Study of the diurnal activity pattern of the Buffon's kob (Kobus kob kob, Erxleben, 1777) in the Niokolo Koba National Park, southeast Senegal

A study of the abundance of Buffon's kob (Kobus kob kob) in Niokolo Koba National Park, in the central zone, was carried out by counting the number of individuals and observing diurnal activities. The aim was to obtain information on abundance, but also to determine the species' main activities. The methodology employed in the study is that of Altman, 1974, which consists of finding diurnal activity patterns recorded by direct observation with the naked eye and/or binoculars from 6am to 6pm. The data obtained after the fieldwork and the duration of each activity will enable us to calculate the ratio to the total observation time per day. The number of individuals counted was 79. There are 20 adult males (25.3%), 36 adult females (45.5%) and 11 juveniles (13.3%). Sub-adults represent 12.61%, or 10 individuals. Two unidentified sub-adults were observed. The Kountadala pond has the highest number of individuals observed. Feeding is the main activity (53.2%), followed by sleeping (23.9%), walking (5.22%) and running (3.25%). Other activities such as standing are 4.3%, agonistic behavior and vigilance are less than one percent. Feeding is the main activity in the morning, afternoon and late evening. Resting is the dominant activity at mid-day when temperatures are high.