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Gemsbok among the dunes of the Namib Desert
Like Thibaud, my goal in Namibia was to see a gemsbok among the red dunes of the Namib desert - and was thrilled to surprise this elegant specimen on the far side of a dune I climbed. My camera was not as good as Thibaud's, but I was still happy with the picture. I have loved these animals ever since I saw one as a little boy in the zoo. How cool to finally see one more than 40 years later. How an animal that resembles a horse in size manages to survive in such a hostile, totally dry enviroment is another one of those wonders of the natural world.
The gemsbok or gemsbuck is a large antelope in the ''Oryx'' genus. It is native to the arid regions of southern Africa, but formerly some authorities included the East African Oryx as a subspecies. Its current population in South Africa is 373,000.
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