Hartebeest – Alcelaphus buselaphus

Alcelaphus buselaphusPallas, 1766

Accepterad namn, Mammal Species of the World 2005

More than one taxon is included among the syntypes of Antilope buselaphus Pallas, 1766, hence the designation of a lectotype was necessary. Six species recognised by earlier authors (buselaphus, cokii, lelwel, major, swaynei, tora) were all assigned to A. buselaphus once hybridization between some of them was recognised (Ruxton and Schwarz, 1929); caama later included (Ellerman et al., 1953:202); lichtensteinii has also been included (Haltenorth, 1963:102; Kingdon, 1997:429) but not by most workers. The species can be partitioned into nominate buselaphus division (including also major), lelwel division, and tora division (including also cokii and swaynei) on the basis of skull morphology, but cytochrome b and D-loop sequence data (Flagstad et al., 2000) suggest a close affinity between lelwel and tora divisions. Synonymy modified from Ansell (1972:53).

• Wilson, D and Reeder, D. (eds.) 2005. Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. 3rd ed. -- 2142 pp. Johns Hopkins University Press.