Lesser kudu Lesser kudu The lesser kudu ("Tragelaphus imberbis") is a forest antelope found in East Africa. It is placed in the genus "Tragelaphus" and family Bovidae. It was first described by the English zoologist Edward Blyth in 1869. The head-and-body length is typically . Males reach about at the shoulder, while females reach . Males typically weigh and females . The females and juveniles have a reddish-brown coat, while the males become yellowish grey or darker after the age of 2 years. Horns are present only on males. The spiral horns are long, and have two to two-and-a-half twists. A pure
Greater kudu of the northwestern population, which may represent a third subspecies ("T. s. cottoni") was tested within this study. In Groves and Grubb's book "Ungulate Taxonomy", a recent taxonomic revision was made that evaluated all species and subspecies of kudu and other ungulates. This review split the genus "Tragelaphus" into 4 separate genera, "Tragelaphus" (bushbuck, sitatunga, bongo, nyala, and gedemsa or mountain nyala), "Ammelaphus" (lesser kudu), "Strepsiceros" (greater kudu) and their close relatives "Taurotragus" (elands). The greater kudu was split into four species based on genetic evidence and morphological features (horn structure and coat color). Each species was based on a