Lechwe
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The lechwe, red lechwe, or southern lechwe (Kobus leche) is an antelope found in wetlands of south-central Africa.
RangeEdit
The lechwe is native to Botswana, Zambia, southeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, northeastern Namibia, and eastern Angola, especially in the Okavango Delta, Kafue Flats, and Bangweulu Wetlands. The species is fairly common in zoos and wild animal farms.
DescriptionEdit
Adult lechwe typically stand Template:Convert at the shoulder and generally weigh from Template:Convert, with males being larger than females. They are golden brown with white bellies. Males are darker in colour, but exact hue and amount of blackish on the front legs, chest and body varies depending on subspecies. The long, spiral horns are vaguely lyre-shaped and borne only by males. The hind legs are somewhat longer in proportion than in other antelopes to ease long-distance running on marshy soil.
- Red Lechwe in the Okavango.jpg
Adult red lechwes in the Okavango Delta, Botswana
- Leaping Lechwe.jpg
Female red lechwe,
Okavango Delta - Red lechwe (Kobus leche leche) juvenile.jpg
Juvenile red lechwe,
Okavango Delta - Red lechwe (Kobus leche leche) males fighting, composite.jpg
Male red lechwes fighting,
Okavango Delta
HabitatsEdit
Lechwe are found in marshy areas where they are an important herbivore of aquatic plants, as well as grasses that are found in flooded meadows.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> They use the knee-deep water as protection from predators. Their legs are covered in a water-repellant substance which allows them to run quite fast in knee-deep water. Lechwe are diurnal. They gather in herds which can include many thousands of individuals.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Herds are usually all of one sex, but during mating season they mix.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
TaxonomyEdit
SubspeciesEdit
Four subspecies of the lechwe have been recognized.<ref name=msw3>Template:MSW3</ref><ref name=groves>Template:Cite book</ref>
- Common red lechwe (Kobus leche leche) (Gray, 1850) - Widely distributed in the wetlands of Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and Zambia.
- Kafue Flats lechwe (Kobus leche kafuensis) (Haltenorth, 1963) - It is confined within the Kafue Flats (seasonally inundated flood-plain on the Kafue River, Zambia).
- Template:Extinct Roberts' lechwe (Kobus leche robertsi) (Rothschild, 1907) - Formerly found in northeastern Zambia, now extinct. Also called the Kawambwa lechwe.
- Black lechwe (Kobus leche smithemani) (Lydekker, 1900) - Found in the Bangweulu region of Zambia.
In addition, the Upemba lechwe (Kobus anselli) and the extinct Cape lechwe (Kobus venterae) are also considered subspecies by some authorities (as Kobus leche anselli and Kobus leche venterae).<ref>Template:Cite iucn</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Although related and sharing the name "lechwe", the Nile lechwe (K. megaceros) is consistently recognized as a separate species.<ref name=groves/>
ReproductionEdit
Lechwe mate during rain seasons of November to February. They have a gestation period of seven to eight months so a majority of calves are born from July to September. <ref>Newell, T. 1999. "Kobus leche" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed March 06, 2020 at https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Kobus_leche/</ref> Although rare, hybrids between lechwe and waterbuck have been observed.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>