Redunca arundinum
Silhouette: Jan A. Venter, Herbert H. T. Prins, David A. Balfour & Rob Slotow (vectorized by T. Michael Keesey) · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The southern reedbuck, rietbok or common reedbuck (Redunca arundinum) is a diurnal antelope typically found in southern Africa. It was first described by Pieter Boddaert, a Dutch physician and naturalist, in 1785. It is placed in the genus Redunca and family Bovidae. This antelope has an average mass of 58 kg (128 lb) and a body length of about 134–167 cm (53–66 in).
It was first described by Pieter Boddaert, a Dutch physician and naturalist, in 1785. It is placed in the genus Redunca and family Bovidae. It gets its name from two Latin words: reduncas (meaning bent backwards and curved, while the horns are bent forwards) and arundo (harundo) (meaning a reed; hence arundinum, pertaining to reeds).
The southern reedbuck is larger than the other species in Redunca, namely R. redunca (Bohor reedbuck) and R. fulvorufula (mountain reedbuck). It stands 80–90 cm (31–35 in) at the shoulder. Females weigh 48 kg (106 lb), while the males weigh 68 kg (150 lb). It has distinctive dark lines running down the front of each of its forelegs and lower hindlegs and whitish rings around the eyes. It has a lifespan of 10 years.
The coat is silky and almost... Wikipedia →
Recording0:16
South Africa · 2023
© michelerey · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:08
South Africa · 2023
© nicky001 · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moremi Game Reserve | 🇧🇼 Botswana | |
| 2 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Kafue National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 4 | Liwonde National Park | 🇲🇼 Malawi | |
| 5 | Hwange National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 6 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Southern Reedbuck sighting in Hwange National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 26th most-seen of the 27 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June–July, September–October and December
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Southern Reedbuck in Hwange National Park on a given day, against under 5% in February–May, August and November, the lowest months. Those are among Hwange National Park's driest months, with about 25 mm of rain a month against 150 mm in January.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Southern Reedbuck sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 6
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Southern Reedbuck sightings, Hwange National Park ranks 5th at about 20%. The best odds are in Moremi Game Reserve (Botswana, about 40%), iSimangaliso Wetland Park (South Africa, about 30%) and Kafue National Park (Zambia, about 20%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Bovidae
The closest relatives of the Southern Reedbuck that you can see in Hwange National Park (family Bovidae, Bovids) are Steenbok (about 50%), Greater Kudu (about 50%) and Impala (about 50%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Southern Reedbuck is recorded against all the mammals logged in Hwange National Park (6 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
