---
title: "What the sources say about the Springbok | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "39 claims from the Springbok profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/springbok-1.webp"
canonical: "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/springbok/sources/"
---

# What the sources say about the Springbok (*Antidorcas marsupialis*)

> 39 claims from the Springbok profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Springbok](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/springbok/)

## Antidorcas marsupialis. Animal Diversity Web.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Antidorcas_marsupialis/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A gazelle-like antelope that bounces on stiff legs | The springbok is a strikingly marked, gazellelike antelope. (note: tagline) |
| A gazelle-like antelope that bounces on stiff legs | a series of stiff-legged vertical leaps (note: tagline) |
| flares a hidden crest of white hair | This fold can be opened in times of excitement to display a crest of white hair. (note: tagline) |
| Treeless savanna by dry lake beds in south and southwestern Africa | Springbok range includes south and southwestern Africa (note: stats.habitat) |
| Treeless savanna by dry lake beds in south and southwestern Africa | treeless savanna associated with the edges of dry lake beds (note: stats.habitat) |
| Grass and browse, with flowers in the dry season | using both grass and browse (note: stats.diet) |
| Grass and browse, with flowers in the dry season | during which time flowers are eaten (note: stats.diet) |
| Pronking: stiff-legged vertical leaps up to 3.5 m high | a series of stiff-legged vertical leaps up to 3.5m high. This behavior is known as pronking (note: stats.superpower) |
| stiff-legged leaps straight up, up to 3.5 m high, with the head lowered, the hooves gathered together and the back curved | a series of stiff-legged vertical leaps up to 3.5m high. This behavior is known as pronking and is performed with the head down, the hooves bunched, and the back arched. (note: body) |
| Lions and cheetahs are among the hunters the leaps are said to distract. | The leaps are said to distract predators, such as lions and cheetahs. (note: body) |
| A fold of skin runs from the middle of the back to the rump, and when the springbok is excited it can open the fold to show a crest of white hair. | a fold of skin that runs from the midback to the rump. This fold can be opened in times of excitement to display a crest of white hair. (note: body blockquote) |
| a white face, a reddish-brown coat and a white backside | It has a white face with dark stripes from the mouth to the eyes, a reddish-brown coat that turns to a darker shade and then to white on the lower third of its body, and a white backside. (note: body) |
| It stands about 80 cm at the shoulder | It stands approximately 80cm high at the shoulders (note: body) |
| weighs 33 to 46 kg | Range mass 33 to 46 kg (note: body, FAQ) |
| Both sexes carry black, lyre-shaped horns, and the horns of larger males measure 36 to 48 cm | Both sexes also have black, curved, lyre-shaped horns. Larger males can have horns 36-48cm in length. (note: body) |
| Springbok eat both grass and browse, and in the hot, dry season they shift to flowers, which hold twice the water of the grass they eat in the wet season | These flowers have double the mean water content of the grass that is consumed in times of water availability (during the hot, wet season) (note: body) |
| Eating this way frees them from needing a constant water supply | Utilizing food resources in this way allows springboks to remain independent of a constant water supply (note: body) |
| mainly in Namibia, Botswana, Angola and South Africa | mainly in the countries of Namibia, Botswana, Angola and the Republic of South Africa (note: body range) |
| They once traveled by the hundreds and even millions, in mass herds called treks, and Dutch farmers whose crops were ruined by the treks hunted them | Springbok once traveled by the hundreds and even millions. Springbok were hunted by the Dutch farmers whose crops were ruined by "treks" of springbok travelling in search of food and water. (note: body) |
| By ADW's 1999 account they were mostly confined to private farms and game reserves | because springboks are now mostly confined to private farms and game reserves (note: body; ADW account last updated 1999-06-07, so the state is dated) |
| When alarmed or excited, a springbok can bounce up to 3.5 m off the ground in a row of stiff-legged leaps called pronking | When frightened or excited, a springbok makes a series of stiff-legged vertical leaps up to 3.5m high. (note: FAQ) |
| Springbok are roughly 80 cm tall at the shoulder | It stands approximately 80cm high at the shoulders (note: FAQ) |
| their body mass ranges from 33 to 46 kg | Range mass 33 to 46 kg (note: FAQ 2) |
| A frightened springbok pronks, bouncing straight up in stiff-legged leaps as high as 3.5 m | When frightened or excited, a springbok makes a series of stiff-legged vertical leaps up to 3.5m high. (note: vibe.reason) |

## AnAge entry for Antidorcas marsupialis. Human Ageing Genomic Resources, AnAge.

https://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php?species=Antidorcas_marsupialis

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| AnAge lists an average adult at 39 kg | Adult weight 39,000 g (note: body; 39,000 g = 39 kg) |
| In the wild, springbok live under 10 years on average, though it has been speculated that they may reach 20. The captive record is 19.8 years | In the wild, these animals live on average less than 10 years, though it has been speculated that they may live up to 20 years [ 0542 ]. Record longevity in captivity is 19.8 years (note: body (lifespan); AnAge is the current source, ADW's 7-9 years left out) |
| In captivity, the record stands at 19.8 years | Record longevity in captivity is 19.8 years (note: FAQ 3) |
| Wild springbok average less than 10 years, and AnAge notes it has been speculated they can reach 20 | In the wild, these animals live on average less than 10 years, though it has been speculated that they may live up to 20 years (note: FAQ 3; AnAge says speculated, so FAQ says may) |

## Antidorcas marsupialis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T1676A115056763.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2016-3.rlts.t1676a50181753.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Least Concern | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). (note: stats.conservationStatus; body. Category read through GBIF's copy of the Red List (api.gbif.org/v1/species/2441064/iucnRedListCategory); the assessment DOI is cited.) |
| The IUCN rated the species Least Concern in its 2016 assessment | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). (note: body; 2016 assessment DOI) |

## Curry et al. (2012). High oxidative capacity and type IIx fibre content in springbok and fallow deer skeletal muscle suggest fast sprinters with a resistance to fatigue. Journal of Experimental Biology.

https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.073684

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Type IIX was the predominant fibre type in both muscles and both species, at more than 50%, and springbok had more type IIX fibres than the deer | The predominant fibre type in both muscle groups and species were type IIX (>50%), with springbok having more type IIX fibres than fallow deer (note: body; muscles sampled: vastus lateralis and longissimus lumborum) |
| A muscle study sampled the vastus lateralis (a leg muscle) and the longissimus lumborum (a back muscle) of springbok and fallow deer | Muscle samples collected post mortem from the vastus lateralis and longissimus lumborum of fallow deer (Dama dama) and springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis) (note: body) |
| the muscles' high oxidative capacity suggests these animals may hold off fatigue for long periods | The high oxidative capacities also suggest that these animals may be able to withstand fatigue for long periods of time. (note: body; abstract sentence replaces the paper title) |

## Fuller et al. (2005). A year in the thermal life of a free-ranging herd of springbok Antidorcas marsupialis. Journal of Experimental Biology.

https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.01714

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| One study tracked eight free-ranging adults for 11 to 13 months | in eight (three males, five females) adult free-ranging springbok Antidorcas marsupialis in their natural habitat, over a period of 11-13 months (note: body) |
| as air temperature ranged from -6 degrees C to 34 degrees C | with an absolute minimum temperature of -6 degrees C and a maximum of 34 degrees C (note: body) |
| their mean daily body temperature was only about 0.3 degrees C higher in summer than in winter | mean daily body temperature increased, on average, by only 0.02 degrees C per 1 degrees C increase in air temperature, so that it was only approximately 0.3 degrees C higher in summer than in winter (note: body) |
| remarkable homeothermy | Springbok exhibit remarkable homeothermy (note: body) |

## Hetem et al. (2009). Body temperature, thermoregulatory behaviour and pelt characteristics of three colour morphs of springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis). Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpa.2008.11.011

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A second study compared black, white and normal springbok, and the black pelt absorbed more heat from simulated sunlight | the black springbok pelt showed lower reflectance in the visible spectral range, and higher heat load from simulated solar radiation, than did the pelts of the other two springbok (note: body) |
| energy costs may explain why these morphs are rare | Thus energy considerations may underlie the rarity of the springbok colour morphs. (note: body) |