This handsome fellow is a kudu antelope. His natural home is in the woods of eastern and southern Africa. This kudu antelope drawing, on the other hand, was found in the 1911 Encyclopedia. One of several species included in the antelope entry, the greater kudu or Tragelaphus strepsiceros, is named for his twisted horns – strepo being the Greek word for “twist.” Those are indeed some impressive horns; they can grow to 47 inches on average. The longest horns are believed to have grown to 6 feet and 1.87 inches long – taller than most people.
As you can imagine, with horns that long, this is one of the largest of all antelope species. Our kudu antelope drawing shows a fully mature male their distinctive vertical stripes along their body. Our guy has 8, the average is between 4 and 12. They generally weigh between 420 and 600 pounds and stand up to 63 inches tall (at the shoulder).
The good news is that these beautiful animals are currently classified under the “least concern” category of endangered species. The even better news is that this kudu antelope drawing is free to download and would add a wonderful bit of African-flair to your next project.
This image is copyright free and in the public domain anywhere that extends copyrights 70 years after death or at least 120 years after publication when the original illustrator is unknown.
