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Just strange, but 2 days ago I saw a couple of Impala ewes which still seemed to be pregnant!
Also, far fewer lambs than usual...

Maybe it's just the local area?(S-25)

RP, I noted a few in this area as well on Thursday, big ewes that is. There are youngsters that vary in age by a month or two, never seen this before.

A week ago we also noticed the same thing in the Lower Sabie area. I also wondered if this was normal.

As promised my white impala

Although the most common antelope one comes across in the Kruger Park and often photographed I wonder if other forumites have the same problem as I do when trying to photograph Impala. When I raise my camera the Impala become very skittish and what was a nice pose suddenly deterioates into a no-no shot. Or just as you are about to click, in walks another impala which also ruins the shot.
I managed to get this photo in the rain without the impala bolting away or an 'intruder' spoiling the shot.

Hi adw - that's a great shot.

I have not really ever noticed the impies being skittish - then again I hardly photograph them!

I suppose they are a major prey animal, so they are constantly on high alert for irregularaties in their environment!

true or false?

in some books you can read that impala and springbok are able to sort of control the time they give birth...usually waiting until the first heavy rains come...at least once this "story" has also been told to me by a SAN Parks guide (Andre from Twee Rivieren) - now on my latest trip to KNP the female guide from BED said this was not true, a complete myth...so who's right and who's wrong?

Hey, ice!

Firstly, I would suggest editing that guide's name out, and the sex of the other one!

The theory has been long-accepted for most ungulates, and I still pretty much fancy it, myself!

Lately, however, scientific discussion has deemed it to be impossible!

(This has been discussed elsewhere, I think!)

"While young are born after seven months, the mother has the ability to delay giving birth for an additional month if conditions are harsh. When giving birth a female impala will isolate herself from the herd despite numerous attempts by the male to keep her in his territory."

You can read more on :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impala

Hi Louis, I would like to see that confirmed by a reputable source, not just Wikipedia. Though I also often use Wikipedia for many things, it is notorious for not being 100% accurate. I have also heard this often, but believe it to be more in the order of two weeks rather than a month. Pity I don't have the full Smithers...

Maybe we have somebody on the forum from SANPARKS with more information about this for us. Two weeks can be becuase not all of them have a running with a male at the same time

I've heard from numerous guides that they can hold the birth of their fawns for at least a month.

Nobody actually asked the Impala, It could be a number of reasons,

Rain Cycle, previous cycles thinning out the males, a male in a territory having all the gals, predation stopping birth(IMHO they can delay the birth), mixture of sexes in an area, so IMHO, no fixed theory.

Impala cannot delay their birthing date



We saw baby impala last year in Kruger before the rains came.

and "my" white Impala

I think is the same, around Shingwedzi on the 24.10.09