Species profile
About the waterbuck
Waterbuck are never far from permanent water, and their coarse grey-brown coat carries a greasy, strongly scented secretion that waterproofs it. Two forms occur in Tanzania: the common waterbuck with a white ring encircling the rump, and the defassa with a solid white patch instead. Both are found in the country, and the two intergrade in the north.
Only bulls carry the long, forward-curving ringed horns. Waterbuck are conspicuous, unhurried animals along the Rufiji, the Great Ruaha and the lakeshores, and a bull standing in shallow water is one of the classic images of the southern parks.
Life in the wild
Behavior & relationships
Behavior
Grazes morning and evening, resting in shade or shallow water at midday. Enters water readily to escape predators.
Social life
Nursery herds of females and young, territorial bulls holding riverside ground, and bachelor groups of younger males.
What makes it remarkable
Special features
The white rump ring or patch, and a heavily scented waterproof coat that some predators appear to find unpalatable.
