Impala - Definition and Overview

For other uses, see Impala (disambiguation).

Impala Conservation status: Endangered
An Impala in Etosha National Park, Namibia
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Artiodactyla Family: Bovidae Subfamily: Aepycerotinae Genus: Aepyceros Species: melampus
Binomial name
Aepyceros melampus (Lichtenstein, 1812)

An Impala (Aepyceros melampus Greek aipos "high" ceros "horn" + melas "black" pous "foot") is a medium-sized African antelope, weighing about 50 kg. Reddish-brown in colour with lighter flanks, it has a white under-belly. The male has lyre shaped horns. Impala are among the most beautiful and graceful of the antelopes, and are among the dominant species in many savannas.

Exceedingly agile, impala are capable of leaping over 10 metres in a single bound. They are gregarious creatures and are usually found in herds, often a male with many females. They are common throughout Southern Africa. Their food consists of a mixture of grasses and woody species.

A group of Impala in South Africa