Klipspringer

(Latin = Oreotragus oreotragus , Afrikaans = Klipspringer, German = Klipspringer)

Numbers: Fairly high
Weight: 9 – 16 kg (29 – 35 lb)
Shoulder height: 60 cm (24 in.)
Females horns: No

Found in a part of the western midland of the Northern Cape, the West Coast and the Garden Route area of Western and Eastern Cape, as well as all along the Maluti and Drakensberg areas of Lesotho, Natal, Swaziland, the Escarpment and Lowveld areas of Mpumalanga and all the warmer areas (the north part) of the Northern and North West Province.

This little fellow is the dancer of the rocks, jumping up and down steep slopes of dangerous mountain rock as if it is a sprinters lane. Their hooves were created in a cup-like manner and, depending on the rocks they climb, they vary their grip-angle and weight distribution to secure maximum tread each step of their slippery climbs. Even a fall just isn’t the same to them as to most other creatures: they have an extra thick coat which can, to some degree, break their fall in case of miscalculation. This most surely is also a welcome safeguarding tool when a dangerous leopard, eagle or rooikat ends up with mouth full of floppy grey hair instead of the real thing. They do give themselves to be seen sometimes: standing as if in a fresco high up in the safety of the rocky terrain nobody else can handle just the way they do, changing the skyline with the silhouette of their proud little figures. It’s safe to say that they aren’t much interested in another environment than the hills and rocks they like to hop. They often are seen in pairs, sometimes up to three or four, and, when in danger, warn each other with a whistle-like snort.