The true spiral-horned antelope (tragelaphus) consist of the various sub species of kudu, bushbuck, nyala, sitatunga and bongo. It’s not uncommon for many people to also include the various elands which are actually taurotragus.

All these species are predominantly browsers and most incidentally have a shared weakness for acacia seed pods.

There are various subspecies of greater kudu throughout most parts of Africa and the most obvious distinguishing feature amongst them, is the number of stripes they wear. The stunningly beautiful but diminutive lesser kudu that is restricted to the parts of Tanzania and Kenya known as Masailand.

Although there are a wide variety of subspecies of bushbuck, all are fairly similar. Be warned, bushbuck hunting is very addictive and many hunters try to collect the entire range of subspecies. These animals are particularly aggressive when injured or wounded.

The nyalas come in two very separate varieties. The common nyala naturally occurring in Kwa Zulu Natal and Mozambique. They are found in many other areas in southern Africa now where they were introduced. The mountain nyala occurs in Ethiopia.

The bongo is restricted to the rain forests of central and west Africa. Hunting them is never easy and never cheap. They have the reputation of being a very wary animal and bongo is usually considered the ultimate attainment for the spiral-horned antelope collectors.

Sitatunga complete the tragelaphus group. This species is a largly aquatic dwelling antelope that has developed elongated hooves to help move about in a swampy habitat. This species is usually hunted from boats and occasionally on foot.

Although the eland isn’t strictly a tragalephine, many hunters do consider it as such for the purposes of their collections. This animal has a variety of subspecies, each with small distinguishing features such as varying mops of hair between the horns. Generally, they are the largest antelope in Africa and big bulls, often referred to as ‘blue bulls’ are heavier than a buffalo. Although it’s hard to believe, these huge animals can jump a 2 metre high fence from a sitting start. They walk up to the fence, almost sit down like a dog and then leap the fence almost like a horse taking part in a puissance event.

African Game Species A-C

African Game Species D-E

African Game Species I-N

African Game Species O-Si

African Game Species Si-Z