Overview
A little smaller than the Livingstone suni and with a lighter, duller coloration.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammal
- Order
- Artiodactyla
- Family
- Bovidae
- Genus
- Neotragus
- Species
- Neotragus moschatus
Habitat
Inhabits thick brush and only ventures into open areas or game trails with cover nearby for escape. Distribution- East of the Rift Valley in central Kenya, from Mt. Kenya and the Aberdares southward to about Nairobi; along the southeastern coast of Kenya; and in eastern and southern Tanzania, including Mafia Island in the Indian Ocean.
Diet
Grazes and browses based on availability.
Behavior
These are shy and elusive animals, tending to stay hidden during daylight hours, and remaining close to cover most of the time. These animals will congregate in small groups of 3-5 individuals, or remain solitary.
Hunting
Often hunted along game trails with shotguns, these little animals are wary and will often stand still when startled for long enough to present a shot. For convenience in record keeping, SCI uses the border between Tanzania and Mozambique to separate the East African suni from the Livingstone suni.
Conservation Status
Listed as Least Concern by IUCN, referring to the entire species rather than this individual subspecies.