The "common eland" , also known as the "southern eland" or "eland antelope", is a savannah and plains antelope found in East and Southern Africa. It is a species of the family Bovidae and genus "Taurotragus". It was first described by Peter Simon Pallas in 1766. An adult male is around 1.6 metres tall at the shoulder shorter) and can weigh up to 942 kg with an average of 500–600 kilograms for females). It is the second largest antelope in the world, being slightly smaller on average than the giant eland. Mainly an herbivore, its diet is primarily grasses and leaves. Common elands form herds of up to 500 animals, but are not territorial. The common eland prefers habitats with a wide variety of flowering plants such as savannah, woodlands, and open and montane grasslands; it avoids dense forests. It uses loud barks, visual and postural movements and the flehmen response to communicate and warn others of danger. The common eland is used by humans for leather, meat, and rich, nutritious milk, and has been domesticated in many areas. It is native to Botswana, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe but is no longer present in Burundi and Angola. While the common eland's population is decreasing, it is classified as "Least Concern" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature . The scientific name of the common eland is "Taurotragus oryx", composed of three words: "tauros", "tragos" and "oryx". "Tauros" is Greek for a bull or bullock, meaning the same as the Latin "taurus". "Tragos" is Greek for a male goat, referring to the tuft of hair that grows in the eland's ear and its resemblance to a goat's beard. "Oryx" is Latin and Greek for pickaxe, referring to the pointed horns of North African antelopes like the common eland and scimitar-horned oryx. Wiz Science™ is "the" learning channel for children and all ages. SUBSCRIBE TODAY Disclaimer: This video is for your information only. The author or publisher does not guarantee the accuracy of the content presented in this video. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Background Music: "The Place Inside" by Silent Partner (royalty-free) from YouTube Audio Library. This video uses material/images from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common+eland, which is released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ . This video is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ . To reuse/adapt the content in your own work, you must comply with the license terms.

• published: 13 Aug 2015
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