Cuvier's Gazelle (Gazella cuvieri) lives in mountainous open terrain across North Africa. It feeds on grasses and leaves. Its conservation status is Vulnerable.
Fascinating facts about the Cuvier's Gazelle
- Once thought extinct in the wild, fewer than 2 000 Cuvier's gazelles now survive in isolated pockets of the Atlas Mountains. In Tunisia many live on protected reserves, whereas in Morocco and Algeria they are still outcompeted for food by sheep and goats. The biggest stronghold is Djebel Chambi National Park, which hosts the largest Tunisian population.
- Cuvier's gazelle can sprint at speeds exceeding 50 mph and can maintain that pace for a brief interval. Its primary defence is keen alertness; when danger is sensed the animal flicks its tail and executes a strong gait, leaping and landing all four hooves simultaneously as an alarm signal. This rapid burst capability, combined with the alarm display, helps the gazelle flee predators across the steep, stony slopes of its Atlas Mountain home.
- When something seems suspicious, it flicks its tail and leaps, landing all four hooves together. This dramatic gait acts as an alert signal.
- Cuvier's gazelle is one of the few gazelle species to frequently give birth to twins, with a twin rate of 40.5 %. A single newborn weighs about 2.99 kg, while each twin is slightly lighter at roughly 2.85 kg. After a gestation of around 160 days, females can breed again just ten days after lambing, allowing two litters per year. This reproductive pattern helps maintain the small, fragmented populations that persist in the Atlas Mountains.
- In 2019 a reintroduction effort released thirty gazelles into Tunisia's Jebel Serj National Park, all of which had been born locally after three breeding seasons in captivity. The animals originated from a Spanish breeding programme that operated in Almería and on the Canary Islands. Since their release the group has multiplied and continues to grow, bolstering the species' presence in its historic range.
Sources
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At a glance
RangeNorth Africa
HabitatMountainous open terrain
DietGrasses and leaves
About the Cuvier's Gazelle
In the arid expanse of North Africa, the Cuvier's Gazelle moves with an elegant stealth, its large, dark eyes ever-vigilant for the predators that stalk its fragile existence. With a gentle bounds, it traverses the rocky outcrops and sparse vegetation, its slender legs a blur as it navigates the harsh, sun-baked landscape with a quiet resilience. As one of the most endangered gazelle species, the Cuvier's Gazelle embodies a haunting beauty, its very presence a poignant reminder of the delicate balance of life in this unforgiving yet majestic world.
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