Pronghorn

The pronghorn (UK: /ˈprɒŋ.hɔːrn/, US: /ˈprɔːŋ.-/) (Antilocapra americana) is a type of artiodactyl (even-toed, hoofed) mammal that lives in western and central North America. Many people call it the American antelope, prong buck, pronghorn antelope, prairie antelope, or speed goat because it looks like the antelopes of the Old World. It is the only living member of the family Antilocapridae.

During a very old time called the Pleistocene epoch, about 11 other related species lived in North America. When humans first arrived in North America, three other groups existed, but they are now extinct.

The pronghorn's closest living relatives are the giraffe and okapi. It is also related to deer, bovids, and moschids.

The pronghorn is the fastest land mammal in the Americas, able to run up to 55 mph (88.5 km/h). It is also the symbol of the American Society of Mammalogists.

Etymology

The pronghorn is named for its special horns. These horns have branches and a part that points forward, making them different from the horns of animals in the ox family, Bovidae.

European discovery

Pronghorns were first seen by Spanish explorers in the 1500s. They were studied later during the expedition of 1804–06 by Captain Meriwether Lewis and Second Lieutenant William Clark. Lewis and Clark found pronghorns near the mouth of the Niobrara River in what is now Nebraska.

The pronghorn was first officially described by American ornithologist George Ord in 1815.

Description

Pronghorns have white fur on their rumps, sides, bellies, breasts, and throats. Males are usually a bit longer and heavier than females. They have two hooves on each foot and a body temperature of about 100 °F (38 °C).

Pronghorns have very large eyes, giving them excellent vision, and unique horns that grow and are shed each year. Males have longer horns with a prong, while females have shorter, simpler horns. These animals are the fastest land mammals in North America, able to run up to 55 mph for short distances. Their bodies are built for speed, with large hearts, windpipes, and special hooves that help them run efficiently. When alarmed, they flare the white hair on their rumps to signal danger to others.

Range and ecology

The pronghorn lives mainly west of the Mississippi River. Long ago, huge numbers of pronghorns, along with bison and elk, roamed the American Prairie. Today, pronghorns are found from southern Saskatchewan and Alberta in Canada down through many western U.S. states like Arizona, Colorado, and Utah, and even into Mexico. They prefer open lands between 3,000 and 5,900 feet high and eat many kinds of plants.

Pronghorns need water and usually stay close to it. They are good travelers, with some making long journeys. However, they face dangers from animals like cougars, wolves, coyotes, and grizzly bears.

Social behavior and reproduction

Pronghorns live in groups during the winter. In the spring, these groups split up. Younger males form their own groups, females form smaller groups, and older males live alone. Females decide who is in charge and may push others away from food.

Males either guard a special area or a group of females. Males may change their behavior depending on the weather or how many pronghorns there are. In places with more rain, males use special smells and sounds to guard their areas. Females choose a mate in different ways. Some visit many males before choosing one. Others watch males fight and choose the winner. Before fighting, males try to scare each other, and if that doesn’t work, they lock horns.

When a male wants to mate with a female, he makes soft sounds and shows off special patches on his face. Females have special smell glands. If she likes him, she stands still and smells him.

Pronghorns are pregnant for about 7–8 months. They mate in mid-September, and the baby pronghorn, called a fawn, is born in late May. Fawns are born weighing between 4–9 lb (2–4 kg). For the first few weeks, fawns hide in plants. They spend time with their mothers each day. Mothers nurse, clean, and lead their young to food and water. Females nurse their babies about three times a day. Males become independent a little earlier than females. Pronghorns can have babies when they are about 15 to 16 months old, but males usually don’t mate until they are three years old. They can live up to 10 years.

Main article: Pronghorn

Relationship with humans

In areas where the Plains Indians tribes and the Northwest Plateau people lived, pronghorns were an important food source. They also have a special place in Native American stories and traditions.

Explorers Merriwether Lewis and William Clark watched pronghorns and learned from local tribes. They called the animal “Antelope” or “Goat” and noted how fast it could run. They described how hunters would chase the pronghorns and how some tribes would guide the animals into special fenced areas to catch them safely.

Population and conservation

At the start of the 20th century, people worried the pronghorn might disappear. By the 1920s, hunting had reduced their numbers to around 13,000. Efforts to protect them began in 1910 with funding for wildlife refuges in Oklahoma, Montana, and South Dakota. In 1927, a new refuge was started in Nevada, and by 1936, President Franklin Roosevelt helped create a large protected area for pronghorns.

Thanks to habitat protection and hunting rules, pronghorn numbers have grown since the 1930s. Some areas have seen smaller numbers because of a disease, but overall, things are better. Pronghorns face challenges because roads and fences block their paths, but they are still common in places like Wyoming and northern Colorado. Some pronghorn groups, like the Sonoran pronghorn, are endangered and have very few left.

Explanatory notes

No explanatory notes are provided in the source content for this section.