Part 66

Hab. South Africa, wooded districts of the Cape Colony, extending westwards to Benguela and eastwards to Nyasaland.

The Blue Duiker, or “Blaauw-bok,” as the colonists of the Cape call it, is one of the oldest known Antelopes of South Africa, and still exists, although nowhere plentiful, in the wooded districts of the Colony. There has been much diversity of opinion as to the specific name by which this animal should be correctly called, but we believe we are right in adopting the term monticola given to it by Thunberg as long ago as 1789. Thunberg was a distinguished naturalist and traveller of the last century, and a favourite disciple of Linnæus. During his travels to the Cape, Ceylon, Java, and Japan he amassed a rich harvest of plants and animals, which were described in the narrative of his journey, and in the memoirs of various scientific societies.

Another term used by many authors for this Antelope is pygmæa. But the true Copra pygmæa of Linnæus, as has been shown by the late Sir Victor Brooke, refers to a different Antelope--the little Royal Antelope of West Africa. The remaining terms, such as cærulea, perpusilla, and minuta, which have been applied to this species, are all ante-dated by Thunberg’s term monticola.

The Blue-buck, Messrs. Nicolls and Eglington tell us, is now found only in the coast districts of the Cape Colony, and occasionally in Natal, being nowhere plentiful. It is solitary in its habits and keeps to the dense bush and forest, from which it is with difficulty dislodged. When pursued by dogs it darts across from cover to cover with surprising celerity. These authors add that this Antelope emits a nasty musky odour and that its flesh is not particularly good.

How far the Blue Duiker extends beyond the limits of the Cape Colony is, as yet, a matter of considerable uncertainty, these small Duikers, owing to their close similarity, being still in a state of much confusion. According to M. Du Bocage, as recorded in the Zoological Society’s ‘Proceedings’ for 1878, this species is found in Benguela and Loando, far up the west coast. On the east coast Peters obtained specimens near Mozambique, Quillemane, and Inambane, and in Boror, which, in his ‘Reise nach Mossambique,’ he refers to the present species. 1

North of the Zambesi in Nyasaland either the Blue Duiker or a closely allied species is found, of which Mr. Crawshay speaks as follows:--

“This little Antelope, or at any rate a species of Blue-buck very closely resembling it, appears to be common in parts of the Nyasa country, especially in the densely wooded slopes of mountains; and though I cannot claim to have come across any in life, I have yet seen a good number of their skins--notably among the Anyika of Chombi and the adjoining mountains, where they are said to be plentiful. On the thickly wooded mountainous slopes between Bandawe and Syiska they are also said to exist, and again in some of the hills about Cape Maclear; but everywhere natives speak of them as being shy and very difficult to bring to bag in the thick covert where they are generally found.”

In 1862 the late Dr. Gray described and figured in the Zoological Society’s ‘Proceedings,’ under the name of Cephalophus bicolor, what appears to be merely a piebald variety of the present species. The specimen was obtained by Mr. John Dunn in the Ungozy Forest of Zululand. It is in the British Museum. There are also in the National Collection specimens of this Antelope obtained by Burchell at Galgebosch, near Uitenhage, in the Cape Colony.

Many specimens of the “Blau-bok,” as it is called in the Zoological Society’s Catalogues, have been captured and brought alive to this country and exhibited in the Society’s Gardens. A male was presented by Sir George Grey, then Governor of the Cape, in 1861, and another by H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh in 1866. Other specimens of both sexes were received in 1871, 1874, 1882, and subsequent years. In every case, as we are informed by the Head Keeper and Superintendent, the females carried horns as well as the males.

Our figure of this species (Plate XXI. fig. 1) was drawn by Mr. Smit under the superintendence of the late Sir Victor Brooke. We can find no record of from what specimen it was taken.

August, 1895.

THE BOOK OF ANTELOPES, PL. XXII.

Wolf del. Smit lith. Hanhart imp.

Fig. 1.The Abyssinian Duiker.

CEPHALOPHUS ABYSSINICUS.

Fig. 2. The Crowned Duiker.

CEPHALOPHUS CORONATUS.

Published by R. H. Porter.]

36. THE CROWNED DUIKER.

CEPHALOPHUS CORONATUS, GRAY.

Antilope grimmia, =Pall.= Misc. Zool. p. 12 (1766) (nec Capra grimmia, Linn.); =id.= Spic. Zool. i. p. 15 (1767), xii. p. 18 (1777); =Müll.= Natursyst., Suppl. p. 55 (1776); =Erxl.= Syst. R. A. p. 276 (1777); =Zimm.= Spec. Zool. geogr. p. 540 (1777); =id.= Geogr. Gesch. p. 111 (1780); =Gatt.= Brev. Zool. i. p. 80 (1780); =Herm.= Tab. Affin. Anim. p. 107 (1783); =Bodd.= Elench. An. p. 140 (1785); =Gmel.= Linn. S. N. i. p. 191 (1785); =Schreb.= Säug. pl. cclx. (animal) (1785); =Kerr=, Linn. An. K. p. 318 (1792); =Donnd=. Zool. Beytr. i. p. 641 (1792); =Link=, Beytr. Nat. ii. p. 99 (1795); =Bechst.= Uebers. vierf. Th. ii. p. 642 (1800); =Shaw=, Gen. Zool. ii. pt. 2, p. 324 (1801); =Turt.= Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 115 (1802); =Desm.= N. Dict. d’H. (1) x. p. 158 (1803), xxiv. Tabl. p. 32 (1804); =G. Cuv.= Dict. Sci. Nat. ii. p. 240 (1804); =Ill.= Prodr. Syst. Mamm. p. 106 (1811); =G. Fisch.= Zoogn. iii. p. 424 (1814); =Afzel.= N. Act. Ups. vii. p. 220 (1815); =Goldf.= Schr. Säug. v. p. 1230 (1818); =Schinz=, Cuv. Thierr. i. p. 393 (1821); =Forst.= Descr. Anim. p. 384 (1844).

Antilope (Gazella) grimmia, =Licht.= Mag. nat. Freund. Berl. vi. p. 177 (1814).

Cerophorus (Cervicapra) grimmia, =Blainv.= Bull. Soc. Philom. 1816, p. 75.

Cephalophus grimmia, =Jard.= Nat. Libr. (1) vii. p. 227, pl. xxxii. (1842).

Cephalophus coronatus, =Gray=, Ann. Mag. N. H. (1) x. p. 266 (1842); =id.= op. cit. xviii. p. 164 (1846); =id.= List Ost. B. M. p. 57 (1847); =id.= Knowsl. Men. p. 9, pl. vi. (animal) (1850); =id.= P. Z. S. 1850, p. 122; =id.= Cat. Ung. B. M. p. 82 (1852); =Temm.= Esq. Zool. Guin. pp. 194, 236 (1853); =Gerr.= Cat. Bones Mamm. B. M. p. 236 (1862); =Gray=, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 599, fig. 7 (skull, yg.); =id.= Cat. Rum. B. M. p. 28 (1872); =id.= Hand-l. Rum. B. M. p. 96 (1873); =Thos.= P. Z. S. 1892, p. 427; =Lyd.= Horns and Hoofs, p. 212 (1893).

Sylvicapra coronata, =Sund.= Pecora, K. Vet.-Ak. Hand-l. 1844, p. 191 (1846); =id.= Hornschuch’s Transl., Arch. Skand. Beitr. ii. p. 143; Reprint, p. 67 (1848); =Fitz.= SB. Wien, lix. pt. 1, p. 168 (1869).

Antilope (Cephalophus) coronatus, =Wagn.= Schr. Säug. Suppl. iv. p. 421 (1852).

Sylvicapra grimmia, =Fitz.= SB. Wien, lix. pt. 1, p. 168 (1869).