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Female Nyala at the waterhole – Zimanga, South Africa 2022

Female Nyala at the waterhole.

The night hides at Zimanga Private Game Reserve, South Africa also work well in daylight! Perhaps one of the most impressive antelopes to visit the waterhole was the Nyala. Here a small group of Nyala ewes and fawns appeared for a drink.

These antelopes are found in northeastern parts of South Africa and southern Malawi. Female Nyala are much smaller than males (standing at 97cm at the shoulder and weighing in at around 60kg), do not have horns and lack the shaggy hair of the males. They have a yellow-brown to chestnut coat with as many as 18 vertical white stripes on its side. These mixed browsers and grazers require regular access to water and are never far from cover.

The Nyala sexes are markedly different. Males are much larger than females being 1.2m in height with horns that are 0.6m long on average and weigh in at around 100kg.