MammalBase - Accepted taxon: Syncerus caffer

Accepted taxon: Syncerus caffer
Taxon:	Syncerus caffer
Rank:	Species
Higher Classification:	ARTIODACTYLA \| Bovidae \| Bovinae \| Syncerus
Reference:	Wilson, Don E., and DeeAnn M. Reeder, eds. Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed), JHU Press, 2005.

Fig.1 - Ternary plot of the proximate analysis for the Syncerus caffer diet.
CF (Crude Fibre) 29, ASH (Ash contents) 8, NFE (Nitrogen-Free-Extract) 49, CP (Crude Protein) 11, EE (Ether Extract) 3. See details for the calculations in Lintulaakso, K., Tatti, N. and Žliobaitė, I., 2022. Quantifying mammalian diets. Mammalian Biology, pp.1-15. [DOI]

Table 1. List of Diet Items for Syncerus caffer.
TSN Complete name	Part	Ratio ^a.	Reference(s)
Poaceae	STEM	70.83	Damuth, J…
Magnoliopsida	LEAF	25.00	Damuth, J…
Magnoliopsida	SHOOT	4.17	Damuth, J…

^a. Standardized values. See details for the calculations in Lintulaakso, K., Tatti, N. and Žliobaitė, I., 2022. Quantifying mammalian diets. Mammalian Biology, pp.1-15. [DOI]

Table 2. List of Standard Traits for Syncerus caffer.
Trait	Selected Value	All Value(s)	Reference(s)
Dietary category: Eisenberg 1981	Herbivore-Grazer	Herbivore-Grazer	– I. J. Gordon, A. W. Illius, 1988, 'Incisor Arcade Structure and Diet Selection in Ruminants', Functional Ecology, vol. 2, no. 1, p. 15, Loison,A., 1999, What factors shape sexual size dimorphism in ungulates?, Evolutionary Ecology Research, M. Clauss, R. R. Hofmann, W. J. Streich, J. Fickel, J. Hummel, 2009, 'Convergence in the macroscopic anatomy of the reticulum in wild ruminant species of different feeding types and a new resulting hypothesis on reticular function', Journal of Zoology, vol. 281, no. 1, pp. 26-38, M. Mendoza, P. Palmqvist, 2008, 'Hypsodonty in ungulates: an adaptation for grass consumption or for foraging in open habitat?', Journal of Zoology, vol. 274, no. 2, pp. 134-142, Marcus Clauss, Matthias Lechner-Doll, Juergen Streich, 2002, 'Faecal particle size distribution in captive wild ruminants: an approach to the browser/grazer dichotomy from the other end', Oecologia, vol. 131, no. 3, pp. 343-349
Dietary category: Miljutin 2009	Herbivore	Herbivore	– I. J. Gordon, A. W. Illius, 1988, 'Incisor Arcade Structure and Diet Selection in Ruminants', Functional Ecology, vol. 2, no. 1, p. 15, Loison,A., 1999, What factors shape sexual size dimorphism in ungulates?, Evolutionary Ecology Research, M. Clauss, R. R. Hofmann, W. J. Streich, J. Fickel, J. Hummel, 2009, 'Convergence in the macroscopic anatomy of the reticulum in wild ruminant species of different feeding types and a new resulting hypothesis on reticular function', Journal of Zoology, vol. 281, no. 1, pp. 26-38, M. Mendoza, P. Palmqvist, 2008, 'Hypsodonty in ungulates: an adaptation for grass consumption or for foraging in open habitat?', Journal of Zoology, vol. 274, no. 2, pp. 134-142, Marcus Clauss, Matthias Lechner-Doll, Juergen Streich, 2002, 'Faecal particle size distribution in captive wild ruminants: an approach to the browser/grazer dichotomy from the other end', Oecologia, vol. 131, no. 3, pp. 343-349

Table 3. List of Standard Measurements for Syncerus caffer.
Measurement	Location	Unit	n Total	n Unknown	n Female	n Male	Min	Mean	Max	SD	Reference(s)
Body Mass (BM)	nan	g	8	-	-	8	-	750,750	-	-	Nelson, A…
Body Mass (BM)	nan	g	2	-	2	-	-	446,625	-	-	Nelson, A…

Table 4. List of other Measurements ^b. for Syncerus caffer.
Measurement	Location	Unit	n Total	n Unknown	n Female	n Male	Min	Mean	Max	SD	Reference(s)
Length of the Masseteric Fossa	nan	cm	9	9	-	-	-	21	-	-	Quibod, M…
Muzzle Width	nan	cm	9	9	-	-	-	10	-	-	Quibod, M…
Total Length of the Skull	nan	cm	9	9	-	-	-	42	-	-	Quibod, M…

^b. other Measurements. Source Measurements which are not listed on or mapped with the Standard Traits..

Table 5. List of Data Sources for Syncerus caffer.
Taxon	Reference	Match	Status
Syncerus caffer	Clauss,M., 2010, Convergence in the macroscopic anatomy of the reticulum in wild ruminant species of different feeding types and a new resulting hypothesis on reticular function, Journal of zoology	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Synceros caffer	Gordon,IJ, 1988, Incisor arcade structure and diet selection in ruminants, Functional Ecology	51: Name variant or misspelling of the taxon	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Loison,A., 1999, What factors shape sexual size dimorphism in ungulates?, Evolutionary Ecology Research	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus coffer	Clauss,M., 2002, Faecal particle size distribution in captive wild ruminants: an approach to the browser/grazer dichotomy from the other end, Oecologia	51: Name variant or misspelling of the taxon	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Mendoza,M., 2008, Hypsodonty in ungulates: an adaptation for grass consumption or for foraging in open habitat?, Journal of zoology	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Damuth, J. 2010. ABSOLUT 6 a mammalian database compiled by the national center for ecological analysis and synthesis (NCEAS ) workshop on mammalian communities.	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Nowak,R. M., 1991, Walker's mammals of the world,	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Grzimek,B., 2003, Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia: Mammals I-V,	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Nowak,R. M., 1991, Walker's mammals of the world,	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Herberstein, M.E., McLean, D.J., Lowe, E., Wolff, J.O., Khan, M.K., Smith, K., Allen, A.P., Bulbert, M., Buzatto, B.A., Eldridge, M.D. and Falster, D., 2022. AnimalTraits-a curated animal trait database for body mass, metabolic rate and brain size. Scientific Data, 9(1), p.265.	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Quibod, M.N.R.M., Gélin, U., van Langevelde, F. and Tomlinson, K.W., 2023. Diet-specific responses of skull traits to aridity gradients in bovids and cervids. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, p.zlad068.	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Lundgren, E.J., Schowanek, S.D., Rowan, J., Middleton, O., Pedersen, R.Ø., Wallach, A.D., Ramp, D., Davis, M., Sandom, C.J. and Svenning, J.C., 2021. Functional traits of the world’s late Quaternary large-bodied avian and mammalian herbivores. Scientific data, 8(1), p.17.	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Nelson, A., Engelman, R.K. and Croft, D.A., 2023. How to weigh a fossil mammal? South American notoungulates as a case study for estimating body mass in extinct clades. Journal of Mammalian Evolution, 30(3), pp.773-809.	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted
Syncerus caffer	Rowan, J., Beaudrot, L., Franklin, J., Reed, K.E., Smail, I.E., Zamora, A. and Kamilar, J.M., 2020. Geographically divergent evolutionary and ecological legacies shape mammal biodiversity in the global tropics and subtropics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(3), pp.1559-1565.	1: Exact Taxon match	Verified - Accepted

Citation for this page: [The MammalBase community 2026. / CC BY 4.0. http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7462864 Syncerus caffer , Accessed 16th April 2026 at https://mammalbase.net/me/16002]