SASSABY

(genus Damaliscus), any of a few species of antelope belonging to the family Bovidae (order Artiodactyla) and inhabiting sub-Saharan grasslands, floodplains, and dense brush from western to eastern Africa and southward to southern Africa. Modern classifications are not uniform, but generally two subgenera and three species are recognized: the subgenus Beatragus, consisting of a single species, D. hunteri (Hunter's hartebeest, or hirola), found in eastern Kenya and southwestern Somalia; and the subgenus Damaliscus, consisting of two species, D. dorcas (the bontebok [subspecies D. dorcas dorcas] and the blesbok [subspecies D. dorcas phillipsi]) and D. lunatus (topi), ranging widely from Senegal to Ethiopia and to South Africa. The sassabies stand shoulder-height about 90 to 120 cm (35 to 47 inches) and measure in body-and-head length from 130 to 200 cm (50 to 80 inches). The graceful lyre-shaped horns may extend as much as 70 cm (28 inches). The hair, generally iridescent and soft, ranges from gray to almost black or from red to rich brown and is often marked by contrasting white patches on the face, legs, or hips. The sassabies feed on grass. Once numbering in the tens of thousands, these antelopes have been decimated by hunting and encroachments by settlers.