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Our Herd
Although we've bred blesbock successfully, we've
chosen to discontinue breeding at this time. The Antelope Taxon Advisory Group (TAG) has put a higher priority on breeding bontebok,
a related species. This has limited the space available for the
blesbok. We maintain a herd of seven.
The blesbok population was reduced to only a couple of thousand by the beginning of the twentieth century due to indiscriminate
hunting and loss of habitat to agriculture. However, they've recovered remarkably. Many ranchers raise blesbok because they
survive better than cattle in southern Africa.
How they behave
Most often, you'll see the blesbok lying out in sunny open pastures.
On very hot days they seek shade under trees or brush.
Males can be very aggressive toward other animals. Females will defend their young if threatened, but otherwise stick
to themselves. Blesbok won't allow humans to approach. We put out pelleted feed for them once a day.
Not Seeing Red
The blesbok at Fossil Rim are significantly less red than those living in Southern Africa. Our levels of naturally occurring copper are much lower than in Southern Africa, therefore the blesbok are lighter in color.
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