Nilgai

Size and appearance

The nilgai is the largest antelope in Asia — adult males can weigh 300 kg and stand 150 cm at the shoulder. The steeply sloping back — highest at the shoulder and lower at the rump — gives it an ungainly profile somewhat like a wildebeest. Males develop a distinctive slate-blue coat at maturity (giving rise to the alternative name “blue bull”), with a white throat bib, white ear spots, and white fetlock rings. The short horns (15–24 cm) slope forward. Females and young remain tawny-brown.

Cultural status

Despite being a bovid (related to cattle), the nilgai is not afforded the sacred status given to domestic cattle in Hinduism. It is not protected from hunting on religious grounds in the way that cows are. This has resulted in nilgai being hunted as crop-raiders and for meat — it is one of the few large wild mammals that Hindu communities in some regions will hunt and eat. Nilgai meat is eaten in rural communities across northern India.

Crop raiding

Nilgais are effective crop-raiders, adaptable to agricultural landscapes and capable of jumping or breaking through standard agricultural fencing. They are considered a significant pest in parts of the Gangetic plains, where they damage wheat, rice, and mustard crops. Conflict with farmers is one of the main threats to their status; culling programmes have been authorised in some states.

Texas introduction

Nilgais were introduced to Texas ranches in the 1920s and 1930s as exotic game animals. They established feral populations and now number in the tens of thousands in south Texas. They have expanded their range into Mexico. The feral Texas population is large enough to support legal trophy hunting and is studied as a model for introduced large mammal management.