The Grant's gazelle's diet may be responsible for the slow growth rates of browsed plants. They get most of their moisture from the plants they eat, so they do not often have to drink water. Thus they can stay on the plains long after the rains end. In dry seasons, gazelles move deep into dense brush and wait for the next rains. They will eat red oat grass and small, tough plants, which are avoided by the other ungulates. This allows the gazelles to survive in the brush during the dry season. Grant's gazelles eat mainly dicotyledons during the dry season and grass in the wet season. Reproduction Grant's gazelles sexually mature at 18 months. Territory-holding males mate more than those in bachelor groups. The courting ritual begins with a male following a female, waiting for her to urinate. When she does, the male does the Flehmen response to determine if she is in estrus. If she is, he will continue to follow her. The female will lift her tail, signaling she is ready to mate, and the male will mount her. The gestation period for the gazelle lasts for 198 days. Births in the Serengeti peak in January and February. A female will leave her herd and find a well-hidden place to give birth. Afterwards, the female eats the afterbirth and other fluids to keep the fawn clean and scentless. Females that have recently given birth will stay together for protection. The females nurse their fawns four times a day. Fawns are immobile for the first few days, and the mother stays close by. When the fawn can walk, it leaves with its mother to join a herd. Around this time, fawns will associate with one another in peer groups. A gazelle is weaned at six months, but will continue to associate with its mother until adolescence. Threats and conservation The Grant's gazelle is still a common species, despite having been eradicated in certain areas. Major threats have been habitat destruction and poaching. The gazelle's status as an unthreatened species is dependent on protection of the national parks and reserves where it lives, including Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania, and Lake Turkana National Parks in Kenya. Estimates of the population range from 140,000 to 350,000. While certain areas have stable populations, overall the population trend is going downward. References Grant's gazelle Mammals of Tanzania Mammals