Everything about The Saola totally explained
The
Saola or
Vu Quang ox, also, infrequently,
Vu Quang bovid (
Pseudoryx nghetinhensis), one of the world's rarest
mammals, is a
forest-dwelling
bovine found only in
Vietnam (
Vu Quang Nature Reserve) and in
Laos, near the
Vietnam-Laotian border. Its name
Saola means
spindle-[horned]. The scientific epithet
nghetinhensis refers to the two Vietnamese provinces of
Nghe An and
Ha Tinh while
Pseudoryx acknowledges the animal's similarities with the Arabian or African
oryx. The
Hmong natives call this beast
saht-supahp, a term derived from Lao meaning "the polite animal", because it moves quietly through the forest.
Saolas have only been known to
zoologists since
1992, initially from unusual horns obtained in Vietnam. Analysis of morphology and DNA has revealed that this is a new bovine
genus, related to
cattle,
nyalas,
kudu, and
elands. Saolas are
antelopes, in the sense that an antelope is any morphologically primitive bovine. It isn't known how many individuals exist, as only 11 have been recorded alive.
In the past they were occasionally to be viewed at
General Cheng's now-defunct zoo in
Lak Xao, Laos.
Habitat and distribution
The saola occurs in the
Annamite Range's moist forests and the Eastern
Indochina dry and
monsoon forests. They have been spotted in steep river valleys at about 300 to 1800 m above sea level. These regions are distant from human settlements, covered primarily in
evergreen or mixed evergreen and
deciduous woodlands. The species seems to prefer edge zones of the forests.
Saolas stay in mountain forests during the wet seasons, when water in streams and rivers is abundant, and move down to the lowlands in winter. They are shy and never enter cultivated fields or come close to villages. To date, all known captive saolas have died, leading to the belief that this species can't live in captivity.
Description
The saola stands about 85 cm at the shoulder and weighs approximately 90 kg. The coat is a dark brown with a black stripe along the back. Its legs are darkish and there are white patches on the feet, and white stripes vertically across the cheeks, on the eyebrows and splotches on the nose and chin. All saolas have slightly backward-curved horns, which grow to half a metre in length.
Local populations report having seen saolas traveling in packs of two or three, rarely more.
Saola mark their territories by opening up a fleshy flap on their snout to reveal scent glands. They subsequently rub the underside against objects leaving a musky, pungent paste. The saolas' colossal scent glands are thought to be the largest of any living mammal.If the Saola mates, it'll die shortly after.
Diet
They are reported to eat
small leafy plants—especially fig leaves, and stems along rivers. Saolas generally live in small groups of less than five animals. The animal seems to have a
browsing diet, considering its small
incisors.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Saola'.
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