Red-flanked Duiker
Cephalophus rufilatus

CLASS: Mammalia
ORDER: Artiodactyla
FAMILY: Bovidae

SIZE:
12-15 inches high

RANGE:
Sub-Saharan Africa, Senegal to NW Uganda

HABITAT:
Rainforests, along forest edges, woodlands, and riverine thickets

DIET:
Wild - Leaves, twigs, flowers, fruits, and occasionally grasses, fungi, and insects
Zoo - Herbivore diet, apples, lettuce, carrots

DESCRIPTION:
This small antelope is bright orange red to reddish brown with dark brown to black legs, a blue black dorsal stripe, and a blue black stripe from forehead to muzzle on a dark face. The upper lip and jaw are white. There is a large scent gland in front of the eye and a head crest between the short, ridged horns. The hind legs are longer than the front legs, which helps when moving through dense vegetation. Nocturnal, hiding in hollow logs or under bushes during the day.

FACTS:

• Called duikers from the Afrikaans word for diver due to their series of diving jumps when fleeing
• Gives a warning bark when alarmed
• Lives in pairs that chase away intruders
• Uses facial scent glands to mark territory, mate, and young

YOUNG:
Has one litter of one young a year

STATUS:
Considered lower risk but conservation-dependent due to hunting for bush meat.

REFERENCES:
Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia, 2nd ed., Vol. 16, Mammals V, Edited M. Hutchins
Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals, Jonathan Kingdon