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The Gerenuk (Litocranius walleri), also known as the Waller's Gazelle, is a long-necked species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
 of antelope
Antelope

Antelope are ruminant hoofed mammals of the family Bovidae in the order of even-toed ungulates. These animals are spread relatively evenly throughout the various subfamily of Bovidae and many are more closely related to cows or goats than to each other....
 found in dry bushy shrub and steppe in East Africa
East Africa

East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN subregion, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
. The word Gerenuk comes from the Somali
Somali language

Somali is a member of the East Cushitic languages branch of the Afro-Asiatic languages language family spoken by Somali people in Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Yemen and Kenya, as well as by the Somali diaspora around the world?an estimated total population of between 10 and 16 million speakers....
, meaning “giraffe-necked”, and leads to another common name
Common name

A common name is a name in general use within a community . A common name is not necessarily a commonly used name.Many of the conventions and traditions described in this article are based on the English language, and thus may not apply to common names in other languages....
, the Giraffe-necked Antelope. It is the only member of the genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
 Litocranius.

Gerenuks have a small head for their body, but their eyes and ears are big.






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The Gerenuk (Litocranius walleri), also known as the Waller's Gazelle, is a long-necked species
Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
 of antelope
Antelope

Antelope are ruminant hoofed mammals of the family Bovidae in the order of even-toed ungulates. These animals are spread relatively evenly throughout the various subfamily of Bovidae and many are more closely related to cows or goats than to each other....
 found in dry bushy shrub and steppe in East Africa
East Africa

East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN subregion, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
. The word Gerenuk comes from the Somali
Somali language

Somali is a member of the East Cushitic languages branch of the Afro-Asiatic languages language family spoken by Somali people in Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Yemen and Kenya, as well as by the Somali diaspora around the world?an estimated total population of between 10 and 16 million speakers....
, meaning “giraffe-necked”, and leads to another common name
Common name

A common name is a name in general use within a community . A common name is not necessarily a commonly used name.Many of the conventions and traditions described in this article are based on the English language, and thus may not apply to common names in other languages....
, the Giraffe-necked Antelope. It is the only member of the genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
 Litocranius.

Gerenuks have a small head for their body, but their eyes and ears are big. Unlike females, males have horns and a more muscular neck. They are brown on their back, and lighter underneath. They have short, black tails. From head to tail, the gerenuk is around 150 cm long. Males are a little taller than females, ranging from 89-105 cm, and the females are 80-100 cm. The male is also heavier than the female, weighing at 45 kg, and females are 30 kg. Gerenuks eat food from higher places than most other gazelle
GAZelle

A GAZelle is a series of mid-sized trucks, vans and buses made by Russian car manufacturer GAZ. GAZelles are similar to the later launched GAZ Sobol and GAZ Valdai line of vans and light trucks....
s and antelopes. They do this by standing up on their hind legs, and stretching out their long necks to get food off of tall bushes or small trees. Most of their diet is made up of tender leaves and shoots of prickly bushes and trees, but also includes buds, flowers, fruit, and climbing plants. Gerenuks do not need to drink, because they get enough water from the plants they eat. Because of this, they can survive in their dry habitat.

They can mate during anytime of the year. Females reach sexual maturity
Sexual maturity

Sexual maturity is the age or stage when an organism can sexual reproduction. It is sometimes considered synonymous with adulthood, though the two are distinct....
 at one year, and males reach sexual maturity at 1.5 years. The gestation period
Gestation period

I.H The gestation period in a viviparous animal is the length of its gestation. In humans this is 266 days , but varies for other animals.Gestation period is measured from fertilisation to birth....
 is about seven months. They are born one at a time, weighing about 3 kg at birth. Their life span is about eight years in the wild, but they can live thirteen years or more in captivity.

Subspecies

  • Southern Gerenuk Litocranius walleri walleri
  • Northern Gerenuk Litocranius walleri sclateri


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