The national animal of Angola is the giant sable antelope. This is an important national symbol and is held in very high regard by the Angolan people. They are large, striking, and above all rare and hard to see. They are seen to represent Angolan beauty, vivacity, and natural grace.
The giant sable antelope is an animal in a precarious position, from a conservation point of view.
They are threatened by extinction and this has made them a very rare sight anywhere, and they do today have a very small natural range.
Let’s find out more.
What is the national animal of Angola?
The national animal of Angola is the giant sable antelope.
This is a subspecies of the sable antelope and is endemic to Angola, and not found anywhere else.
They are extremely striking and impressive animals, with both sexes featuring huge, curving horns that can reach 1.5 metres in length.
Males usually weigh around 525 pounds on average and stand around 46-56 inches tall.
Females weigh slightly less and are usually a little bit shorter than males, though the difference is not that tremendous.
Though both sexes have the horns, the males tend to be longer and more curved.
Male horns can be as long as 65 inches, while female horns could be as short as only 24 inches.
The males usually are very dark and even black in color, while females tend to be a more chestnut color.
They also have white eyebrow like patterns on their faces above their eyes.
They also have white bellies and rump patches.
They are very shy by nature and tend to avoid human contact where they can, but they will get aggressive if they have to.
Males will be very dangerous if they feel threatened in any way, and naturally the primary use of their long horns is for competition between males for mates and status.
These fights do not, however, tend to be fatal.
They are hunted by leopards and hyenas, though these animals will only target the young—the adults are simply too large.
That said, lions and crocodiles are known to hunt adults, with crocodiles lying in wait at the water’s edge and dragging them underwater by their legs.
They can run as fast as 35mph when pursued and they can keep this up for a very long distance.
Why is the giant sable antelope the national animal of Angola?
There are a few important reasons why the giant sable antelope is the national animal of Angola.
Firstly, there’s the simple fact that this subspecies of sable antelope is only found in some regions of Angola, and really nowhere else in the wild.
They are very elusive so it may well be that there are populations living elsewhere, but the only confirmed populations are in Angola.
They are unique to Angola, then, and are seen to embody many of the country’s core values.
Vivacity, for instance, as well as their speed, beauty and visual sharpness have all played an important role in broader African mythology and certainly in the minds of the people of Angola.
The other question, though, is of their conservation status.
We’ll look at this in more detail shortly, but the fact is that these creatures are profoundly threatened by extinction.
By making them the official national animal of the country, Angola hopes to bring greater attention to the position they’re in.
Awareness alone is never enough to save a species entirely, but it’s a really important first step.
Preventing illegal hunting, for instance, is going to be really important to preserving the species.
Are giant sable antelope endangered?
Giant sable antelope are officially listed as critically endangered by the IUCN Red List.
They are rarely seen and estimates of their populations are hard to make, but the population is thought to be only around 300 in total.
They are in real trouble, then, in other words. There are not many of them left and around a third of those still in existence are living in Cangandala National Park.
Again, serious efforts are going to have to be made in the future to ensure that these majestic creatures are not lost to the history’ books, and Angola has made a lot of steps in the right direction so far.
Where do giant sable antelope live?
They tend to live in forests near bodies of water, where they can always get access to leaves and tree sprouts.
They are, as mentioned, only found in Angola, being endemic to the region between the Cuango and Luando Rivers in Angola.
Their natural range, then, is quite limited and at one time would have been considerably larger.
They are, as mentioned, a subspecies of the sable antelope which are not under much immediate threat of extinction and also have a much larger range.
They tend to be found on Africa’s southeast coast, though, and are not usually found as far west as Angola.
So, this majestic and powerful creature is under profound threat if something is not done in the near future to ensure their continued survival.
Efforts have already begun but it will take some time to see real results.
It would be a tragedy if they were lost and consigned to the history books, so we can hope that conservation efforts in the future are successful.
They are the perfect embodiment of the natural grace and beauty of Angola and the regions in which they live.