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Region: Eurasia Class: Mammalia Order: Artiodactyla Family: Bovidae Genus: Oryx Scientific Name: Oryx dammah
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Description:
Horn length: 0.6-1.2 m
Weight: 200 kg. Height: 1.0-2.2 m
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Distribution:
Lybian and Sahara Desert
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Habitat:
Arid plains and deserts
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Food:
Grasses and shrubs They go to streams or waterholes to drink.
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Reproduction and Development:
he bulls fight each other during the rutting season. The gestation period is from 260 - 300 days. Usually a single offspring is born. Maximum lifespan is 20 years.
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Adaptations:
Oryxes usually range in bands of 2 to 12 individuals, occasionally as many as 60 have been seen. They are described as alert, wary and keen-sighted. When injured or brought to bay, oryxes will attack with their head down so that the sharp horns point forward. Such attacks can be quite dangerous. When free water is scarce, they obtain moisture from such sources as melons and succulent bulbs.
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Threats to Survival:
Man is the greatest threat, hunting the oryx for sport from jeeps. Oryxes have been hunted through history because there was believed to be a connection between killing an oryx and virility. Lions are their natural predators.
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Status:
Endangered
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Zoo Diet:
Herbivore ruminant ration (protein 16%, fat 2.5%%, fibre 16%, salt, seleium, calcium, phosphorus and Vitamins A,D and E). Beet pulp, cobalt iodized and trace mineralized salt blocks.
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Animal Fact Sheet
The New Tundra Trek