#eastern bongo

Full video: Just a little something to help raise a smile today, Chester Zoo (eastern bongo)

“When you look at them they’re actually twisted slightly in the middle and backwards,” Schmidt says. “So when you think about battles between males and you think about an elk or a white tailed deer that we would see here in the U.S., they’re really more of a tool that’s upright and ready for action. Whereas the bongos, when you look at them and they’re tilted back, they seem like they’re not really utilized in any kind of battle. It’s typically only going to be a male that’s going to battle another male for territory or protection of a mom and kids.”

“Fite me” Another coloured antelope sketch, this time a bongo - also a big favourite. This handsome fellow is of the eastern, or mountain kind. I love how males of this subspecies darken with age until they’re almost half black (when young they're even brown underneath their stripes, like the ladies). Females on the other hand may actually lighten overtime.

　日本ではジャイアントパンダ、オカピ、コビトカバを世界三大珍獣、更にボンゴを合わせて世界四大珍獣と呼んでいます。これらの動物達は比較的最近の20世紀になってから発見された上に、人間が中々踏み込めないような奥地に生息しているということもあって、野生での生態について謎が多いのです。日本では上野動物園が過去現在を含めこれらの動物達を飼育した経験があります。ちなみにこの世界三(四)大珍獣の定義は、日本のとある動物学者と上野動物園が決めたものなので外国では通用しないそうです。

Big, bigger, biggest! This time around, there's two paddocks being built, one for a herd of elephant cows, and one for the big bull. To avoid them being lonely, they're joined by a herd of bongos and two pairs of shoebills. Guests can view all of these from a bridge between the two exhibits, or by peeking between the trees and bushes around them.

yummy