Wild about Wildebeests

Wild about
Wildebeests
Maegan Boutot
Table of Contents
What is a wildebeest?....................................................... 1
Physical Description...........................................................2
Habitat.............................................................................3
Predators..........................................................................4
Defense............................................................................5
Migration..........................................................................6
Reproduction.....................................................................9
Life Cycle........................................................................10
Adaptations.....................................................................11
Blue Wildebeest Food Web................................................12
Glossary.........................................................................13
About the Author.............................................................14
What is a wildebeest?
If you have ever seen a documentary or
television program about Africa, there is a
significant chance you have seen a
wildebeest!
Wildebeests are large herbivores that
look similar to cows; however, they are
actually related to the antelope family. The
most common type of wildebeest is the blue wildebeest, sometimes called the
brindled gnu. Scientists call this animal Connochaetes taurinis.
Scientists also classify animals into
different groups. The taxonomy of
wildebeests is:
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Mammalia
Order
Artiodactyla
Family
Bovidae
Genus
Connochaetes
Species
taurinis
Physical Description
Many people find wildebeests to be odd looking creatures. They have horns and
hindquarters similar to that of antelopes, yet a face, mane, and tail that look a
lot like those of horses. Because of their odd physical appearance, they were
called “wild beast” or, in Afrikaans, wildebeest.
Habitat
Wildebeests live in Africa. They can be found from Kenya to South Africa, living
in woodlands and grasslands. They eat mainly grass and other smaller
vegetation.
Grasslands are drier areas that have, as the
name implies, a lot of grass and woody
plants. One type of grassland common in
Africa is the savanna. Many wildebeests can
be found grazing there.
Woodlands are areas filled with trees so close
that they can form a canopy. They are very
similar to grasslands, but generally tend to have
more trees. Wildebeests will migrate here too.
Predators
Wildebeests have many predators that hunt them in both the woodlands and
grasslands. There are larger and small carnivores, including lions, spotted
hyenas, and cheetahs.
Lionesses eating a buffalo.
Defense
Stampeding wildebeests on the plains.
Wildebeests do not have any real defense mechanisms. In order to protect
themselves, they live in large packs, and when under attack, they stampede.
Migration
Every wildebeest migrates around different woodlands and grasslands, many of
which lie within the Serengeti. Over a million wildebeests, along with many
other animals such as zebras and gazelles, migrate among five different
locations during the year, consistently in search of fresh grass.
December-March
During this time, the herd can be found grazing in the Southern Serengeti,
around the area of the Ngorongoro Conservation area.
The Ngorongoro Conservation
area in Tanzania.
A heard of animals is grazing far
off into the distance on the
mountain.
April-May
After grazing in the south, the packs move to the west. There, they
find lots of grasslands to satisfy their needs. This area is known as the Western
Corridor.
Wildebeests and zebras in the Mara Triangle.
June
In June, the millions of animals migrate to an area around the Mara
Triangle, located in Kenya. Also during this time, the dry season begins.
July-October
During this 4 month period, the wildebeests and other animals cross the
Mara River and enter the Masai Mara. This is a dangerous journey because if
they cross the river at too deep of a spot, predators like crocodiles can easily
catch the animals, or they could drown.
Wildebeests safely
crossing the Mara River
(left), instead of against
crocodiles (right).
November
After the Mara has been depleted of grass, the animals finally travel
southward again to restart the process. Throughout their entire lives,
wildebeests and the other grazing animals travel in search of food.
Reproduction
At the end of the rainy season, from the end of March through June,
wildebeests begin to mate. In order to find a female, the males, normally at
least four years old, show off their masculinity by grunting and fighting. They
also drive their horns into the ground, creating a territory in which they mate.
Females, who begin to reproduce when they are three years old, are known to
mate with more than
one male on many
occasions.
The wildebeest
offspring are born
alive, similarly to the
birth of calves.
A baby wildebeest being born.
Life Cycle
Between 8 and 9 months after mating,
wildebeests give birth. After being born, the
offspring
must
be
able
to
walk
almost
instantly; they are not protected by their
pack. They can walk within minutes and run in
under two hours, but many of the young stay
with their mother, some doing so for up to a
Wildebeests at a watering hole.
year.
Once the males reach 4, they begin to try
to mate, but they may not be strong enough to fight other males. Females,
however, can mate as early as 3.
The life of a wildebeest from this point on consists of mating and migrating
until they are eaten or die of old age.
Adaptations
One of the best
adaptations of the
wildebeests is pack life. By
thriving in packs, they are
able to work together to
avoid predators.
The migratory pattern of
the wildebeests
demonstrates another
evolutionary change in the
Wildebeests can be found grazing on any
grass that they can find.
animals, which is now an instinctual drive.
Another reason that wildebeests have thrived so well on the African
Serengeti is because they have developed they ability to eat a lot of grass in a
single bite because of their terrific incisor teeth.
Blue Wildebeest Food Web
Food webs display how energy is
obtained by different animals in an
ecosystem.
Lions
Hyenas
Cheetahs
Second level
consumers
Zebras
Wildebeests
First level
consumers
Scavengers
Vultures
Decomposers
Antelope
Grass
Fungi, bacteria,
worms, termites
Producers
Glossary
Taxonomy: the study of naming and organizing organisms
Hindquarters: the back of an animal, including the back thighs and legs
Canopy: a level of an ecosystem that is formed by overlaying tree branches,
which create a habitat
Predators: carnivorous animals; used to describe what eats a certain animal
Migration: the movement of animals or people from one place to another,
normally in search of something
Masculinity: the characteristics of being of the male sex
Offspring: the next generation of a species that is produced by reproduction
Adaptations: the evolutionary changes that a species undergoes so they can
survive better in its environment
Decomposers: organisms that break down other dead organisms, which
replenishes nutrients in the soil
Consumers: organisms that do not produce their own food
First level consumers: consumers that eat plants
Second level consumers: consumers that eat other animals
Producers: organisms that produce their own food
About the Author
Maegan Boutot is a 16 year old student from Sutton, Massachusetts. She
currently attends the Massachusetts Academy of Mathematics and Science at
WPI. As a student, she enjoys studying the liberal arts, especially biology and
drama. In the future, she hopes to enter into the biomedical field.
Illustration Credits
Title page:
Blue wildebeest on the African savannah - African Safaris, South African Tourism
http://www.south-africa-tours-and-travel.com/african-safaris.html
Page 1:
Daily Facts
http://www.dailyfacts.org/wildebeest%20facts
Page 2:
Cruiser Safaris
http://www.cruisersafaris.com/animals/blu_wildebeest.htm
Page 3:
Savanna. Dan Perlman, Brandeis University, 2005
http://www.discoverlife.org/pa/or/polistes/pr/2005centers/
Woodland. WildlifeSafari.info
http://www.wildlifesafari.info/savanna_woodland_habitat.htm
Page 4:
Lions: Africa’s Magnificent Predators
http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/myhrvold_lions07/myhrvold_lions07_index.html
Page 5:
Wild N’ Beaches
http://www.wilddreamliners.com/
Page 6:
Ngorongoro Conservation Area: grassland, William & Marcia Levy—Photo Researchers, Inc.
http://www.britannica.com/ebc/art-17394/Golden-wildflowers-illuminate-a-grassland-in-NgorongoroConservation-Area-Tanzania
Page 7:
Mara Triangle Animals on the Brink of Disaster
http://www.lifeinthefastlane.ca/mara-triangle-animals-on-brink-of-disaster/offbeat-news
Page 8:
Wildebeests. Game Drivers Safari
http://www.safarikenya.co.uk/
Crocodiles in the Mara River, Kenya Medical Mission
http://www.kenyamedical.com/Photo%20Album.htm
Page 9:
Natural History Magazine, Inc.
http://www.naturalhistorymagazine.com/0906/0906_feature_lowres.html
Page 10:
Wildebeest
http://facweb.furman.edu/~ssalzman/southafrica/wildebeest.htm
Page 11:
Wildebeest Grazing Road Side
http://www.flickr.com/photos/buckofive/303475224/