Wildebeest
Connochaetes taurinus albojubatusGeographic Region: open and wooded grasslands from Kenya to South Africa
Isn’t it Wild? Starting in May, wildebeests begin a mass migration that lasts eight months. It is the single largest migration of wildlife in the world. Migrations may contain as many as one million wildebeests and up to half a million plains zebra and Thomson’s gazelles traveling with them. This migration takes the form of long columns, stretching thousands of miles. Visitors and natives say the ground trembles under their stampeding hooves.
Details
Height: Male; 4 – 5 ft; Female 3 – 5 ft. at the shoulder
Weight: Male: 400 – 600 lbs; Female 300 – 360 lbs.
Timothy hay, herbivore chow
Least Concern
Savanna
Exhibit information
Did you know that you can go on safari right here in Rhode Island? View rare and exotic species from far away Africa.
Throughout your adventure, learn how the people, land, and animals of Africa are all interconnected and interdependent while watching zebras, cheetahs, red river hogs, and more in action.
Observe elephants swimming in a waterhole and Masai giraffes reaching high into the trees for a leafy snack.
Can’t find the elephants or giraffes? Head into the Textron Elephant & Giraffe Pavilion. Inside you may catch an elephant bath or training session in progress. You can also learn how Roger Williams Park Zoo cares for animals, both here at the Zoo and out in the wild.
