Impala
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| Impala Conservation status: Endangered | ||||||||||||||||
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 An Impala in Masai Mara National Park, Kenya | ||||||||||||||||
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| Aepyceros melampus (Lichtenstein, 1812) |
An Impala (Aepyceros melampus Greek aipos "high" ceros "horn" + melas "black" pous "foot") is a medium-sized African antelope, weighing about 50 kg. Reddish-brown in colour with lighter flanks, it has a white under-belly. The male has lyre shaped horns. Impala are among the most beautiful and graceful of the antelopes, and are among the dominant species in many savannas.
Exceedingly agile, impala are capable of leaping over 10 metres in a single bound. They are gregarious creatures and are usually found in herds, often a male with many females. They are common throughout Southern Africa. Their food consists of a mixture of grasses and woody species.