Dave Taylor's African Safari: Trophic Level II - The Herbivores - Kirk’s Dikdik

Dave Taylor's African Safari: Trophic Level II - The Herbivores - Kirk’s Dikdik - Page 23

Trophic Level II - The Herbivores
Kirk’s Dikdik
Page 23

Madoqua kirkii

Length: 55-72 cm (22-28")

Height: 35-45 cm (14-18")

Tail: 4-6 cm (1.5-2.4")

Weight: 3.8-7.2kg (8-16 lb.)

Status: Common

Habitat: In the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem, dikdik are found in regions where there is plenty of cover. They prefer bush and wooded areas. They avoid open grasslands and areas where tall grass grows. The species is adapted to arid conditions and does not migrate. They can tolerate temperatures of 40 C (104° F) for up to eight hours before they begin to pant. (Air temperatures rarely reach this in most parts of the Serengeti-Mara ecosystems.)

They live on most of the kopjes found in the region.

Food: Dikdiks are browsers. They feed on evergreen shoots and the leaves of herbs and shrubs and the fruits of succulents found where they live. Dikdik seldom, if ever, drink. They get all their moisture from the plants they eat.

Social System: Dikdik are always found in pairs and may or may not have the year’s young with them. The male and the female maintain a territory between 2.5 and 12 hectares (6 to 30 acres). Both sexes will patrol it and contribute to the middens they have built up in it. Males will tolerate no other adult male within the territory. Females will chase out other females.

Pairs mate for life. Young dikdiks remain with their parents for between six and nine months before being chased off. In a place where the dikdik population is so high that all of the suitable territories are occupied, the young have little chance of survival. Forced by territorial owners to constantly move, they become easy prey for eagles and leopards. Other predators include baboons, snakes, wild dogs, caracal and spotted hyenas.

The only hope the offspring has is to find a spot where an adult of the same sex has died or been taken by a predator.

Behavior: Both sexes deposit their dung and urine in the middens which mark their territory. Middens may be up to two meters (6.5’) across and 10 centimeters (4") deep.

They are more active at night but will feed during the day.

When a predator is spotted, they will separate and then make their way back together. They greet by rubbing their heads together.

Young are born at the end of the rainy season in the Serengeti. The gestation period is six months. Calves lie down to avoid predators but can walk within 15 minutes of their birth.

Predators: Dikdik are preyed upon by large eagles, owls and leopards.

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