Duiker

A duiker is any of about 19 small to medium-sized antelope species native to sub-Saharan Africa, the East African bush duiker being the most common sub-species found in the Masai Mara National Reserve. It is a solitary animal, very hard to spot.

Duikers are shy and elusive creatures with a fondness for dense cover; most are forest dwellers and even the species living in more open areas are quick to disappear into thickets. Their name comes from the Afrikaans word for diver and refers to their practice of diving into tangles of shrubbery.

With a slightly arched body and the front legs a little shorter than the hind legs, they are well-shaped to penetrate thickets. They are primarily browsers rather than grazers, eating leaves, shoots, seeds, fruit, buds and bark, and often follow flocks of birds or troops of monkeys to take advantage of the fruit they drop. They supplement their diet with meat: duikers take insects and carrion from time to time, and even stalk and capture rodents or small birds.

Source: Wikipedia's Duiker page.

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