Dik-Dik Damara

A dik-dik, pronounced 'dik’'dik', and named for the sound it makes when alarmed, is a small antelope of the Genus Madoqua that lives in the bush of southern and eastern Africa and Southeast Asia.

Dik-diks stand 40cm (16 inches) at the shoulder and weigh about 5kg (11lbs). They have a soft coat that is grey or brown and has a white underbelly, its long snout has capillaries that cool blood circulating to its brain helping it to survive the extreme heat. The hair on the crown forms an upright tuft that sometimes partially conceals the short, ringed horns of the male.

The dik-dik form lifelong pairs and mark their territories with large piles of dung. The territories are often in low, shrubby bushes along dry, rocky streambeds where there are plenty of hiding places. Dik-diks can blend in with their surroundings, because of their dusty colored fur.