Salt's dik-dik (''Madoqua saltiana'') is a small

antelope The term antelope refers to numerous extant or recently extinct species of the ruminant artiodactyl family Bovidae that are indigenous to most of Africa, India, the Middle East, Central Asia, and a small area of Eastern Europe. Antelopes do ...

found in semidesert, bushland, and thickets in the

Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...

, but marginally also in northern

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

and eastern

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

. It is named after Henry Salt, who was the first European to acknowledge the species in Abyssinia in the early 19th century.

Description

Salt's dik-diks are long, high, and weigh . Kingdon, J. (1997). ''The Kingdon Guide to African Mammals.'' Academic Press. As in other dik-diks, the small, pointed horns are only present in the male. Their colour varies significantly depending on the subspecies.

Taxonomy

Together with the closely related silver dik-dik, this species forms the subgenus ''Madoqua'' in the genus ''Madoqua'' (other dik-diks are also in the genus ''Madoqua'', but the subgenus ''Rhynchotragus'').Ansell, W. F. H. (1972). Order Artiodactyla. Part 15. Pp. 1-84. ''in'': Meester, J., and H. W. Setzer, eds (1972). ''The mammals of Africa: An identification manual''Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C. The

taxonomy image:Hierarchical clustering diagram.png, 280px, Generalized scheme of taxonomy Taxonomy is a practice and science concerned with classification or categorization. Typically, there are two parts to it: the development of an underlying scheme o ...

of this subgenus is complex and a matter of dispute. Today, the most widely used treatment is based on a review in 1978, Yalden, D. (1978). ''A revision of the dik-diks of the subgenus Madoqua (Madoqua).'' Monitore Zoologico Italiano, n.s. suppl. 11: 245-264. but a significantly different treatment was presented in a review in 1972. Following the review in 1978, the silver dik-dik is treated as a separate

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

species, and Salt's dik-dik has five

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

: *''M. s. saltiana'' is found from northern

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

Eritrea Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...

and far eastern

, and is relatively large with a reddish-grey back. *''M. s. hararensis'' is found in the

Hararghe Hararghe ( ''Harärge''; Harari language, Harari: ሀረርጌ፞ይ, هَرَرْݘٛىيْ,''Harargêy'', Oromo language, Oromo: Harargee, ) was a provinces of Ethiopia, province of eastern Ethiopia with its capital in Harar. Etymology Harargh ...

region in eastern Ethiopia, and has a gingery back and dark red flanks. *''M. s. lawrenci'' is found in eastern and southeastern

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

, and has a silvery back and russet flanks. *''M. s. phillipsi'' is found in

Somaliland Somaliland, officially the Republic of Somaliland, is an List of states with limited recognition, unrecognised country in the Horn of Africa. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden and bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, E ...

, and its back is grey and flanks are orange. *''M. s. swaynei'' is found in the Jubba Valley region of southern Ethiopia, southern Somalia, and far northern

; its back is brown-grey. In 2003, each of the above was proposed to represent an evolutionary species, but , most maintain them as subspecies. The review in 1972 differed significantly from the above. Under that treatment, three species are recognized in the subgenus ''Madoqua'': Salt's sik-dik (''M. saltiana'' with the subspecies ''saltiana'' and ''cordeauxi''), Phillip's dik-dik (''M. phillipsi'' with the subspecies ''phillipsi'', ''gubanensis'', ''hararensis'', and ''lawrencei''), and Swayne's dik-dik (''M. swaynei'' with the subspecies ''swaynei'', ''erlangeri'', and '' piancentinii''). Of these

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; : taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular name and ...

, ''M. s. cordeauxi'', ''M. p. gubanensis'', and ''M. p. erlangeri'' were considered entirely invalid in 1978.

Behavior

Salt's dik-diks are shy animals. They are active at night and dusk to avoid the midday heat, and are considered

crepuscular In zoology, a crepuscular animal is one that is active primarily during the twilight period, being matutinal (active during dawn), vespertine (biology), vespertine/vespertinal (active during dusk), or both. This is distinguished from diurnalit ...

. Dominant dik-diks flare their crests. The animals are most often found in pairs and small groups, and Salt's dik-diks mainly eat leaves and shoots of acacia trees. Due to ecological factors, Salt's dik-diks have a considerably lower basal metabolic rate than other ruminants that inhabit temperate and cold climates.

Reproduction

The gestation period lasts approximately 150 –180 days. Female dik-diks give birth to 1 cub twice a year. The newborn is hidden in the nesting area for at least 2–3 weeks. After 1 week, an infant is able to eat solid food. However, it continues to nurse for 3–4 months. After the first month of life, young males begin to grow their horns. Salt's dik-dik reaches adult size after 8 months and stops growing completely after 12 months. As soon as the young dik-dik reaches sexual maturity (6–9 months), it establishes a territory with a mate. CASTELLÓ, José R. BOVIDS OF THE WORLD: Antelopes, Gazelles, Cattle, Goats, Sheep, and Relatives. Princeton University Press, 2016, pp 216–217. ISBN 978-0-691-16717-6.

References

External links

Salt's dik-dik informationPhillip's Dik-Dik at Al Wabra Wildlife Preserve
{{Taxonbar, from=Q922138 Salt's dik-dik Mammals of Ethiopia Mammals of Somalia Mammals of Djibouti Mammals of Kenya Mammals of Sudan Fauna of the Horn of Africa Salt's dik-dik