The Blue Wildebeest is a large ungulate mammal which grows to 1.4 meters shoulder height and attains a body mass of up to 270 kilograms. They range the open plains, bushveld and dry woodlands of Southern and East Africa, realizing a life span in excess of twenty years. This herbivore is a grazing animal that is often sighted in open grasslands or clearings in a savanna. The male is highly territorial using scent markings and other devices to protect his domain. The largest population is in the Serengeti, numbering over one million animals.

Even though it has a beefy muscular front-heavy appearance with a distinctive robust muzzle, it strides with relatively slender legs and moves gracefully and quietly most of the time, belying the reputation for stampeding in herds; however the stampeding characteristic may sometimes be observed. The name “Blue Wildebeest” derives from a conspicuous silvery blue sheen to his short haired hide, differentiating this species from the plainer black genus member Black Wildebeest.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connochaetes_taurinus

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