Common Eland (Taurotragus oryx)
The Common Eland is one of the largest antelopes in the world. Both, males and females have long, twisted horns, which are not as thick as in the Derby Eland. The stripe pattern is different in each sub-species, in some areas it can be missing completely, in others only calves are striped. The neck skin fold begins in half of the neck and the ears are spiky. Adult males have a chomáč of longer hairs on their forehead. The males are getting darker with age and later in their life they can reach a solid dark grey color.
Farm breeding in Lány
The breeding of the Common Eland has been established at ČZU in 2000 after several years of preparations. Since 2006 the antelopes were bred under the umbrella of the Institute of Tropics and Subtropics, later under the Faculty of Tropical Agrisciences, at the premises of the Školní zemědělský podnik (ŠZP) in Lány. The breeding capacity is limited by the over-winter capacity of the barn (40 animals). Since these antelopes have many similarities with cattle and their tameability, the Common Eland has been successfully bred in many farms in Africa, however, the longest domestication effort (since 1892) is the breeding farm Askania Nova in Ukraine. The domestication of the Common Eland is recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for Africa, but our experience verified by research show, that the Common Eland has good adaptability even for the conditions in the Czech Republic. The pastures grazed by the Common Eland have an improved botanical structure and the persistent weed occurrence is reduced. Thanks to a low fat content in the meat with a higher rate of unsaturated fatty acids omega 3 and 6 compared to beef, the antelope could be used in our conditions as an alternative livestock species for dietary meat production.
More information is on the FTA website .
Contacts:
Ing. Radim Kotrba, PhD.
email: kotrba@ftz.czu.cz
Česká zemědělská univerzita v Praze
Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6 Suchdol
Ing. Silvie Neradilová, PhD.
email: neradilova@ftz.czu.cz
Česká zemědělská univerzita v Praze
Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6 Suchdol
