Order: Artiodactyla Family:
Bovidae
Scientific name: Addax nasomasculatus U.S.
common name: Addax
Status in the wild: Listed as endangered by IUCN;
Appendix 1 of CITES
Major threats: Hunting and habitat loss
Geographic range
historically: Western Sahara and Mauritania to Egypt and Sudan:
possibly Palestine and the Arabian Peninsula
Geographic range currently: Northeastern Niger,
north-central Chad, the border of northwestern Mali and eastern Mauritania,
introduced into Tunisia [1]
Habitat: Desert and semi-desert areas
and gravel plains
Circadian cycle: Most active at night and at
dawn and dusk, resting during the heat of the day.
Size
General range male female birth
Head to rump length: 1200-1750
Tail length: 250-350 mm
Head & tail length: 1450-2100 mm
Shoulder height: 950-1150 mm
Weight: 60-135 kg 100-135 kg 60-90
kg 5
kg
Sexual dimorphism: Males are larger than
females. Both sexes have horns.
Mating Season: Throughout the year in
captivity.
Birthing season: Birth peaks in winter and
spring for both captive and wild populations.
Gestation period: 257-264 days
Estrous cycle: Lasts 24-48 hours
Monestrus/polyestrus: Polyestrous
Courtship: Dominance displays are prominent
within the hippotragine courtship. Females react aggressively to males unable
to dominate them, but when an
adult male approaches in low stretch, females respond by
urinating. The male then urine tests. During the mating march, the male follows
closely,
he sniffs and may rub his face or horns on the cow’s croup.
Foreleg lifting tests the female’s willingness to stand for mounting. The male
also
rests his chin on the female’s croup as a mounting prelude.
Copulation: The copulatory posture is an
upright, firm grasping of the female’s loins.
Number of mammae: Four
Interbirth interval: 355 days
Sexual maturity: Males are mature at 24
months, females during their second or third summer.
Other information: Females usually isolate
before and for at least a week after calving, remaining within view of the
hiding place during the early part of the
concealment
period.
Rearing and
young
Young called: Calf
Number of young (range): One
Condition of young: Precocial
Eyes open: At birth
First leave
pouch/den/hide/nest: Calves remain concealed for up to six weeks.
Weaned: 23-29 weeks
Life expectancy: Up to 25 years in
captivity.
Social structure: Move in herds of 5-20 animals
led by an old male. A group of captive
females were observed to establish a dominance hierarchy, the oldest
animals ranking
the highest. In a semi-captive population, the males established territories
and attempted to keep the females within their
territory.
Unique behavior(s): In a mixed group the males
leave small piles of pellets, while the females scatter their dung.
Senses: Vision, olfaction, and
hearing are the most important senses.
Coat & coloration: The coat on the body and neck
are grayish brown in the winter, but in summer the body coloration becomes
sandy almost white. The
legs, hips, belly, ears, and facial markings
are white, and the tuft of hair on the forehead is dark brown to black.
Dental Formula: 0/3 I, 0/1 C, 3/2-3 PM, 3/3
M = 30-32 total
Diet: Desert
vegetation including shoots and leaves. Addax are the most desert adapted of
the antelope and can subsist without drinking.
Nowak, Ronald M. (ed.) 1999.Walker’s Mammals of the
World Vol. 2 (6th edition). The John Hopkins University Press,
Baltimore and London.
Macdonald,
David (ed.). 1987. The Encyclopedia of Mammals.
Facts on File Publications, New York.
Estes,
Richard D. 1991. The Behavior Guide to African Mammals. The University of California Press, Berkeley.
Kingdon,
Jonathan 1997. The Kingdon Field Guide to
African Mammals. Academic Press,
London.
Alden,
Peter C. et al. 1995. National Audubon
Society Field Guide to African Wildlife.
Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York