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MEET THE GERENUK FROM EAST AFRICA WHO THRIVES WITHOUT WATER

Published: 2025-08-03 18:04:45 Last Updated: 2025-08-04 15:29:21

For all life on Earth to survive, food and water are essential. What if you didn't require the latter, though? This question seems unlikely, yet the gerenuk, a cute, long-necked mammal from East Africa, provides an explanation. These animals, a subspecies of antelope that inhabits portions of eastern Africa, are specially adapted to survive the heat and aridity of their environment. Gerenuk means "giraffe-necked" in Somali, which is a fitting name considering how long these mammals' necks are.
Gerenuks, like other antelope species, have a two-tone brown coat and scent glands on their bodies that allow them to mark their territory. The African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) claims that these adorable gazelles have larger eyes and ears but smaller heads than their other cousins.
The way gerenuks feed is more fascinating than their appearance. These gazelles have very long necks and eat while standing on both hind legs, occasionally lowering branches that are out of reach with their front legs. This indicates that they can reach greater heights than most of their species' relatives. According to the AWF, the food of the gerenuk is made up of over 80 different plant types.
Gerenuks have the unusual ability to survive without drinking water because of this diet, despite its exclusivity. The primary food source for these long-necked antelopes is succulents. Succulents are the ideal food source for our furry companions since, as their name suggests, they tend to keep a high amount of water in their leaves and stems. Gerenuks may appear to be finicky eaters, but in reality, they have manipulated the evolutionary system by extracting all the moisture they require for survival from their meal.

Notwithstanding this incredible natural advantage, habitat degradation and fragmentation pose serious concerns to the gerenuk population's survival. Gerenuks are having a harder time locating sufficient protection from predators and dependable food sources as a result of the expanding human population and towns encroaching on their once unaltered habitat.

Less than 100,000 of these animals are left, and in the past 14 years, their population has decreased by 25%, according to the AWF. This implies that if their circumstances worsen further, these long-necked mammals will be in danger of being classified as a "vulnerable" population. The gerenuk, a natural wonder in its own right, is a remarkable example of survival in one of the world's most hostile environments. These specially developed companions could, however, become another species lost to human expansion if focused conservation measures are not made.

Article Tags: Viral Mammals Somali Gerenuk East Africa