" as they swing. Both sitatunga and bushbuck have white on the underside of the tail and may have black toward the tip.

    Build:
    Sitatunga are bigger and beefier than bushbuck: adult male sitatunga can be about twice as heavy as male bushbuck, the difference is not quite as large for females. There are a couple photos online of both species together, but those animals were hunted and I'd rather not repost them here. Sitatunga have shorter faces with a more pronounced downward curve at the bridge of the nose and bulkier "chipmunk" cheeks. Bushbuck have longer smoother muzzles.

    Feet:
    It's rare to get a video with good views of the feet, but sitatunga hooves are much much longer than bushbuck hooves, and they splay out to give them traction in swampy terrain.

    Finally, both bushbuck and sitatunga vary significantly by individual, age, sex, and region. Beware the google image search.

    Posted

  • AnLand by AnLand moderator in response to jwidness's comment.

    Thanks Jane!

    Posted

  • jwidness by jwidness moderator

    Some annotated photos, but remember that there is a lot of variation

    Sitatunga

    Imgur

    Imgur

    Imgur

    Imgur




    Bushbuck

    Imgur

    Imgur

    Imgur)

    Imgur

    Posted

  • MimiA by MimiA scientist, moderator

    this is great! thanks!!!

    Posted

  • Batfan by Batfan

    Sorry I got it wrong 😦 Yet another new-to-me animal - I do love all the learning that goes on on this site. Thanks for the above - that's really useful. Should I edit my comment?

    Posted

  • Boleyn by Boleyn moderator

    Thanks a lot @jwidness that really helps!

    @AnLand since we have such a nicely illustrated comparison¨now, could you pls. add a link in the GS species cheat sheet to this thread to easly refind it? Thanks!

    Posted

  • Boleyn by Boleyn moderator in response to Batfan's comment.

    @Batfan there's absolutely no need to apologize, in contrary: thanks to your tagging we were able to find a clear video of a sitatunga. If you just could remove the tagged bushbuck and add a sitatunga tag instead, that would be great. It's all yours! 😄

    Posted

  • Batfan by Batfan in response to Boleyn's comment.

    Thanks @Boleyn. Have altered the tag.

    Posted