Types of Gazelle Chart with Pictures
The first time I really looked at a gazelle, it was bouncing. A nature film showed a small herd fleeing a cheetah on the Serengeti. They did not just run. They sprang straight up, all four legs stiff, again and again. I learned later that this move is called stotting, and the gazelle does it on purpose.
I had thought every gazelle was the same tan animal. They are not. There are around 19 living species, spread from the short grass of East Africa to the cold steppe of Mongolia.
The biggest stands chest-high to a person. The smallest barely reaches past your knee. Some are common. Some number only a few hundred. One is already gone for good.
Below you will find 20 types of gazelle, where each one lives, how big it is, and how threatened it is. Some you would know from any safari show. Others you may never have heard of.
The list runs from the famous tommie to the giraffe-necked gerenuk. The identification chart comes first, then the detail by region.
Table of Contents
Gazelle identification chart
Here are the 20 gazelles side by side. Use it to find where each one lives, how big it grows, and how threatened it is today. The sections below sort them by region: East Africa first, then the Sahara, then Arabia, then Asia.
| Gazelle | Scientific name | Native range | Shoulder height | IUCN status |
| Thomson’s gazelle | Eudorcas thomsonii | East Africa | 55 to 70 cm | Least Concern |
| Grant’s gazelle | Nanger granti | East Africa | 75 to 90 cm | Least Concern |
| Soemmerring’s gazelle | Nanger soemmerringii | Horn of Africa | 80 to 90 cm | Vulnerable |
| Speke’s gazelle | Gazella spekei | Somalia | 50 to 60 cm | Endangered |
| Mongalla gazelle | Eudorcas albonotata | South Sudan | 55 to 65 cm | Not separately assessed |
| Gerenuk | Litocranius walleri | East Africa, the Horn | 80 to 105 cm | Near Threatened |
| Dorcas gazelle | Gazella dorcas | North Africa to Arabia | 55 to 65 cm | Vulnerable |
| Dama gazelle | Nanger dama | Sahara and Sahel | 90 to 110 cm | Critically Endangered |
| Cuvier’s gazelle | Gazella cuvieri | North Africa | 60 to 70 cm | Vulnerable |
| Slender-horned gazelle | Gazella leptoceros | Sahara Desert | 65 to 72 cm | Endangered |
| Red-fronted gazelle | Eudorcas rufifrons | West and Central Africa | 60 to 70 cm | Vulnerable |
| Mountain gazelle | Gazella gazella | Middle East | 60 to 80 cm | Endangered |
| Arabian gazelle | Gazella arabica | Arabian Peninsula | 55 to 65 cm | Vulnerable |
| Sand gazelle | Gazella marica | Arabian Peninsula | 55 to 65 cm | Vulnerable |
| Saudi gazelle | Gazella saudiya | Arabian Peninsula | About 60 cm | Extinct |
| Goitered gazelle | Gazella subgutturosa | Central Asia, Middle East | 60 to 80 cm | Vulnerable |
| Chinkara | Gazella bennettii | India, Pakistan, Iran | 55 to 65 cm | Least Concern |
| Mongolian gazelle | Procapra gutturosa | Mongolia and China | 55 to 80 cm | Least Concern |
| Przewalski’s gazelle | Procapra przewalskii | China (Qinghai) | 50 to 70 cm | Endangered |
| Tibetan gazelle | Procapra picticaudata | Tibetan Plateau | 55 to 65 cm | Near Threatened |
What makes an animal a gazelle
A gazelle is a small, fast antelope. Gazelles sit in the tribe Antilopini, inside the cattle family, Bovidae. Most fall into four genera: Gazella, Nanger, Eudorcas, and Procapra. The first three live in Africa and Arabia.
Procapra ranges across the high plains of Asia. The tribe holds about 19 living species, along with a few close cousins such as the gerenuk. Britannica keeps a clear overview of the group.
Both sexes usually carry ringed horns, though in some species only the male does. Unlike a deer, a gazelle never sheds its horns. They grow for life. Gazelles are also built to run.
A Thomson’s gazelle can hit about 80 km/h, which ranks it among the fastest land animals. When a predator shows up, many gazelles stot. They spring straight up on stiff legs, over and over. The leap looks like bravado, and in a way it is. It tells the cheetah this gazelle is fit and fast, so the chase is not worth the effort.
East African and Horn of Africa gazelles
This is the postcard group, the gazelles of the savanna documentaries. The Thomson’s gazelle is the small one with the bold black side stripe, the tommie that shares the short grass with zebra and wildebeest, and grazes alongside elephants.
The Grant’s gazelle is its larger, paler neighbour, told apart by a white rump that runs above the tail. Soemmerring’s gazelle wears a striking black-and-white face. Speke’s gazelle is the smallest gazelle of all, with an odd nose sac it puffs up in alarm. The Mongalla gazelle moves across the South Sudan floodplains in huge seasonal herds.
The standout here is the gerenuk. Its neck and legs are so long that it looks half giraffe, which is why people call it the giraffe gazelle. It rises onto its hind legs to browse leaves no other gazelle can reach. The types of giraffes guide covers the animal it is named after.
| Gazelle | Size and coat | Habitat | Notable trait |
| Thomson’s gazelle | Tan with a bold black side stripe | Short-grass plains | Stots when chased; the cheetah’s main prey |
| Grant’s gazelle | Larger and paler; white rump above the tail | Open savanna | Goes long stretches without drinking |
| Soemmerring’s gazelle | Tall, with a striking black-and-white face | Dry bush and plains | Bold face mask sets it apart |
| Speke’s gazelle | Smallest gazelle; soft sandy coat | Stony semi-desert | Inflates a nose sac when alarmed |
| Mongalla gazelle | Like a small Thomson’s gazelle | Floodplains of South Sudan | Moves in vast seasonal herds |
| Gerenuk | Long neck and legs; small head | Dry thornbush | Stands on hind legs to reach high leaves |
Sahara and Sahel gazelles
These gazelles live where almost nothing else does, in the sand and stone of the Sahara and the dry Sahel below it. The dorcas gazelle is the most widespread, a small pale animal that can live its whole life without drinking.
The dama gazelle is the giant of the family, white with a deep red neck, and also the rarest gazelle on Earth. Cuvier’s gazelle holds on in the Atlas Mountains.
The slender-horned gazelle, also called the rhim, is the palest and most desert-hardy of them all. The red-fronted gazelle keeps to the thin grass belt at the southern edge of the desert. Groups like Sahara Conservation work to keep these desert gazelles alive.
| Gazelle | Size and coat | Habitat | Notable trait |
| Dorcas gazelle | Small and pale with large ears | Desert and semi-desert | Can live without ever drinking water |
| Dama gazelle | Largest gazelle; white with a red neck | Sahara and Sahel | The rarest gazelle on Earth |
| Cuvier’s gazelle | Darker coat with bold face stripes | Atlas Mountains | Also called the edmi or Atlas gazelle |
| Slender-horned gazelle | Palest gazelle; long thin horns | Sand seas of the Sahara | Most desert-adapted gazelle; also the rhim |
| Red-fronted gazelle | Reddish band across the forehead | Sahel grass belt | Lives in the narrow strip south of the Sahara |
Arabian Peninsula gazelles
Arabia is a center of gazelle diversity, though several of its species are now in trouble. The mountain gazelle lives in the hills and coastal plains, always close to acacia trees.
The Arabian gazelle was once written off as lost, then recognised again as a living species. The sand gazelle, or reem, handles heat and salt better than almost any hoofed animal.
The Saudi gazelle is the sad entry on this list. It is gone, last seen in the wild in 1970, and the only gazelle here that is fully extinct.
| Gazelle | Size and coat | Habitat | Notable trait |
| Mountain gazelle | Slim, with dark face and flank stripes | Hills and coastal plains | Tied closely to acacia trees |
| Arabian gazelle | Small desert gazelle | Arabian deserts | Once thought lost, now recognised again |
| Sand gazelle | Pale with a white belly | Sand and gravel flats | Also called the reem; very salt and heat tolerant |
| Saudi gazelle | Small and pale, from old records | Arabian Peninsula | Extinct; last seen in the wild in 1970 |
Asian gazelles
Asia has its own gazelles, built for cold deserts and high plateaus rather than hot savanna. The goitered gazelle takes its name from the swelling in the throat of rutting males.
The chinkara is the only gazelle native to India, small and sandy with large dark eyes. The Mongolian gazelle still gathers on the steppe in herds of tens of thousands, one of the last great hoofed migrations in Asia.
Przewalski’s gazelle is the rarest of the lot, clinging on around Qinghai Lake in China. The Tibetan gazelle lives higher than any other, above 4,000 metres on the roof of the world.
| Gazelle | Size and coat | Habitat | Notable trait |
| Goitered gazelle | Swollen throat in rutting males | Cold deserts and steppe | The throat swelling gives it its name |
| Chinkara | Small and sandy with large dark eyes | Indian and Iranian deserts | The only gazelle native to India |
| Mongolian gazelle | Stocky and pale with short horns | Mongolian steppe | Gathers in herds of tens of thousands |
| Przewalski’s gazelle | Reddish brown with hooked horns | Around Qinghai Lake | The rarest gazelle in Asia |
| Tibetan gazelle | Grey-brown with a heart-shaped white rump | High Tibetan Plateau | Lives above 4,000 metres |
Thomson’s vs Grant’s gazelle
These two share the same East African plains and trip up almost every new safari-goer. A few features tell them apart fast. The Grant’s gazelle is bigger. Its white rump patch runs up above the tail, while the Thomson’s stops at the tail. And the bold black side stripe that marks a tommie is faint or missing on a Grant’s.
| Feature | Thomson’s gazelle | Grant’s gazelle |
| Size | Smaller, 55 to 70 cm | Larger, 75 to 90 cm |
| Black side stripe | Bold and obvious | Faint or absent |
| White rump patch | Stops at the tail | Extends above the tail |
| Horns | Short and ringed | Long and lyre-shaped |
| Where it grazes | Short-grass plains | Wider range, into drier bush |
Which gazelles are endangered?
Gazelles are among the most threatened antelopes, mostly from hunting and lost habitat. The dama gazelle is critically endangered, with fewer than 500 left.
The Saudi gazelle is already extinct. The slender-horned, mountain, Speke’s, and Przewalski’s gazelles are all endangered, and many others are vulnerable. Like the rhinoceros, several of these animals now survive mainly in reserves and breeding programs. You can check any species on the IUCN Red List.
FAQs
How many types of gazelle are there?
About 19 living species sit in the gazelle tribe, plus close relatives like the gerenuk. This list covers 20 of the best known, from Africa and Arabia across to central Asia.
What is the fastest gazelle?
The Thomson’s gazelle. It reaches about 80 km/h, or 50 mph, which puts it among the fastest land animals. It cannot outrun a cheetah in a sprint, but it can outlast and out-turn one.
What is the largest and smallest gazelle?
The dama gazelle is the largest, up to about 110 cm at the shoulder. The Speke’s gazelle is the smallest, close to 50 cm.
Are gazelles endangered?
Several are. The dama gazelle is critically endangered, the Saudi gazelle is extinct, and the slender-horned, mountain, Speke’s, and Przewalski’s gazelles are endangered. A few, like Thomson’s and the chinkara, are still common.
What is the difference between a gazelle and a deer?
They belong to separate families. A gazelle keeps permanent ringed horns for life. A deer grows and sheds a fresh set of branched antlers every year.
Why do gazelles jump straight up?
That bounce is called stotting or pronking. It signals to a predator that the gazelle is healthy and quick, so a chase would likely fail and waste energy.
Where can I learn about other antelopes?
Gazelles are one branch of a much larger family. See the antelope species list for their wider relatives, then browse the Animals Chart hub for more.
