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The bluebuck or blue antelope (''Hippotragus leucophaeus''), sometimes called blaubok, is an extinct species of antelope, the first large African mammal to disappear in historic times. It is related to the roan antelope and sable antelope, but slightly smaller than either. It lived in the southwestern coastal region of South Africa savannas, but was more widespread during the last glacial. It was probably a selective feeder, preferring high-quality grasses. Europeans encountered the bluebuck in the 17th century, but it was already uncommon by then. European settlers hunted it avidly, despite its flesh being distasteful, while converting its habitat to agriculture. The bluebuck became extinct around 1800. Only four mounted specimens remain, in museums in Vienna, Stockholm, Paris, and Leiden, along with some bones and horns elsewhere. None of the museum specimens shows a blue colour, which may have derived from a mixture of black and yellow hairs. ==Characteristics== Eighteenth-century travellers provided contradictory descriptions of this species, perhaps because some were embellishing, while others had not actually seen it and were simply repeating hearsay - Peter Kolb in 1719 incorrectly described it as having a long goat-like beard and tail, straight horns like an oryx, and short ears.〔Smithers, R.H.N. 1983. Die soogdiere van die Suider-Afrikaanse substreek. Universiteit van Pretoria, Pretoria.〕〔Stuart, C. & Stuart, T. 1996. Africa’s vanishing wildlife. Southern Book Publishers, Halfway House.〕 They did send some skulls and skins back to Europe. In 1967, Erna Mohr reported the four existing mounted blue antelopes vary from at the shoulder. Adult bluebuck probably rarely exceeded . None of the four museum specimens shows any sheen of blue. The dark skin showing through the thinning fur of older animals, or the mix of black and yellow hairs, may have caused the blue colours described by several authors. The total length of the bluebuck was for the male, and for the female. The shoulder height was . The skull length was . Horn length was . It weighed . Like most antelopes, the bluebuck had six teeth along the cheek in each half of the upper and lower jaws. These formed two distinct series, three premolars immediately followed by three molars. Its remains can be distinguished from those of the roan by smaller molars and premolars, and from the sable by larger premolars, and a higher ratio of premolar row length to molar row length. The bluebuck was a large, horse-like antelope, as heavy as a Javan or English horse, but smaller than the roan or sable. The proportions of its body were similar to that of the southern reedbuck.〔Loubser, J., Brink, J. & Laurens, G. 1990. Paintings of the extinct blue antelope, Hippotragus leucophaeus, in the Eastern Orange Free State. The South African Archaeological Bulletin 45 (152): 106-111.〕 It had a relatively long, strong neck with a very short, underdeveloped mane,〔Zaloumis, E.A. & Cross, R. 1987. ''A field guide to the antelope of Southern Africa''. Natal Branch of the Wildlife Society of Southern Africa, Durban.〕 long white legs with dark bands on the anterior, and a long tail, up to the hock, with a dark, horse-like whisk. It had a long muzzle. Its ears were long and donkey-like, rufous and narrow-pointed, without the black tufts of hair found in the roan. The long, scimitar-shaped horns inserted directly above the orbits, extending upwards at almost right angles to the skull, and then curving back gently, without any torsion, towards the shoulders.〔Colahan, B.D. 1990. "Did the last blue antelope Hippotragus leucophaeus die in the Eastern Orange Free State, South Africa?" ''Mirafra'' 7 (2): 51-52.〕 These horns were heavily ridged, with 20-35 rings up to the tip of the horn, comparable to the roan (20-50 rings). Its horns were more lightly built than those of the roan and sable, though, and slightly transversely compressed to the inside. The back-curved horns reminded Jan van Riebeeck of the European ibex, and he called it the ''steinbok''. It remains uncertain how long this name was used, or when it was changed to ''blaauwbok'' or bluebuck. Its hair was short and glossy, and of a delicate light blue to grey - which quickly faded to a bluish grey after death. Its belly was pale white, and did not actually contrast with the colour of the flanks. Its forehead and the upper muzzle were brown, becoming lighter towards the cheeks and upper lips. It had distinct white patches in front of the eyes not reaching the white muzzle. The bulls resembled the cows up to the age of three years, after which they became paler (almost white) and developed larger, more curved horns; the horns of the cows were more or less of the same length, although thinner and 10-20% smaller. The calves younger than two months were light tan, with no or very indistinct markings. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「bluebuck」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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