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Black Buck (Antilope cervicapra) is a species of antelope found mainly in India but also in parts of Pakistan and Nepal. There are also introduced populations in various parts of the world including numerous ranches in Texas in the United States of America.
Local names for the species include Kala hiran, Sasin, Iralai Maan and Krishna jinka.
Description
The horns of the Black Buck are ringed with 3 to 4 turns and can be as long as 28 Inches. The Adult males can grow as tall as 32 inches and can weigh as much as 95 pounds. The upper body is black with the belly and the eye rings in white colour. The light-brown female is usually hornless. Males are dark brown. Black Bucks usually roam the plains in herds of 15 to 20 animals with one dominant male.
There are four sub species or geographic races
- Antilope cervicapra cervicapra
- Antilope cervicapra rajputanae
- Antilope cervicapra centralis
- Antilope cervicapra rupicapra
Native habitat
Originally spread over large tracts of India (except in North East India). Today the Black Buck population is confined to areas in Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana and Gujarat with a few small pockets in Central India. Its original habitat is open plain and not dense jungles. On the open plain the black buck is one of the fleetest animals and can outrun most predators over long distances.
The diet of the black buck consists mostly of grasses, although it does eat pods, flowers and fruits to supplement its diet. The maximum life span recorded is 16 years and the average is 12 years.
Threats
The main threats to the species are- Poaching
- Predation
- Habitat destruction
- Overgrazing
- Diseases
- Inbreeding
- Visitors
The Black Buck is hunted for sport, its flesh and skin. The Law in India protects the black buck but there are violations of the law on occasion. The remaining populations are under threat from inbreeding. The natural habitat of the black buck is being encroached upon by man's need for arable land and grazing ground for domesticated cattle. Exposure to domesticated cattle also renders the black buck exposed to bovine diseases. Their large herds, which once freely roamed in the plains of North India where they thrive best, are no longer visible. During the eighteenth, nineteenth and the first half of the twentieth century, black buck was the most hunted wild beast all over India. Till Independence, many princely states used to hunt this Indian Antelope and gazelle with cheetahs.
Mythology
According to the Hindu mythology Blackbuck or Krishna Jinka is considered as the vehicle (vahana) of the Moon-god or Chandrama.
Miscellaneous
The blackbuck, known as Krishna Jinka in Telugu language, has been declared the state animal of Andhra Pradesh.
Like most wild animals, the black buck is in principle protected in India by the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. Its protected status has gained publicity through a widely reported court case in which one of India's leading film stars, Mr. Salman Khan, was sentenced to five years imprisonment for killing two black bucks and several endangered chinkaras. The arrest was prompted by intense protests from the Bishnoi ethnic group, which holds animals and trees sacred, and on whose land the hunting had taken place.
Sanctuaries
- Bandhavgarh National Park
- Kanha National Park
- Ranthambhore National Park
- Corbett National Park
- Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary
- Gir National Park
Namesakes
- SS-8 Sasin, the NATO reporting name for the R-9 Desna intercontinental ballistic missile.
References
- Database entry includes justification for why this species is near threatened
Bovids | Flora and fauna of Rajasthan | Mammals of India
Hirschziegenantilope | Besoaariantilooppi | Elniaožė gazelė | Indische antilope | 印度黑羚
"Blackbuck"