Yellow-backed Duiker
Cephalophus silvicultor
CLASS: Mammalia
ORDER: Artiodactyla
FAMILY: Bovidae
SIZE:
33 inches high and about 100 to 175 pounds.
RANGE:
Western central Africa from Gambia to Kenya and then south to northern Angola and Zambia.
HABITAT:
Rainforests, especially along forest edges and in riverine thickets.
DIET:
- Wild - Seeds, fruits, berries, herbs, bark, fungi, and mosses.
- Zoo - Herbivore diet, apples, lettuce, carrots.
This large duiker is dark blackish brown with light gray cheeks and muzzle. There is a yellow to cream triangular patch on the back that is widest at the tail. The crest between the horns is rufous. The lower rump is grayish.
FACTS:
- This is a mainly solitary species that will defend its territory from others.
- It spends much time hidden under fallen branches at the bases of trees.
There usually is one young per year.
STATUS:
Considered widespread and common, but in some areas it has become endangered because of overhunting.
REFERENCES:
- Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals. Jonathan Kingdon.
- Walker’s Mammals of the World. Vol. 2. Fifth Edition. Ronald M. Nowak.
