Everything about Nilgai totally explained
» Blue bull redirects here. For the South African rugby union team, see Blue Bulls.
The
Nilgai (
Boselaphus tragocamelus) is an
antelope which is one of the most commonly seen wild animals of northern
India and eastern
Pakistan. The mature males appear
ox-like and are also known as
Blue bulls. The nilgai is the biggest asian antelope.
Description
Nilgai stand 1.2-1.5 meters (4-5 feet) at the shoulder and are 1.8-2 meters (6-6.6 feet) long. Their tails are 40-45 centimeters. Mature nilgai typically weigh 120-240 kilograms.
Babies usually weigh 13.6-15.9 kilograms (30-35 pounds) at birth after an 8 month gestation period. Over 60% of births result in twins, though births of 1 or 3 do occur. They reach sexual maturity at around 18 months and can live as long as 21 years.
Nilgai have thin legs and a robust body that slopes down from the shoulder. Their long, narrow heads are topped by two small conical horns which are straight and tilted slightly forward. Horns on trophy males are normally 21.6-25.4 centimeters (8.5-10 inches). They have an erectile mane on the back of the neck and a tubular shaped "hair pennant" on the midsection of the throat.
Female nilgai have a short yellow-brown coat. Males' coats gradually darken to a grey-blue as they reach maturity. They have white spots on the cheeks and white coloring on the edges of the lips. They also have a white throat bib and a narrow white stripe along the underside of the body that widens at the rear.
Nilgai can be found in single sex or mixed sex herds of 4-20, although old bulls are sometimes solitary.
Distribution
They are found in the north Indian plains from the base of the
Himalayas in the north, down to the state of
Karnataka in the South, and from the
Gir forest and from all along the entire eastern length of
Pakistan and over across the border of
Rajasthan in the West to the states of
Assam and
West Bengal in the East. The population density in central India is 0.07 animals per square kilometer.
Historic notes mention the Nilgai in southern parts of India but there have also been suggestion that they may be a feral population.
The Nilgai was introduced in
Texas in the 1920s as a zoo animal and is now found on some ranches there.
Habitat
Nilgai are
diurnal and live in grasslands and woodlands where they eat
grasses,
leaves, buds, and
fruit.
In the wild, females and young males gather in herds of about fifteen individuals while older males are often solitary. Individual male or female nilgais may be encountered in cultivated or semi-urban areas.
Nilgai in India
A blue bull is called a
Nil gai or
Nilgai in India, literally from
nil meaning blue and
gai meaning a bovine animal (though a female bovine such as a cow is called
gabhih in formal Sanskrit). In fact the Nilgai was known as the
Nilghor (
nil = blue,
ghor = horse) during the rule of
Aurangzeb (Mughal Era) (Gautam Masters dissertation unpubl : Dept. of Wildlife Sciences, Aligarh Muslim Univ). Nevertheless the local belief, that the Nilgai is a cow and hence sacred, has protected it against hunting.
However, the Nilgai is a crop menace, causing large-scale damages especially along the
gangetic belt. It has been declared as
vermin in northern India, and they may be legally hunted after obtaining a permit.
Habits
Blue bulls mostly live in
herds and in winter, male blue bulls form herds of 30 to 100 animals in northern India. They avoid dense
forest and prefer the plains and low
hills with
shrubs. Blue bulls are usually found in their favoured areas of scrub jungle (acacia forests) grazing upon succulent
kader grass. They are not averse to crossing
marshlands.
Nilgai can be seen with black bucks (
Antilope cervicapra) in the open plains, and in the lower
Terai regions they may be seen together with
Chital (
Axis axis) and 'para' or
Hog deer (
Axis porcinus). The Chital and Hog Deer, being comparatively smaller in size, usually keep a respectful distance from the much larger Nilgai. Sambar (
Cervus unicolor) frequent hills and dense forests and are rarely found in the same habitat as Nilgai.
The main predators of the blue bulls are tigers (
Panthera tigris) and lions (
Panthera leo). Leopards are not capable of killing a full grown Nilgai but can take calves.
A blue bull can survive for days without water, but they live close to waterholes. The deserts earlier limited their range, but the extension of irrigation canals and proliferation of tube-wells in the
Thar desert have helped them colonise the desert districts of
Jodhpur,
Barmer,
Jaisalmer,
Bikaner and
Ganganagar.
Blue bulls generally come to the same place to deposit their droppings.
Status
The estimated population of Nilgai in India is approximately 100,000. The Texas population is estimated to be around 15,000.
Like many Indian animals, Nilgai are often victim to vehicular accidents, and their carcasses are often seen on major highways in northern India. The main threat to this species is the loss of habitat due to human population growth.
The species is declared by the
IUCN as being at
low risk of extinction.
Wild populations also exist in Alabama and Texas where they've escaped from private exotic ranches.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Nilgai'.
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