Jump to content

Gazelle: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
Tag: Reverted
No edit summary
(40 intermediate revisions by 33 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{split|date=March 2024}}
{{Short description|Genus of mammals}}
{{Short description|Genus of mammals}}
{{About|the antelope species}}
{{About|the antelope species}}
Line 4: Line 5:


{{Automatic taxobox
{{Automatic taxobox
| name = ''Gazellapotop''
| name = ''Gazella''
| fossil_range = [[Pliocene]] to recent
| fossil_range = [[Miocene]]-Recent {{fossilrange|14|0}}
| image = Slender-horned gazelle (Cincinnati Zoo).jpg
| image = Chinkara - Shreeram M V - Bikaner.jpg
| image_caption = [[Rhim gazelle]]
| image_caption = [[Chinkara]] from [[Thar Desert]], [[Rajasthan]], [[India]]
| taxon = Gazella
| taxon = Gazella
| authority = [[w:Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville|Blainville]], 1816
| authority = [[w:Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville|Blainville]], 1816
Line 14: Line 15:
| subdivision_ranks = [[Species]]
| subdivision_ranks = [[Species]]
| subdivision = Several, see text
| subdivision = Several, see text
⚫
}}A '''gazelle''' is one of many [[antelope]] species in the [[genus]] '''''Gazella''''' {{IPAc-en|g|ə|ˈ|z|ɛ|l|ə}}.<ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|Gazella}}</ref> There are also seven species included in two further genera; ''[[Eudorcas]]'' and ''[[Nanger]]'', which were formerly considered [[subgenera]] of ''Gazella''. A third former subgenus, ''[[Procapra]]'', includes three living species of Asian gazelles.
}}
⚫
A '''gazelle''' is one of many [[antelope]] species in the [[genus]] '''''Gazella''''' {{IPAc-en|g|ə|ˈ|z|ɛ|l|ə}}.<ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|Gazella}}</ref> 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 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 {{Convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on|order=flip|sigfig=1}} or run at a sustained speed of {{Convert|30|mph|km/h|abbr=on|order=flip|sigfig=1}}.<ref>"Gazelle". The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. 2007, Columbia University Press.</ref> Gazelles are found mostly in the deserts, grasslands, and [[savanna]]s of [[Africa]]; but they are also found in [[Southwest Asia|southwest]] and [[central Asia]] and the [[Indian subcontinent]]. They tend to live in herds, and eat fine, easily digestible plants and leaves.
Gazelles are known as swift animals. Some can run at bursts as high as {{Convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on|order=flip|sigfig=1}} or run at a sustained speed of {{Convert|30|mph|km/h|abbr=on|order=flip|sigfig=1}}.<ref>"Gazelle". The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. 2007, Columbia University Press.</ref> Gazelles are found mostly in the deserts, grasslands, and [[savanna]]s of [[Africa]], but they are also found in [[Southwest Asia|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 {{convert|2|-|3.5|ft|cm|abbr=on|order=flip|-1}} high at the shoulder, and are generally [[Fawn (colour)|fawn-colored]].
Gazelles are relatively small antelopes, most standing {{convert|2|-|3.5|ft|cm|abbr=on|order=flip|-1}} high at the shoulder, and are generally [[Fawn (colour)|fawn-colored]].


The gazelle genera are ''Gazella'', ''Eudorcas'', and ''Nanger''. The [[Taxonomy (biology)|taxonomy]] of these genera is confused, and the classification of [[species]] and [[subspecies]] has been an unsettled issue. Currently, the genus ''Gazella'' is widely considered to contain about 10 species.<ref>{{Citation |title=The curious case of Gazella arabica | author=Eva Verena Bärmann|display-authors=etal | journal=Mammalian Biology - Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde | year=2013 | volume=78 | issue=3 | pages=220–225 | doi=10.1016/j.mambio.2012.07.003}}</ref> 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 [[Goa (antelope)|Tibetan goa]] and [[Mongolian gazelle]]s (species of the genus ''Procapra''), the [[blackbuck]] of Asia, and the African [[springbok]].
The gazelle genera are ''Gazella'', ''Eudorcas'', and ''Nanger''. The [[Taxonomy (biology)|taxonomy]] of these genera is confused, and the classification of [[species]] and [[subspecies]] has been an unsettled issue. Currently, the genus ''Gazella'' is widely considered to contain about 10 species.<ref>{{Citation |title=The curious case of Gazella arabica | author=Eva Verena Bärmann|display-authors=etal | journal=Mammalian Biology - Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde | year=2013 | volume=78 | issue=3 | pages=220–225 | doi=10.1016/j.mambio.2012.07.003}}</ref> 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 [[Goa (antelope)|Tibetan goa]], and [[Mongolian gazelle]]s (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''), sometimes referred to as a "tommie". It is around {{Convert|60|to|70|cm|in|sigfig=2|abbr=on}} 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 [[cheetah]]s, [[lion]]s, [[African wild dog]]s, [[crocodile]]s, [[hyena]]s, and [[leopard]]s.
One widely familiar gazelle is the African species [[Thomson's gazelle]] (''Eudorcas thomsonii''), sometimes referred to as a "tommie". It is around {{Convert|60|to|70|cm|in|sigfig=2|abbr=on}} in shoulder height 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 [[cheetah]]s, [[lion]]s, [[African wild dog]]s, [[crocodile]]s, [[hyena]]s, and [[leopard]]s.


==Etymology and their name==
==Etymology and their name==
[[Image:תמונה 1108.jpg|thumb|250px|Byzantine-era mosaic of gazelle in [[Caesarea, Israel]]]]
[[Image:תמונה 1108.jpg|thumb|250px|Byzantine-era mosaic of gazelle in [[Caesarea (modern town)|Caesarea, Israel]]]]
''Gazelle'' is derived from [[French language|French]] ''gazelle'', [[Old French]] ''gazel'', probably via [[Old Spanish]] ''gacel'', probably from North African pronunciation of {{lang-ar|غزال}} ''{{transl|ar|DIN|ġazāl}}'',<ref>{{Cite web |title=gazelle {{!}} Etymology, origin and meaning of gazelle by etymonline |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/gazelle |access-date=2023-02-10 |website=www.etymonline.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite Skeat|gazelle|page=236}}</ref> [[Maghrebi Arabic|Maghrebi]] pronunciation ''{{transl|ar|DIN|ġazēl}}''.<ref name="cnrtl">{{cite web|url=http://www.cnrtl.fr/etymologie/gazelle|title=gazelle|website=CNRTL}}</ref> To Europe it first came to [[Old Spanish]] and [[Old French]],<ref name="cnrtl" /> and then around 1600 the word entered the [[English language]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Definition of GAZELLE|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gazelle|access-date=2023-02-23|website=www.merriam-webster.com|language=en}}</ref> The [[Arab people]] traditionally hunted the gazelle. Later appreciated for its grace, however, it became a symbol most commonly associated in [[Arabic]] literature with human female beauty.<ref name=abouseifp53>{{cite book|title=Beauty in Arabic culture|first1=Doris|last1=Behrens-billAbouseif|edition=Illustrated|publisher=Markus Wiener Publishers|year=1999|isbn=9781558761995|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GQ2aFwUR3mgC&pg=PA53|page=53}}</ref><ref>Jokha Alharthi (PhD), (Sultan Qaboos University, College of Arts and Social Sciences - Arabic Department) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/288181275_The_Representation_of_the_Beloved's_Body_in_classical_Arabic_Poetry Note in particular pages 7 and 8 of this (linked-to) paper published at a conference in 2015. </ref> In many countries in Northwestern Sub-Saharan Africa, the gazelle is commonly referred to as "dangelo", meaning "swift deer".<ref>{{cite web| url-status = live| archive-url = https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211205/roJ97b4t-dE| archive-date=2021-12-05 | url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roJ97b4t-dE&feature=youtu.be| title = Dangelo (swift deer) | website=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
''Gazelle'' is derived from [[French language|French]] ''gazelle'', [[Old French]] ''gazel'', probably via [[Old Spanish]] ''gacel'', probably from North African pronunciation of {{lang-ar|غزال}} ''{{transl|ar|DIN|ġazāl}}'',<ref>{{Cite web |title=gazelle {{!}} Etymology, origin and meaning of gazelle by etymonline |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/gazelle |access-date=2023-02-10 |website=www.etymonline.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite Skeat|gazelle|page=236}}</ref> [[Maghrebi Arabic|Maghrebi]] pronunciation ''{{transl|ar|DIN|ġazēl}}''.<ref name="cnrtl">{{cite web|url=http://www.cnrtl.fr/etymologie/gazelle|title=gazelle|website=CNRTL}}</ref> To Europe it first came to [[Old Spanish]] and [[Old French]],<ref name="cnrtl" /> and then around 1600 the word entered the [[English language]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Definition of GAZELLE|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gazelle|access-date=2023-02-23|website=www.merriam-webster.com|language=en}}</ref> The [[Arab people]] traditionally hunted the gazelle. Later appreciated for its grace, however, it became a symbol most commonly associated in [[Arabic]] literature with human female beauty.<ref name=abouseifp53>{{cite book|title=Beauty in Arabic culture|first1=Doris|last1=Behrens-billAbouseif|edition=Illustrated|publisher=Markus Wiener Publishers|year=1999|isbn=9781558761995|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GQ2aFwUR3mgC&pg=PA53|page=53}}</ref><ref>Jokha Alharthi (PhD), (Sultan Qaboos University, College of Arts and Social Sciences - Arabic Department) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/288181275_The_Representation_of_the_Beloved's_Body_in_classical_Arabic_Poetry Note in particular pages 7 and 8 of this (linked-to) paper published at a conference in 2015. </ref> In many countries in northwestern [[Sub-Saharan Africa]], the gazelle is commonly referred to as "dangelo", meaning "swift deer".<ref>{{cite web| url-status = live| archive-url = https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211205/roJ97b4t-dE| archive-date=2021-12-05 | url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roJ97b4t-dE&feature=youtu.be| title = Dangelo (swift deer) | website=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>


==Symbolism or totemism in African families==
==Symbolism or totemism in African families==
The gazelle, like the antelope to which it is related, is the [[totem]] of many African families. Some examples include the [[Joof family]] of the [[Senegambia region]],<ref>[[Louis Diène Faye|Faye, Louis Diène]], ''Mort et naissance: le monde [[Serer people|Sereer]]'', Nouvelles Éditions africaines (1983), p. 74, {{ISBN|9782723608688}}</ref><ref name="Gastllu">{{Cite book|last=Gastellu|first=Jean-Marc|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cc0xdPE35ngC|title=L'égalitarisme économique des Serer du Sénégal|date=1981|publisher=IRD Editions|isbn=978-2-7099-0591-6|language=fr}}</ref> the Bagananoa of [[Botswana]] in [[Southern Africa]] (said to be descended from the BaHurutshe),<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Chidester|first1=David|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RlHs4yC0eP0C&pg=PA341|title=African Traditional Religion in South Africa: An Annotated Bibliography: An Annotated Bibliography|last2=Kwenda|first2=Chirevo|last3=Petty|first3=Robert|last4=Tobler|first4=Judy|last5=Wratten|first5=Darrel|date=1997-08-07|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-03225-7|language=en}}</ref> and the Eraraka (or Erarak) clan of [[Uganda]].<ref name="Rescoe">Roscoe, John, ''The Northern Bantu: An Account of Some Central African Tribes of the Uganda Protectorate'', The University Press (1915), p. 262</ref> As is common in many African societies, it is forbidden for the Joof or Eraraka to kill or touch the family totem.<ref name="Gastllu"/><ref name="Rescoe"/>
The gazelle, like the antelope to which it is related, is the [[totem]] of many African families. Some examples include the [[Joof family]] of the [[Senegambia region]],<ref>[[Louis Diène Faye|Faye, Louis Diène]], ''Mort et naissance: le monde [[Serer people|Sereer]]'', Nouvelles Éditions africaines (1983), p. 74, {{ISBN|9782723608688}}</ref><ref name="Gastllu">{{Cite book|last=Gastellu|first=Jean-Marc|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cc0xdPE35ngC|title=L'égalitarisme économique des Serer du Sénégal|date=1981|publisher=IRD Editions|isbn=978-2-7099-0591-6|language=fr|page=130}}</ref> the Bagananoa of [[Botswana]] in [[Southern Africa]] (said to be descended from the BaHurutshe),<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Chidester|first1=David|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RlHs4yC0eP0C&pg=PA341|title=African Traditional Religion in South Africa: An Annotated Bibliography: An Annotated Bibliography|last2=Kwenda|first2=Chirevo|last3=Petty|first3=Robert|last4=Tobler|first4=Judy|last5=Wratten|first5=Darrel|date=1997-08-07|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-03225-7|language=en|page=341}}</ref> and the Eraraka (or Erarak) clan of [[Uganda]].<ref name="Rescoe">Roscoe, John, ''The Northern Bantu: An Account of Some Central African Tribes of the Uganda Protectorate'', The University Press (1915), p. 262</ref> As is common in many African societies, it is forbidden for the Joof or Eraraka to kill or touch the family totem.<ref name="Gastllu"/><ref name="Rescoe"/>


== Poetry ==
== Poetry ==
Line 57: Line 57:
|-
|-
! Genus !! Common and binomial names !! class="unsortable"| Image !! Range
! Genus !! Common and binomial names !! class="unsortable"| Image !! Range
|-
|-
| rowspan="10" | ''Gazella''
| rowspan="10" | ''Gazella''
| [[Arabian gazelle]]<br>''G. arabica''
| [[Arabian gazelle]]<br>''G. arabica''
Line 73: Line 73:
| [[Goitered gazelle]]<br>''G. subgutturosa''
| [[Goitered gazelle]]<br>''G. subgutturosa''
| [[File:Gazella subgutturosa 2018.jpg|120px]]
| [[File:Gazella subgutturosa 2018.jpg|120px]]
|[[Azerbaijan]], eastern [[Georgia(country)|Georgia]], part of [[Iran]], parts of [[Iraq]] and southwestern [[Pakistan]], [[Afghanistan]] and the [[Gobi Desert]]
|[[Azerbaijan]], eastern [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], part of [[Iran]], parts of [[Iraq]] and southwestern [[Pakistan]], [[Afghanistan]] and the [[Gobi Desert]]
|-
|-
| [[Arabian sand gazelle]]<br>''G. marica''
| [[Arabian sand gazelle]]<br>''G. marica''
Line 85: Line 85:
| [[Mountain gazelle]]<br>''G. gazella''
| [[Mountain gazelle]]<br>''G. gazella''
| [[File:Gazella gazella.jpg|120px]]
| [[File:Gazella gazella.jpg|120px]]
| [[Israel]], the [[Golan Heights]], [[Dubai]] and [[Turkey]]
| [[Israel]], the [[Golan Heights]], the [[West Bank]], [[Dubai]] and [[Turkey]]
|-
|-
| [[Rhim gazelle]]<br>''G. leptoceros''
| [[Rhim gazelle]]<br>''G. leptoceros''
Line 96: Line 96:
|-
|-
| [[Erlanger's gazelle]]<br>''G. erlangeri''
| [[Erlanger's gazelle]]<br>''G. erlangeri''
|
|
| [[Arabian Peninsula]]
| [[Arabian Peninsula]]
|-
|-
Line 122: Line 122:
|-
|-
| [[Grant's gazelle]]<br>''N. granti''
| [[Grant's gazelle]]<br>''N. granti''
| [[File:Ngorongoro_Grant-Gazelle.jpg|120px]]
| [[File:Ngorongoro Grant-Gazelle.jpg|120px]]
| Northern [[Tanzania]] to [[South Sudan]] and [[Ethiopia]], and from the [[Kenya]]n coast to [[Lake Victoria]]
| Northern [[Tanzania]] to [[South Sudan]] and [[Ethiopia]], and from the [[Kenya]]n coast to [[Lake Victoria]]
|-
|-
Line 132: Line 132:


===Prehistoric extinctions===
===Prehistoric extinctions===
Fossils of genus ''Gazella'' are found in Pliocene and Pleistocene deposits of Eurasia and Africa. The tiny ''[[Gazella borbonica]]'' 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.{{citation needed|date=January 2019}}
Fossils of genus ''Gazella'' are found in [[Miocene]], [[Pliocene]] and [[Pleistocene]] deposits of Eurasia and Africa, which occupuied a broader distribution that modern members of the genus. The earliest members of the genus are known from the Middle Miocene of Africa, around 14 million years ago with members of the genus inhabiting Europe from the Late Miocene until their extinction in the region during the Early Pleistocene around 1.8 million years ago.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bellucci |first=Luca |last2=Sardella |first2=Raffaele |date=2015-01 |title=The last Antilopini bovids from the Early Pleistocene of Italy |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1040618214008908 |journal=Quaternary International |language=en |volume=357 |pages=245–252 |doi=10.1016/j.quaint.2014.11.024}}</ref>

* Genus ''Gazella''
* Genus ''Gazella''
** ''[[Gazella borbonica]]'' - Pleistocene Europe
** ''[[Gazella borbonica]]'' - Early Pleistocene Europe
** ''[[Gazella capricornis]]'' - Miocene Asia<ref name=Solounias1994>{{cite journal |last1= Solounias |first1= N. |last2= Moelleken |first2= S.M.C. |last3= Plavcan |first3= J.M. |date= 1995 |title= Predicting the diet of extinct bovids using masseteric morphology |journal= Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume= 15 |issue= 4 |pages= 195–805 |doi= 10.1080/02724634.1995.10011262}}</ref>
** ''[[Gazella capricornis]]'' - Miocene Asia<ref name=Solounias1994>{{cite journal |last1= Solounias |first1= N. |last2= Moelleken |first2= S.M.C. |last3= Plavcan |first3= J.M. |date= 1995 |title= Predicting the diet of extinct bovids using masseteric morphology |journal= Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume= 15 |issue= 4 |pages= 195–805 |doi= 10.1080/02724634.1995.10011262}}</ref>
** ''[[Gazella harmonae]]'' - [[Pliocene]] of [[Ethiopia]], unusual spiral horns<ref name=Geraads2012>{{cite journal | author = Geraads, D.| year = 2012 | title = Pliocene Bovidae (Mammalia) from the Hadar Formation of Hadar and Ledi-Geraru, Lower Awash, Ethiopia | journal = Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology | volume = 32 | issue = 1 | pages = 180–197 | doi = 10.1080/02724634.2012.632046|display-authors=etal| title-link = Ledi-Geraru | s2cid = 86230742 }}</ref>
** ''[[Gazella harmonae]]'' - [[Pliocene]] of [[Ethiopia]], unusual spiral horns<ref name=Geraads2012>{{cite journal | author = Geraads, D.| year = 2012 | title = Pliocene Bovidae (Mammalia) from the Hadar Formation of Hadar and Ledi-Geraru, Lower Awash, Ethiopia | journal = Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology | volume = 32 | issue = 1 | pages = 180–197 | doi = 10.1080/02724634.2012.632046|display-authors=etal| title-link = Ledi-Geraru | s2cid = 86230742 }}</ref>
Line 141: Line 140:
** ''[[Gazella negevensis]]'' - Early Miocene Asia<ref name=Tchernov1986>{{cite journal |last1= Tchernov |first1= E. |last2= Ginsburg |first2= L. |display-authors=etal |date= 1987 |title= Miocene mammals of the Negev (Israel) |journal= Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume= 7 |issue= 3 |pages= 284–310 |doi= 10.1080/02724634.1987.10011661}}</ref>
** ''[[Gazella negevensis]]'' - Early Miocene Asia<ref name=Tchernov1986>{{cite journal |last1= Tchernov |first1= E. |last2= Ginsburg |first2= L. |display-authors=etal |date= 1987 |title= Miocene mammals of the Negev (Israel) |journal= Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume= 7 |issue= 3 |pages= 284–310 |doi= 10.1080/02724634.1987.10011661}}</ref>
** ''[[Gazella thomasi]]'' - Thomas's gazelle<ref name=Geraads2010>{{cite journal |last1= Geraads |first1= D.|last2= Raynal |first2= J.|last3= Sbihi-Alaoui |first3= F. |date= February 2010 |title= Mammalian faunas from the Pliocene and Pleistocene of Casablanca (Morocco) |journal= Historical Biology |volume= 22 |issue= 1–3 |pages= 275–285 |doi= 10.1080/08912960903458011|s2cid= 128756698}}</ref>
** ''[[Gazella thomasi]]'' - Thomas's gazelle<ref name=Geraads2010>{{cite journal |last1= Geraads |first1= D.|last2= Raynal |first2= J.|last3= Sbihi-Alaoui |first3= F. |date= February 2010 |title= Mammalian faunas from the Pliocene and Pleistocene of Casablanca (Morocco) |journal= Historical Biology |volume= 22 |issue= 1–3 |pages= 275–285 |doi= 10.1080/08912960903458011|s2cid= 128756698}}</ref>
⚫
** ''[[Gazella vanhoepeni]]'' - Pliocene Africa <ref name="Sponheimer1999">{{cite journal |last1=Sponheimer |first1=M. |last2=Reed |first2=K.E. |author-link2=Kaye Reed |last3=Lee-Thorp |first3=J.A. |date=June 1999 |title=Combining isotopic and ecomorphological data to refine bovid paleodietary reconstruction: a case study from the Makapansgat Limeworks hominin locality |journal=Journal of Human Evolution |volume=36 |issue=6 |pages=705–718 |doi=10.1006/jhev.1999.0300 |pmid=10330334}}</ref>

⚫
** ''[[Gazella vanhoepeni]]'' - Pliocene Africa <ref name=Sponheimer1999>{{cite journal |last1= Sponheimer |first1= M. |last2= Reed |first2= K.E. |last3= Lee-Thorp |first3= J.A. |date= June 1999 |title= Combining isotopic and ecomorphological data to refine bovid paleodietary reconstruction: a case study from the Makapansgat Limeworks hominin locality |journal= Journal of Human Evolution |volume= 36 |issue= 6 |pages= 705–718 |doi= 10.1006/jhev.1999.0300|pmid= 10330334 }}</ref>
* Subgenus ''[[Vetagazella]]''
* Subgenus ''[[Vetagazella]]''
** ''[[Gazella altidens]]'' <ref name=Khan2009>{{cite journal |last1= Khan |first1= A. |date= 2009 |title= Mammalian new remains from chinji|journal= The Journal of Animal and Plant Sciences |volume= 19 |issue= 4 |pages= 224–229 |url= https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/33212748/mammalian_new_remains_from_chinji-with-cover-page-v2.pdf?Expires=1660471800&Signature=Og2UZssgp24JywvPzLzdQ8eU0XGuHDKA9-PB6pepxz-6ZqCuo8DvmePuPh2U1tgcDAA0LcKqn31JMrZ0bGvjCL1BGoTDofDtLbDbISm-SURj5d~jQvvttEQVajNgih2sHUkCAIPwQxlsZgeLCr4lcNtPUeaiYSzkAIPXmwXdP0ijiUdbmiKInS~vvNCWv0y-8m95EtZ8xOiqu62IjLtYUfO36mM1EQcj3rnalalXczsOLqg~f-R0lupIszg80FsMiXKMW8R4O02LNv03mgG3UQoKYiLw6lSi4k~fmiUd~bNH6MK6am-zesXJKPTEMHJky-ylhrovQG9VA0JmGzMyQw__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA|access-date= 14 August 2022}}</ref>
** ''[[Gazella altidens]]'' <ref name=Khan2009>{{cite journal |last1= Khan |first1= A. |date= 2009 |title= Mammalian new remains from chinji|journal= The Journal of Animal and Plant Sciences |volume= 19 |issue= 4 |pages= 224–229 |url= https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/33212748/mammalian_new_remains_from_chinji-with-cover-page-v2.pdf?Expires=1660471800&Signature=Og2UZssgp24JywvPzLzdQ8eU0XGuHDKA9-PB6pepxz-6ZqCuo8DvmePuPh2U1tgcDAA0LcKqn31JMrZ0bGvjCL1BGoTDofDtLbDbISm-SURj5d~jQvvttEQVajNgih2sHUkCAIPwQxlsZgeLCr4lcNtPUeaiYSzkAIPXmwXdP0ijiUdbmiKInS~vvNCWv0y-8m95EtZ8xOiqu62IjLtYUfO36mM1EQcj3rnalalXczsOLqg~f-R0lupIszg80FsMiXKMW8R4O02LNv03mgG3UQoKYiLw6lSi4k~fmiUd~bNH6MK6am-zesXJKPTEMHJky-ylhrovQG9VA0JmGzMyQw__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA|access-date= 14 August 2022}}</ref>
Line 159: Line 157:
** ''[[Gazella brianus]]'' - Pliocene Asia<ref name="Vislobokova2005" />
** ''[[Gazella brianus]]'' - Pliocene Asia<ref name="Vislobokova2005" />
* Subgenus ''Gazella''
* Subgenus ''Gazella''
** ''[[Gazella janenschi]]'' - Pliocene Africa<ref name=Fillion2022>{{cite journal |last1= Fillion |first1= E.N. |last2= Harrison |first2= T. |last3= Kwekason |first3= A. |date= June 2022 |title= A nonanalog Pliocene ungulate community at Laetoli with implications for the paleoecology of ''Australopithecus afarensis'' |journal= Journal of Human Evolution |volume= 167 |pages= 103182 |doi= 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103182|pmid= 35428490 |s2cid= 248141011 }}</ref>
** ''[[Gazella janenschi]]'' - Pliocene Africa<ref name=Fillion2022>{{cite journal |last1= Fillion |first1= E.N. |last2= Harrison |first2= T. |last3= Kwekason |first3= A. |date= June 2022 |title= A nonanalog Pliocene ungulate community at Laetoli with implications for the paleoecology of ''Australopithecus afarensis'' |journal= Journal of Human Evolution |volume= 167 |pages= 103182 |doi= 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103182|pmid= 35428490 |s2cid= 248141011 |doi-access= free }}</ref>
* Subgenus ''Trachelocele''
* Subgenus ''Trachelocele''
** ''[[Gazella atlantica]]'' - Pleistocene Africa
** ''[[Gazella atlantica]]'' - Pleistocene Africa
Line 167: Line 165:


==Gallery==
==Gallery==
<gallery>
<gallery mode="packed">
File:Grants Gazelle Gazella granti in Tanzania 2645 Nevit.jpg|[[Grant's gazelle]] (male)
File:Grants Gazelle Gazella granti in Tanzania 2645 Nevit.jpg|[[Grant's gazelle]] (male)
File:Gazella dama mhorr 2.jpg|[[Dama Gazelle|Mhorr gazelle]]
File:Gazella dama mhorr 2.jpg|[[Dama Gazelle|Mhorr gazelle]]
Line 188: Line 186:
==External links==
==External links==
{{Commons category|Gazella}}
{{Commons category|Gazella}}
*{{Wikiquote-inline|Gazelles}}
* {{Wikiquote-inline|Gazelles}}
* [http://www.researchgate.net/publication/381455710_The_Gazelles_and_relatives_Subfamily_Antilopinae The Gazelles and relatives: Subfamily Antilopinae]


{{Artiodactyla|R.5}}
{{Artiodactyla|R.5}}

Revision as of 19:42, 23 July 2024

This article is about the antelope species. For other uses, see Gazelle (disambiguation).

Gazella
Temporal range: Miocene-Recent 14–0 Ma
Chinkara from Thar Desert, Rajasthan, India
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Artiodactyla
Family: Bovidae
Subfamily: Antilopinae
Tribe: Antilopini
Genus: Gazella
Blainville, 1816
Type species
Capra dorcas[1]
Species

Several, see text

A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus Gazella /ɡəˈzɛlə/.[2] There are also seven species included in two further genera; Eudorcas and Nanger, which were formerly considered subgenera of Gazella. A third former subgenus, Procapra, includes three living species of Asian gazelles.

Gazelles are known as swift animals. Some can run at bursts as high as 100 km/h (60 mph) or run at a sustained speed of 50 km/h (30 mph).[3] 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 60–110 cm (2–3.5 ft) 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 has been an unsettled issue. Currently, the genus Gazella is widely considered to contain about 10 species.[4] 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), sometimes referred to as a "tommie". It is around 60 to 70 cm (24 to 28 in) in shoulder height 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, lions, African wild dogs, crocodiles, hyenas, and leopards.

Etymology and their name

Byzantine-era mosaic of gazelle in Caesarea, Israel

Gazelle is derived from French gazelle, Old French gazel, probably via Old Spanish gacel, probably from North African pronunciation of Arabic: غزال ġazāl,[5][6] Maghrebi pronunciation ġazēl.[7] To Europe it first came to Old Spanish and Old French,[7] and then around 1600 the word entered the English language.[8] The Arab people traditionally hunted the gazelle. Later appreciated for its grace, however, it became a symbol most commonly associated in Arabic literature with human female beauty.[9][10] In many countries in northwestern Sub-Saharan Africa, the gazelle is commonly referred to as "dangelo", meaning "swift deer".[11]

Symbolism or totemism in African families

The gazelle, like the antelope to which it is related, is the totem of many African families. Some examples include the Joof family of the Senegambia region,[12][13] the Bagananoa of Botswana in Southern Africa (said to be descended from the BaHurutshe),[14] and the Eraraka (or Erarak) clan of Uganda.[15] As is common in many African societies, it is forbidden for the Joof or Eraraka to kill or touch the family totem.[13][15]

Poetry

One of the traditional themes of Arabic love poetry involves comparing the gazelle with the beloved, and linguists theorize ghazal, the word for love poetry in Arabic, is related to the word for gazelle.[16] It is related that the Caliph Abd al-Malik (646–705) freed a gazelle that he had captured because of her resemblance to his beloved:

O likeness of Layla, never fear!
For I am your friend, today, O wild gazelle!
Then I say, after freeing her from her fetters:
You are free for the sake of Layla, for ever![16]

The theme is found in the ancient Hebrew Song of Songs. (8:14)

Come away, my beloved,
and be like a gazelle
or like a young stag
on the spice-laden mountains.

Species

For gazelle species by population, see List of even-toed ungulates by population

The gazelles are divided into three genera and numerous species.[17]

Genus Common and binomial names Image Range
Gazella Arabian gazelle
G. arabica 		Arabian Peninsula
Cuvier's gazelle
G. cuvieri 		Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia
Dorcas gazelle
G. dorcas 		North and saharan Africa, Sinai and Southern Israel
Goitered gazelle
G. subgutturosa 		Azerbaijan, eastern Georgia, part of Iran, parts of Iraq and southwestern Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Gobi Desert
Arabian sand gazelle
G. marica 		Syrian Desert, southeastern Turkey, and Arabian Desert
Chinkara or
Indian gazelle
G. bennettii 		Iran, Pakistan and India
Mountain gazelle
G. gazella 		Israel, the Golan Heights, the West Bank, Dubai and Turkey
Rhim gazelle
G. leptoceros 		Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya and Sudan
Speke's gazelle
G. spekei 		Horn of Africa
Erlanger's gazelle
G. erlangeri 		Arabian Peninsula
Eudorcas Mongalla gazelle
E. albonotata 		Floodplain and savanna of South Sudan
Red-fronted gazelle
E. rufifrons 		The Sahel region of central Africa
Red gazelle
E. rufina 		Mountain areas of North Africa
Thomson's gazelle
E. thomsonii 		East Africa
Nanger Dama gazelle
N. dama 		Sahara desert and the Sahel
Grant's gazelle
N. granti 		Northern Tanzania to South Sudan and Ethiopia, and from the Kenyan coast to Lake Victoria
Soemmerring's gazelle
N. soemmerringii 		Horn of Africa

Prehistoric extinctions

Fossils of genus Gazella are found in Miocene, Pliocene and Pleistocene deposits of Eurasia and Africa, which occupuied a broader distribution that modern members of the genus. The earliest members of the genus are known from the Middle Miocene of Africa, around 14 million years ago with members of the genus inhabiting Europe from the Late Miocene until their extinction in the region during the Early Pleistocene around 1.8 million years ago.[18]

References

  1. ^ Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M., eds. (2005). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  2. ^ "Gazella". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster.
  3. ^ "Gazelle". The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. 2007, Columbia University Press.
  4. ^ Eva Verena Bärmann; et al. (2013), "The curious case of Gazella arabica", Mammalian Biology - Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde, 78 (3): 220–225, doi:10.1016/j.mambio.2012.07.003
  5. ^ "gazelle | Etymology, origin and meaning of gazelle by etymonline". www.etymonline.com. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
  6. ^ Skeat, Walter W. (1910). "gazelle". An Etymological Dictionary of the English Language (4th ed.). Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 236.
  7. ^ a b "gazelle". CNRTL.
  8. ^ "Definition of GAZELLE". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  9. ^ Behrens-billAbouseif, Doris (1999). Beauty in Arabic culture (Illustrated ed.). Markus Wiener Publishers. p. 53. ISBN 9781558761995.
  10. ^ Jokha Alharthi (PhD), (Sultan Qaboos University, College of Arts and Social Sciences - Arabic Department) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/288181275_The_Representation_of_the_Beloved's_Body_in_classical_Arabic_Poetry Note in particular pages 7 and 8 of this (linked-to) paper published at a conference in 2015.
  11. ^ "Dangelo (swift deer)". YouTube. Archived from the original on 5 December 2021.
  12. ^ Faye, Louis Diène, Mort et naissance: le monde Sereer, Nouvelles Éditions africaines (1983), p. 74, ISBN 9782723608688
  13. ^ a b Gastellu, Jean-Marc (1981). L'égalitarisme économique des Serer du Sénégal (in French). IRD Editions. p. 130. ISBN 978-2-7099-0591-6.
  14. ^ Chidester, David; Kwenda, Chirevo; Petty, Robert; Tobler, Judy; Wratten, Darrel (7 August 1997). African Traditional Religion in South Africa: An Annotated Bibliography: An Annotated Bibliography. ABC-CLIO. p. 341. ISBN 978-0-313-03225-7.
  15. ^ a b Roscoe, John, The Northern Bantu: An Account of Some Central African Tribes of the Uganda Protectorate, The University Press (1915), p. 262
  16. ^ a b Necipoğlu, Gülru (1997). Gülru Necipoğlu (ed.). Muqarnas: An Annual on the Visual Culture of the Islamic World (Illustrated ed.). BRILL. ISBN 9789004108721.
  17. ^ "Antilopinae". Retrieved 1 July 2008.
  18. ^ Bellucci, Luca; Sardella, Raffaele (2015-01). "The last Antilopini bovids from the Early Pleistocene of Italy". Quaternary International. 357: 245–252. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2014.11.024. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  19. ^ Solounias, N.; Moelleken, S.M.C.; Plavcan, J.M. (1995). "Predicting the diet of extinct bovids using masseteric morphology". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 15 (4): 195–805. doi:10.1080/02724634.1995.10011262.
  20. ^ a b Geraads, D.; et al. (2012). "Pliocene Bovidae (Mammalia) from the Hadar Formation of Hadar and Ledi-Geraru, Lower Awash, Ethiopia". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 32 (1): 180–197. doi:10.1080/02724634.2012.632046. S2CID 86230742.
  21. ^ Tchernov, E.; Ginsburg, L.; et al. (1987). "Miocene mammals of the Negev (Israel)". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 7 (3): 284–310. doi:10.1080/02724634.1987.10011661.
  22. ^ Geraads, D.; Raynal, J.; Sbihi-Alaoui, F. (February 2010). "Mammalian faunas from the Pliocene and Pleistocene of Casablanca (Morocco)". Historical Biology. 22 (1–3): 275–285. doi:10.1080/08912960903458011. S2CID 128756698.
  23. ^ Sponheimer, M.; Reed, K.E.; Lee-Thorp, J.A. (June 1999). "Combining isotopic and ecomorphological data to refine bovid paleodietary reconstruction: a case study from the Makapansgat Limeworks hominin locality". Journal of Human Evolution. 36 (6): 705–718. doi:10.1006/jhev.1999.0300. PMID 10330334.
  24. ^ a b Khan, A. (2009). "Mammalian new remains from chinji" (PDF). The Journal of Animal and Plant Sciences. 19 (4): 224–229. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  25. ^ Chen, G. (1997). "Gazella blacki Teilhard and Young, 1931 (Bovicae, Artiodactyla, Mammalia) from the Late Pliocene of Hefeng, Jingle District, Shanxi Province". Vertebrata PalAsiatica. 35 (3): 189–200. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  26. ^ Merceron, G.; de Bonis, L.; et al. (February 2005). "Dental microwear of fossil bovids from northern Greece: paleoenvironmental conditions in the eastern Mediterranean during the Messinian" (PDF). Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 217 (3–4): 173–185. Bibcode:2005PPP...217..173M. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2004.11.019.
  27. ^ a b c Khan, M.A.; Asim, M.; et al. (August 2021). "New remains of Gazella (Bovidae) from Middle Miocene, Pakistan". Arabian Journal of Geosciences. 14 (17): 1703. doi:10.1007/s12517-021-07885-8. S2CID 236948573.
  28. ^ Bouvrain, G. (1996). "The gazelles from the late Miocene of Macedonia, Greece". Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie. 199 (1): 111–32. doi:10.1127/njgpa/199/1996/111.
  29. ^ Meng, X.; Zhu, D.; et al. (September 2010). "Late Cenozoic stratigraphy and paleomagnetic chronology of the Zanda Basin, Tibet, and records of the uplift of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau". Acta Geologica Sinica. 82 (1): 63–72. doi:10.1111/j.1755-6724.2008.tb00325.x. S2CID 128749824.
  30. ^ Leslie, D.M. (July 2010). "Procapra picticaudata (Artiodactyla: Bovidae)". Mammalian Species. 42 (861): 138–148. doi:10.1644/861.1. S2CID 20998647.
  31. ^ a b Vislobokova, I. (2005). "On Pliocene faunas with Proboscideans in the territory of the former Soviet Union". Quaternary International. 126–128: 93–105. Bibcode:2005QuInt.126...93V. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2004.04.017.
  32. ^ Vislobokova, I.; Dmitrieva, E.; Kalmykov, N. (1995). "Artiodactyls From the Late Pliocene of Udunga, Western Trans-Baikal, Russia". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 15 (1): 146–159. doi:10.1080/02724634.1995.10011214.
  33. ^ Fillion, E.N.; Harrison, T.; Kwekason, A. (June 2022). "A nonanalog Pliocene ungulate community at Laetoli with implications for the paleoecology of Australopithecus afarensis". Journal of Human Evolution. 167: 103182. doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103182. PMID 35428490. S2CID 248141011.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gazella.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gazelle&oldid=1236267040"