IMPALA - ANIMAL

• Where does the Impala live Impalas live mainly where grasslands change to bushes and thorn-trees like Kwazulu-Natal.


• The male Impala has horns. We call it the ram. The female Impalas are called ewes.


• An Impala is reddish brown in colour with a white belly. It's sides are also reddish brown, but lighter in colour.


• On either side at the back, there is a dark line, while the tail is also darker on top. The colour of the impala blends with the colour of its surroundings. Thus its enemies cannot seet it clearly.

Impalas eat leaves and small branches of plants. Usually they eat plants which other animals do not eat.

During the dry winter months Impalas obtain their water by licking the dew-drops from the leaves of trees in the early morning. If a little rain falls in winter, impalas lick the water from the rock ledges and plants, and also from their hair. Impalas drink only little water, even if there is plenty.

During certain times of the year, the food of impalas consists mainly of leaves. Thus they can live together usefully with cattle and other grass-eating animals.

The teeth of the Impala are suitable for eating plants. There are molars in the upper and lower molars. The food is ground between the upper and lower molars when the lower jaw moves from side to side.