Northern Bushbuck

Q: What are the chances of seeing a Northern Bushbuck in Lagos?

Possible. About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Bushbuck sighting in Lagos on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

Q: When is the best time to see a Northern Bushbuck in Lagos?

July. In that month about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Bushbuck in Lagos on a given day, against under 5% in February–May, August–September and November–December, the lowest months. That is one of Lagos's wettest months, with about 210 mm of rain against 25 mm in December.

Q: What time of day is best to see a Northern Bushbuck?

Between 9 am and noon. Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Northern Bushbuck sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Q: Is Lagos the best place to see a Northern Bushbuck?

Yes. Of the 4 cities where we can rate Northern Bushbuck sightings, Lagos has the highest daily chance: about 30%. Next come Pretoria (South Africa, about 30%) and Nairobi (Kenya, about 20%).

Q: Where does the Northern Bushbuck sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records. It is estimated from how often the Northern Bushbuck is recorded against all the mammals logged in Lagos (13 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

Tragelaphus scriptus

Silhouette: Robert Hering · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassMammalia (Mammals)
OrderArtiodactyla (Even-toed Ungulates and Cetaceans)
FamilyBovidae (Bovids)
GenusTragelaphus (Spiral-horned Antelopes)
SpeciesTragelaphus scriptus (Northern Bushbuck)

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

at Lagos

In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%

13 Verified sightings at Lagos

2,022 In all 36 parks From 2019 to 2026

July Best month

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

Challenge Gorillas in the Mist BookAfricaHard

About the Northern Bushbuck

The harnessed bushbuck (Tragelaphus scriptus) or northern bushbuck, is a medium-sized antelope, widespread in sub-Saharan-Africa. The harnessed bushbuck species has been separated from the Cape bushbuck, a southern and eastern species.

In a 2007 study, 19 genetically-based groupings were found, some of which do not correspond to previously described subspecies; eight of these were grouped under the nominate taxon. Former subspecies included as synonyms to the nominate taxon are phaleratus, bor and dodingae.

Hassanin et al. (2018) found an mtDNA/nuclear DNA discordance between scriptus and sylvaticus clades. Their phylogenetic analyses showed that the scriptus (northern) lineage is a sister-group of sylvaticus (southern) lineage in the nuclear tree, whereas it has nyala (Tragelaphus angasii) haplotypes in the mitochondrial tree. They also found different karyotypes (chromosome numbers and arrangements), with those of scriptus deriving from the nyala. They concluded that scriptus (but not sylvaticus) had hybridized with an "extinct species closely related to T. angasii" in ancient times; and that "the division into two bushbuck species is supported by the analyses of... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Where it is recorded most Known range (Mammal Diversity Database, Marsh et al. 2022)Our parks where it lives Our cities where it livesIn captivity: 5 zoos & centres

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Aberdare National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	~80%
2	Arusha National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	~80%
3	Niokolo-Koba National Park	🇸🇳 Senegal	~70%
4	South Luangwa National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	~60%
5	Kafue National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	~60%
6	Lake Mburo National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	~60%
7	Lake Manyara National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	~50%
8	Kidepo Valley National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	~50%
9	Akagera National Park	🇷🇼 Rwanda	~40%
10	Liwonde National Park	🇲🇼 Malawi	~40%
11	Garden Route National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	~40%
12	Kruger National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	~40%
13	Lower Zambezi National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	~40%
14	Queen Elizabeth National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	~40%
15	Mana Pools National Park	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	~40%
16	Odzala-Kokoua National Park	🇨🇬 Republic of the Congo	~40%
17	Bale Mountains National Park	🇪🇹 Ethiopia	~40%
18	Mikumi National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	~40%
19	iSimangaliso Wetland Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	~40%
20	Kibale National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	~30%
21	Volcanoes National Park	🇷🇼 Rwanda	~30%
22	Gonarezhou National Park	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	~30%
23	Nairobi National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	~30%
24	Murchison Falls National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	~30%
25	Gorongosa National Park	🇲🇿 Mozambique	~30%
26	Virunga National Park	🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo	~20%
27	Masai Mara National Reserve	🇰🇪 Kenya	~20%
28	Addo Elephant National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	~20%
29	Chobe National Park	🇧🇼 Botswana	~20%
30	Ngorongoro Conservation Area	🇹🇿 Tanzania	~20%
31	Moremi Game Reserve	🇧🇼 Botswana	~20%
32	De Hoop Nature Reserve	🇿🇦 South Africa	~20%
33	Tarangire National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	~20%
34	Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	~10%
35	Pilanesberg National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	~10%
36	Serengeti National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	~10%

Cities Where Found

#	City	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Lagos	🇳🇬 Nigeria	~30%
2	Pretoria	🇿🇦 South Africa	~30%
3	Nairobi	🇰🇪 Kenya	~20%
4	Durban	🇿🇦 South Africa	~20%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

#	Zoo / Centre	Country
1	California Academy of Sciences	🇺🇸 United States	In captivity
2	Kano Zoo	🇳🇬 Nigeria	In captivity
3	Valencia Bioparc	🇪🇸 Spain	In captivity
4	Gladys Porter Zoo	🇺🇸 United States	In captivity
5	Audu Bako Zoo	🇳🇬 Nigeria	In captivity

Closest Relatives at Lagos

No species of the same family or order lives in Lagos, so these are its closest relatives here: other mammals.

Cercopithecus mona

Daily sighting probability ~70% · Very likely

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Northern Bushbuck in Lagos?

Possible

About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Bushbuck sighting in Lagos on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Northern Bushbuck in Lagos?

July

In that month about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Bushbuck in Lagos on a given day, against under 5% in February–May, August–September and November–December, the lowest months. That is one of Lagos's wettest months, with about 210 mm of rain against 25 mm in December.

What time of day is best to see a Northern Bushbuck?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Northern Bushbuck sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Lagos the best place to see a Northern Bushbuck?

Yes

Of the 4 cities where we can rate Northern Bushbuck sightings, Lagos has the highest daily chance: about 30%. Next come Pretoria (South Africa, about 30%) and Nairobi (Kenya, about 20%).

Where does the Northern Bushbuck sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Northern Bushbuck is recorded against all the mammals logged in Lagos (13 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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