The red forest duiker Cephalopus natalensis
The red forest duiker is a small graceful antelope weighing 12 to 14 kilograms and standing about 43 cm at the shoulders. Its body length ranges from 75 to 85 cm. The red duiker has short rounded ears and carries straight horns with the size of 7 cm. These ungulates occur in Africa, from south-eastern Tanzania to north-eastern KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. The red duiker inhabits coastal and riverine deciduous forests and thickets. Local people call these animals “divers” because when the duiker is in danger, it will bound away with the characteristic duiker diving motion into the safety of thick understory. These forest antelopes live singly, in pairs, or in small groups consisting of 3 to 5 individuals. Red duikers are very secretive and shy nocturnal animals that are hiding in shelters during the day. Their diet includes freshly fallen leaves, fruits, berries and flowers from forest canopies, and, less commonly, grass. Sometimes red duikers would eat insects and even small mammals. They often follow monkey troops and pick up dropped fruits. Red duikers mark their home territory, using secretion from the maxillary glands. They always use the same places of their territories for resting and feeding. Red forest duikers breed year-round. Gestation lasts 210 days and the female gives birth to a single calf weighing about 1 kilogram. In the first days of its life the newborn is hiding in a shelter and its mother visits it for nursing. The female is able to give birth to her next calf as soon as in 235 days.
