Bovidae, Subfamily: Antilopinae
Artiodactyla
Mammalia
About 170 days.
1
ESB
Herbivorous, based on easily digestible plant matter and with a small amount of fiber. 80% of their diet consists of leaves from trees and shrubs, 17% comes from grasses, and the rest from grasses and reeds.
17 years.
Kirk's dik-dik is the smallest antelope in Africa, measuring 55-72 cm long from head to tail, 30-40 cm high at the shoulders and weighing 560-680 grams for females and 725-795 grams the males.
Its coloration ranges from yellowish gray to reddish brown on its back and from gray to white on its belly. The males have horns. A very distinctive characteristic of this species is that its snout has a particular elongation like a proboscis.
Dik-diks are shy and elusive animals, which spend most of their time hiding in the bushes. When they are surprised, they perform quick zig-zag races called “zik-zik” or “dik-dik”, hence their name.
The population density is around 24 adults per square km. Family groups mark their territory through a process known as “defecation ceremony” in which the female and the male participate. Territorial conflicts are not frequent, but occasionally they occur.
They feed mainly in two periods, from dawn to mid-morning and from mid-afternoon to dusk. Although their size is very small, their metabolic needs are very high, they consume more food per kilogram of body mass than other larger herbivores. size.
The Kirk's dik-dik is heavily hunted in some areas of its range because of its skin, which is used in the production of gloves. It takes the skin of an entire animal to make a single glove.
