The Arabian oryx or white oryx is a medium-sized antelope with a distinct shoulder bump, long, straight horns, and a tufted tail. It is a bovid, and the smallest member of the genus Oryx, native to desert and steppe areas of the Arabian Peninsula.
Oryx are often called gemsbok (pronounced JEMS baak) in Africa. But in Germany, gemsbok is the common name for the chamois, a type of goat-antelope! Having a scientific name as well as a common name helps people around the world know which animal they’re talking about.
Oryx range in color from whitish to light brown or gray, depending on the species. They have much darker hair on the legs and in a stripe along the belly and back. Fringe-eared oryx also have black tufts of hair on their ear tips.
Oryx live in open areas of desert, semi-desert, dry grasslands, and scrublands. Some of these areas can get mighty hot! Not to worry, though. Oryx have an unusual circulation system in their head. They are able to cool the blood flowing to their brain through the capillaries in their nose as they breathe.
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