Gazella thomsonii

Length: 80-120 cm (31-47")

Height: 55-82 cm (22-32")

Tail: 15-27 cm (6-11")

Weight: 20-35 kg (44-77 lb.)

Status: locally common and not endangered; range is decreasing

Habitat: Thomson's gazelles are found from northern Tanzania to northern Kenya. The species is found in arid areas and adjacent savanna grasslands.

During the dry season, only the Tommies and few Grant's gazelles remain on the dry plains in the south-eastern portion of the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem. Most of them migrate.

Role: herbivore.

Food: Tommies are grazers/browsers. They prefer to eat the short grasses but will graze in areas that the larger herbivores have eaten down. They have small narrow mouths that are adapted for selective feeding on short grasses. When grass is not available to them, they will feed on shrubs and forbs.

Predators: lions, spotted hyena, wild dog, cheetah, leopard