Gazella thomsonii - Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, Orlando, Florida, USA - 20100916.jpg
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A gazelle is one of many
antelope The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia. Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...
species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, '' Eudorcas'' and ''
Nanger ''Nanger'' is a genus of antelopes, commonly called gazelles. ''Nanger'' was originally considered a subgenus within the genus ''Gazella'', but has since been elevated to genus status. The three living species within the genus ''Nanger'' are: ...
'', which were formerly considered
subgenera In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...
of ''Gazella''. A third former subgenus, '' Procapra'', includes three living species of Asian gazelles. Gazelles are known as swift animals. Some are able to run at bursts as high as or run at a sustained speed of . Gazelles are found mostly in the deserts, grasslands, and savannas of Africa; but they are also found in southwest and central Asia and the Indian subcontinent. They tend to live in herds, and eat fine, easily digestible plants and leaves. Gazelles are relatively small antelopes, most standing high at the shoulder, and are generally fawn-colored. The gazelle genera are ''Gazella'', ''Eudorcas'', and ''Nanger''. The taxonomy of these genera is confused, and the classification of species and
subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
has been an unsettled issue. Currently, the genus ''Gazella'' is widely considered to contain about 10 species. One subspecies is extinct: the Queen of Sheba's gazelle. Most surviving gazelle species are considered threatened to varying degrees. Closely related to the true gazelles are the Tibetan goa and Mongolian gazelles (species of the genus ''Procapra''), the blackbuck of Asia, and the African springbok. One widely familiar gazelle is the African species Thomson's gazelle (''Eudorcas thomsonii''), which is around in height at the shoulder and is coloured brown and white with a distinguishing black stripe. The males have long, often curved, horns. Like many other prey species, Tommies exhibit a distinctive behaviour of stotting (running and jumping high before fleeing) when they are threatened by predators, such as cheetahs,
lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...
s, African wild dogs,
crocodile Crocodiles (family (biology), family Crocodylidae) or true crocodiles are large semiaquatic reptiles that live throughout the tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. The term crocodile is sometimes used even more loosely to inclu ...
s,
hyena Hyenas, or hyaenas (from Ancient Greek , ), are feliform carnivoran mammals of the family Hyaenidae . With only four extant species (each in its own genus), it is the fifth-smallest family in the Carnivora and one of the smallest in the clas ...
s, and
leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...
s.


Etymology and their name

''Gazelle'' is derived from ar, غزال ', Maghrebi pronunciation '. To Europe it first came to
Old Spanish Old Spanish, also known as Old Castilian ( es, castellano antiguo; osp, romance castellano ), or Medieval Spanish ( es, español medieval), was originally a dialect of Vulgar Latin spoken in the former provinces of the Roman Empire that provided ...
and Old French, and then around 1600 the word entered the English language. The
Arab people The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Wester ...
traditionally hunted the gazelle. Appreciated for its grace, it is a symbol most commonly associated in Arabic literature with female beauty. In many countries in Northwestern Sub-Saharan Africa, the gazelle is commonly referred to as "dangelo", meaning "swift deer".


Symbolism or totemism in African families

The gazelle, like the antelope to which it is a family of, is the totem of many African families such as the Joof family of the
Senegambia region The Senegambia (other names: Senegambia region or Senegambian zone,Barry, Boubacar, ''Senegambia and the Atlantic Slave Trade'', (Editors: David Anderson, Carolyn Brown; trans. Ayi Kwei Armah; contributors: David Anderson, American Council of Le ...
,Gastellu, Jean-Marc (M. Sambe - 1937), ''L'égalitarisme économique des Serer du Sénégal'', IRD Editions (1981), p. 130,

/ref> the Bagananoa of Botswana in Southern Africa - said to be descended of the BaHurutshe, and the Eraraka (or Erarak) clan of Uganda.Roscoe, John, ''The Northern Bantu: An Account of Some Central African Tribes of the Uganda Protectorate'', The University Press (1915), p. 262 As common in many African societies, it is forbidden for the Joof or Eraraka to kill or touch the family totem.


Poetry

One of the traditional themes of Arabic love poetry involves comparing the gazelle with the beloved, and linguists theorize ''
ghazal The ''ghazal'' ( ar, غَزَل, bn, গজল, Hindi-Urdu: /, fa, غزل, az, qəzəl, tr, gazel, tm, gazal, uz, gʻazal, gu, ગઝલ) is a form of amatory poem or ode, originating in Arabic poetry. A ghazal may be understood as a ...
'', the word for love poetry in Arabic, is related to the word for gazelle. It is related that the Caliph
Abd al-Malik Abdul Malik ( ar, عبد الملك) is an Arabic (Muslim or Christian) male given name and, in modern usage, surname. It is built from the Arabic words '' Abd'', ''al-'' and '' Malik''. The name means "servant of the King", in the Christian insta ...
(646–705) freed a gazelle that he had captured because of her resemblance to his beloved: The theme is found in the ancient Hebrew Song of Songs. (8:14)


Species

The gazelles are divided into three genera and numerous species.


Prehistoric extinctions

Fossils of genus ''Gazella'' are found in Pliocene and Pleistocene deposits of Eurasia and Africa. The tiny ''
Gazella borbonica ''Gazella borbonica'', commonly known as the Bourbon gazelle or European gazelle, is an extinct gazelle which existed in Europe during the Pleistocene epoch. It was described by Charles Depéret in 1884. It had rather long, moderately divergent ...
'' is one of the earliest European gazelles, characterized by its small size and short legs. Gazelles disappeared from Europe at the start of the Ice Age, but they survived in Africa and Middle East. * Genus ''Gazella'' ** ''
Gazella borbonica ''Gazella borbonica'', commonly known as the Bourbon gazelle or European gazelle, is an extinct gazelle which existed in Europe during the Pleistocene epoch. It was described by Charles Depéret in 1884. It had rather long, moderately divergent ...
'' - Pleistocene Europe ** '' Gazella capricornis'' - Miocene Asia ** ''
Gazella harmonae ''Gazella harmonae'' is an extinct gazelle which existed in what is now Ethiopia during the Pliocene epoch. It was described by Denis Geraads, René Bobe and Kaye Reed in 2012. Approximately the size of a living dorcas gazelle The dorcas gaze ...
'' - Pliocene of Ethiopia, unusual spiral horns ** '' Gazella praethomsoni'' - Pliocene Africa ** ''
Gazella negevensis A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, ''Eudorcas'' and ''Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third f ...
'' - Early Miocene Asia ** '' Gazella thomasi'' - Thomas's gazelle ** '' Gazella vanhoepeni'' - Pliocene Africa * Subgenus '' Vetagazella'' ** ''
Gazella altidens A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, ''Eudorcas'' and ''Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third f ...
'' ** ''
Gazella blacki A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, ''Eudorcas'' and ''Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third f ...
'' - Pliocene Asia ** ''
Gazella deperdita A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, ''Eudorcas'' and ''Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third ...
'' - Late Miocene Europe ** ''
Gazella dorcadoides A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, ''Eudorcas'' and ''Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third f ...
'' - Middle Miocene Asia ** ''
Gazella pilgrimi A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, ''Eudorcas'' and ''Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third ...
'' - Late Miocene Europe ** '' Gazella gaudryi'' - Middle Miocene Eurasia ** '' Gazella kueitensis'' - Pliocene Asia ** ''
Gazella lydekkeri A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, ''Eudorcas'' and ''Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third f ...
'' - Mid to Late Miocene Asia ** ''
Gazella paotehensis A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, ''Eudorcas'' and ''Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third f ...
'' - Middle Miocene Asia ** ''
Gazella paragutturosa A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, ''Eudorcas'' and ''Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third f ...
'' - Pleistocene Asia ** '' Gazella parasinensis'' - Pliocene Asia ** ''
Gazella praegaudryi ''Gazella praegaudryi'' was a prehistoric, little known gazelle species that lived in Africa. It was small, and lived during the Pleistocene. It had little compressed horn cores and no forward turning metaconid of its P4. Fossils have been excav ...
'' - Pleistocene Africa ** '' Gazella sinensis'' - Pliocene Asia * Subgenus ''Gazella'' ** '' Gazella janenschi'' - Pliocene Africa * Subgenus ''Trachelocele'' ** ''
Gazella atlantica ''Gazella atlantica'', the Atlantic gazelle, is an extinct species of gazelle that lived in Northwest Africa during the Late Pleistocene. Taxonomy The Atlantic gazelle was described in 1870 from late Quaternary cave deposits at Jebel Thaya in Al ...
'' - Pleistocene Africa ** ''
Gazella tingitana ''Gazella tingitana'' is an extinct species of gazelle from the Late Pleistocene of Morocco. Arambourg described ''G. tingitana'' in 1957 from material at Mugharet el 'Aliya in Morocco, now dated to between 85 and 37 ka (85,000 - 37,000 BP). It ...
'' - Pleistocene Africa * Subgenus ''Deprezia'' ** '' Gazella psolea'' - Pliocene Africa


Gallery

File:Grants Gazelle Gazella granti in Tanzania 2645 Nevit.jpg, Grant's gazelle (male) File:Gazella dama mhorr 2.jpg,
Mhorr gazelle The dama gazelle (''Nanger dama''), also known as the addra gazelle or mhorr gazelle, is a species of gazelle. It lives in Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At abo ...
File:Cuvier's Gazelle.jpg, Cuvier's gazelle (female) File:Gazella thomsonii - Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, Orlando, Florida, USA - 20100916.jpg, Thomson's gazelle (male) File:Gazella spekei (Speke's Gazelle).jpg, Speke's gazelle (female) File:Group of Gazella subgutturosa.JPG, Goitered gazelle (females and young) File:Chinkara.jpg,
Chinkara The chinkara (''Gazella bennettii''), also known as the Indian gazelle, is a gazelle species native to Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. Taxonomy The following six subspecies are considered valid: * Deccan chinkara (''G. b. bennettii'') ...
(female) File:Gazella-dorcas.jpg, Dorcas gazelle (female) File:Gazella rufifrons AB.jpg, Red-fronted gazelle File:Gazella gazella.jpg, Mountain gazelle (male) File:GazellaSoemmerringiWolf.jpg,
Soemmerring's gazelle Soemmerring's gazelle (''Nanger soemmerringii''), also known as the Abyssinian mohr, is a gazelle species native to the Horn of Africa (Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia and South Sudan). The species was described and given its binomen by Germ ...
(females) File:Slender-horned gazelle (Cincinnati Zoo).jpg,
Slender-horned gazelle The rhim gazelle or rhim (''Gazella leptoceros''), also known as the slender-horned gazelle, African sand gazelle or Loder's gazelle, is a pale-coated gazelle with long slender horns and well adapted to desert life. It is considered an endangered ...
(male) File:Granada Alhambra gazelle Poterie 9019.JPG, Gazelles on one of the vases made for the
Alhambra The Alhambra (, ; ar, الْحَمْرَاء, Al-Ḥamrāʾ, , ) is a palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Andalusia, Spain. It is one of the most famous monuments of Islamic architecture and one of the best-preserved palaces of the ...
palace


References


External links

* {{Authority control Mammals of Africa True antelopes Extant Pliocene first appearances Taxa named by Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville