The dorcas gazelle (''Gazella dorcas''), also known as the ariel gazelle, is a small and common

gazelle A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . There are also seven species included in two further genera; '' Eudorcas'' and '' Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third former subgenus, ' ...

. The dorcas gazelle stands about at the shoulder, with a head and body length of and a weight of . The numerous subspecies survive on vegetation in

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominance (ecology), dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes such as clover, and other Herbaceo ...

steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without closed forests except near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the tropical and subtropica ...

wadis Wadi ( ; ) is a river valley or a wet ( ephemeral) riverbed that contains water only when heavy rain occurs. Wadis are located on gently sloping, nearly flat parts of deserts; commonly they begin on the distal portions of alluvial fans and e ...

, mountain

desert A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the la ...

and in semidesert climates of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

. About 35,000–40,000 exist in the wild.

Taxonomy and evolution

The

scientific name In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

of the dorcas gazelle is ''Gazella dorcas'', the name coming from Ancient Greek (''dorkas''), which referred to a roe deer,

antelope The term antelope refers to numerous extant or recently extinct species of the ruminant artiodactyl family Bovidae that are indigenous to most of Africa, India, the Middle East, Central Asia, and a small area of Eastern Europe. Antelopes do ...

. It is a member of the genus ''

Gazella A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . There are also seven species included in two further genera; '' Eudorcas'' and '' Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third former subgenus, ' ...

'' and the family

Bovidae The Bovidae comprise the family (biology), biological family of cloven-hoofed, ruminant mammals that includes Bos, cattle, bison, Bubalina, buffalo, antelopes (including Caprinae, goat-antelopes), Ovis, sheep and Capra (genus), goats. A member o ...

. The

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

was first described by Swedish zoologist

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...

in the 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'' in 1758. Although zoologist

Theodor Haltenorth Dr. Theodor Haltenorth (May 18, 1910 – January 30, 1981) was a German mammalogist. He worked mainly in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, and was a key figure in the Quagga Project The Quagga Project is an attempt by a group in South Africa to use s ...

considered ''G. d. pelzelnii'' to be an independent species, the following six

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

are identified: *''G. d.'' subsp. ''beccarii'' De Beaux, 1931 – Eritrean dorcas gazelle *''G. d.'' subsp. ''dorcas'' (Linnaeus, 1758) – Egyptian dorcas gazelle *''G. d.'' subsp. ''isabella''

Gray Grey (more frequent in British English) or gray (more frequent in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning that it has no chroma. It is the color of a cloud-covered s ...

, 1846 – Isabelle dorcas gazelle *''G. d.'' subsp. ''massaesyla'' Cabrera, 1928 – Moroccan dorcas gazelle *''G. d.'' subsp. ''osiris'' Blaine, 1913 – Saharan (or Saharawi) dorcas gazelle (synonym of ''G. d.'' subsp. ''neglecta'') *''G. d.'' subsp. ''pelzelnii'' Kohl, 1886 – Pelzeln's gazelle *''G. d.'' subsp. ''saudiya'' Carruthers & Schwarz, 1935 -

Saudi gazelle The Saudi gazelle (''Gazella saudiya'') is a ''Gazella'' species that was once native to the Arabian Peninsula. It was declared extinct in the wild in 1996, as it was last observed in the wild in 1970. The Saudi gazelle was officially declared ex ...

File:Maroccan dorcas gazelle (Gazella dorcas massaesyla).jpg, ''G. d. massaesyla'',

Souss-Massa National Park The Souss-Massa National Park (''Parc National de Souss-Massa'') is a 33,800 hectare national park on the Atlantic coast of Morocco which was created in 1991. It lies between Agadir to the north and Sidi Ifni to the south. The estuary of the ...

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

File:The book of antelopes (1894) Gazella dorcas.png, Illustration of ''G. d. dorcas''. File:The book of antelopes (1894) Gazella isabella.png, Illustration of ''G. d. isabella'' File:The book of antelopes (1894) Gazella pelzelni.png, Illustration of ''G. d. pelzelni'' File:GaseladorcasBCN2.JPG, ''G. d. osiris'' at Barcelona Zoo File:Compléments_de_Buffon_(6289273740).jpg, Illustration of ''G. d. saudiya''

Description

The dorcas gazelle is similar in appearance to, yet smaller than, the closely related

mountain gazelle The mountain gazelle (''Gazella gazella''), also called the true gazelle or the Palestine mountain gazelle, is a species of gazelle that is widely but unevenly distributed. Approximately 6,000 are left in the wild as of 2024. The mountain gazell ...

(''Gazella gazella''). Dorcas gazelles have longer ears and more strongly curved horns, which bow outwards then turn inwards and forwards at the tips. Individuals belonging to the

Sahara The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...

n subspecies (''G. d. osiris'') have very pale, fawn-colored coats. The white underside is bordered with a brown stripe, above which is a sandy stripe. The forehead and face are darker than the body. Subspecies from north of the Sahara tend to be more ochre in color, and have dark flanks and facial stripes. Populations in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and around the

Red Sea The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...

are darker and more reddish. In the last century, the populations of dorcas gazelle were partially destroyed in all the countries where it was found. Currently, large populations of dorcas gazelles are found in the

Negev The Negev ( ; ) or Naqab (), is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The region's largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba (pop. ), in the north. At its southern end is the Gulf of Aqaba and the resort town, resort city ...

and the Arava, with other large populations in

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

, and the southern part of the eastern desert of

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

. In Israel, only 1000–1500 gazelles remain.

Behaviour

Dorcas gazelles are highly adapted to life in the desert, they get most of their water from the plants in their diet but they cannot go their entire lives without water, despite the bulk of their hydration needs coming from succulent plants in their diet. The gazelles will still look for water, and drink readily when water is available. They are naturally able to withstand high temperatures and harsh sunlight. Other than evenings when it is very hot, they are active mainly from dusk to dawn. In areas where they face human predation, they tend to be active only at night to minimize the risk of falling prey to hunters. These gazelles feed on leaves, flowers, and the pods of many species of

acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Austral ...

trees, as well as the leaves, twigs and fruits of various desert bushes. They occasionally stand on their hind legs to browse through trees and, after rain, they have been observed digging out bulbs from the ground. Dorcas gazelles can run at speeds up to to . When threatened, they tail-twitch and make bouncing leaps with their heads held high (

stotting Stotting (also called pronking or pronging) is a behavior of quadrupeds, particularly gazelles, in which they spring into the air, lifting all four feet off the ground simultaneously. Usually, the legs are held in a relatively stiff position. Ma ...

), possibly to announce they have seen a predator.

Breeding

When conditions are harsh, dorcas gazelles live in pairs, but when conditions are more favorable, they join together in family herds with one adult male, several females, and young. During the breeding season, adult males tend to be territorial, and mark their range with dung middens. In most parts of their range, mating takes place from September to November. Gestation takes six months; a single fawn is typical, although twins have been reported in

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

. The newborn is well developed at birth, with fur and open eyes. Within the first hour, the fawn attempts to stand, and it will suckle on this first day of life. In the first two weeks, the young gazelle lies curled up in a scrape on the ground or beneath bushes while the mother grazes close by. The young then starts to follow its mother around and begins to take solid food. After around three months, the fawn stops suckling and is fully weaned. Some dorcas gazelles are also known for their dangerous behaviors when surrounded. There have been many reports of deaths involving them.

Threats

The population of this gazelle has declined throughout its range. Their natural predators include

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus ''Homo''. They are Hominidae, great apes characterized by their Prehistory of nakedness and clothing ...

cheetah The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large Felidae, cat and the Fastest animals, fastest land animal. It has a tawny to creamy white or pale buff fur that is marked with evenly spaced, solid black spots. The head is small and rounded, wit ...

leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant cat species in the genus ''Panthera''. It has a pale yellowish to dark golden fur with dark spots grouped in rosettes. Its body is slender and muscular reaching a length of with a ...

s, Arabian wolves, and

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...

s. Due to human hunting, few large cats remain to prey on dorcas gazelles. Mostly unhealthy gazelles are caught successfully by predators, since the healthy gazelles tend to escape them. To escape the cheetah, the fastest of carnivores, they run extremely fast and make zigs-zags, as does the

Thomson's gazelle Thomson's gazelle (''Eudorcas thomsonii'') is one of the best known species of gazelles. It is named after explorer Joseph Thomson (explorer), Joseph Thomson and is sometimes referred to as a "tommie". It is considered by some to be a subspecies o ...

. The

serval The serval (''Leptailurus serval'') is a wild small cat native to Africa. It is widespread in sub-Saharan countries, where it inhabits grasslands, wetlands, moorlands and bamboo thickets. Across its range, it occurs in protected areas, and ...

and

caracal The caracal (''Caracal caracal'') () is a medium-sized Felidae, wild cat native to Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and arid areas of Pakistan and northwestern India. It is characterised by a robust build, long legs, a short face, long ...

also prey on juveniles. The biggest modern threat to this gazelle is ever-expanding human civilization, which shrinks the gazelle's habitat by converting it to farmland, and by introducing new flocks of domestic sheep and goats which compete with gazelles for grassland.

Trade

Dorcas gazelle pelts and horns are traded in Morocco for decorative and medicinal purposes, where they are the most commonly observed ungulate in markets, despite their protected status under Moroccan law. Given the relatively low numbers of wild dorcas gazelles in the country, if locally sourced, this trade could be having a significant negative impact on the local populations of this species.

References

External links

* ARKive
images and movies of the dorcas gazelle ''(Gazella dorcas)''
* Science magazine

{{Taxonbar, from=Q387240

dorcas gazelle The dorcas gazelle (''Gazella dorcas''), also known as the ariel gazelle, is a small and common gazelle. The dorcas gazelle stands about at the shoulder, with a head and body length of and a weight of . The numerous subspecies survive on veget ...

Antelopes of North Africa Mammals of Chad Mammals of West Africa Mammals of Djibouti Mammals of Eritrea Mammals of Ethiopia Mammals of the Middle East Mammals of Somalia Mammals of Sudan Fauna of the Sahara