Indian gazelle
The chinkara (Gazella bennettii) is a gazelle species native to Asia. Gazelles are known as swift animals. Appreciated for their grace, gazelles are a symbol most commonly associated in Arabic literature with female beauty.
No
NocturnalNocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal",...
Cr
CrepuscularCrepuscular animals are those that are active primarily during twilight (that is, the periods of dawn and dusk). This is distinguished from diurnal...
He
HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
Fo
FolivoreIn zoology, a folivore is a herbivore that specializes in eating leaves. Mature leaves contain a high proportion of hard-to-digest cellulose, less ...
Fr
FrugivoreA frugivore is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts, and seeds. Approx...
Te
TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
Cu
CursorialA cursorial organism is one that is adapted specifically to run. An animal can be considered cursorial if it has the ability to run fast (e.g. chee...
Pr
PrecocialPrecocial species are those in which the young are relatively mature and mobile from the moment of birth or hatching. Precocial species are normall...
Gr
GrazingGrazing is a method of feeding in which a herbivore feeds on plants such as grasses, or other multicellular organisms such as algae. In agriculture...
Br
BrowsingBrowsing is a type of herbivory in which an herbivore (or, more narrowly defined, a folivore) feeds on leaves, soft shoots, or fruits of high-growi...
Zo
ZoochoryZoochory animals are those that can disperse plant seeds in several ways. Seeds can be transported on the outside of vertebrate animals (mostly mam...
Te
TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
Vi
ViviparousAmong animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
Co
CongregatoryCongregatory animals tend to gather in large numbers in specific areas as breeding colonies, for feeding, or for resting.
Ge
Generally solitaryGenerally solitary animals are those animals that spend their time separately but will gather at foraging areas or sleep in the same location or sh...
No
Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
C
starts withChinkara have a reddish-buff summer coat with smooth, glossy fur. In winter their coat becomes lighter, almost white. The reddish color of their coat helps them to hide better in the grassland from predators. The sides of their face have dark chestnut stripes from the corner of the eye to the muzzle, bordered by white stripes.
Chinkara are native to Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. They live in arid plains and hills, deserts, dry scrub, and light forests.
Chinkara are very shy creatures and avoid human habitation. Most of the time they spend alone, however, can sometimes gather in small groups of up to four animals. Males are territorial and will chase other males away from their territory. These gazelles are very agile; they run in leaps and bounds and can jump up to 6-7 meters in height. When feeling threatened, they will stamp their forefoot and produce a sneeze-like hiss through the nose. Chinkara prefer to feed at nighttime and are most active just before sunset and during the night.
Chinkara are herbivores (folivores, frugivores). They feed on grasses, different leaves, and fruits (melon, pumpkin). These gazelles can go without water for many days and can get fluids from plants they feed on and dew.
Little is known about the mating system of chinkara. During the breeding season, males compete with each other for females, which may suggest that these gazelles are polygynous. Chinkara breed twice a year, in late August-October, and then again in March-April. Females usually give birth to a single calf after the gestation period that lasts around 5 or 5.5 months. Calves are born fully developed and are nursed for 2 months. They may stay with their mother for up to 12 months when another calf is born. Females in this species become reproductively mature at 1 year of age, while males attain reproductive maturity when they are 2 years old.
The major threat to chinkara is overhunting for meat and trophies in Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan. Another serious threat is habitat loss due to agricultural and industrial expansion, and overgrazing.
According to the IUCN Red List, the total population size of chinkara is around 50,000-70,000 mature individuals. There are also estimated populations of this species in the following areas: in India (in 2011) there were more than 100,000 animals with 80,000 animals living in the Tahr Desert; in Iran - around 1,300 animals. Currently, Chinkara are classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List but their numbers today are decreasing.
Due to their habit of eating fruits, chinkara may play a very important role in their ecosystem as seed dispersers.
