Douglas Nygren, age 8, of Saint Edward, Nebraska, for his question:
Is there an animal called a gnu?
Oh yes, there is such an animal. But unless you forget the first letter, he will not answer to the name of gnu. And the gnu is full of surprises. His cousins are the most graceful animals in the world. But he is a bulky, clumsy looking fellow. What's more, the shaggy character is a frolicsome clown.
The real live gnu has two names. We can call him the "noo," to rhyme with "zoo." But when we write it, we must remember that it begins with a silent letter "G." We can also call him the wildebeeste, a name that sounds rather fierce. This name does not suit him at all, so let's call him Mr. Gnu. And in our country, about the only place we are likely to find the gnu is in a zoo. His native home is Africa. There he shares the sunny plains with the zebra and the ostrich, the stately giraffe and the chunky, bad tempered rhinoceros:.
The gnu's home at the zoo is near the animals that have hoofs on their feet and horns on their heads. Like all hoofed animals, Mr. Gnu dines only on vegetables and salad greenery. Animals that eat no meat usually tend to be gentle creatures because they do riot have to hunt other animals. Being a vegetarian, the gnu is not a fierce fellow which is why the name wildebeeste does not suit him at all.
At any zoo, you may see him in his back yard, munching at a manger of hay or dining on a pile of green grass cuttings. You might suspect that he is related to a mule or a bison. But you would never say that he is a handsome fellow. That much is true, and although his body looks somewhat like a big mule's, he is not related. And though his shaggy head looks &;bit like a bison's, he is not related to the bison either.
The most graceful animals in the world are the slender, fleet footed antelopes. Most wild antelopes dance and prance through their native home of Africa. And of all things, one of these antelopes is Mr. Gnu. When you look at the bulky, shaggy faced fellow, you may find this hard to believe. Nevertheless, all the elegant antelopes are his cousins. His big head is topped with a pair of huge curving horns. His long, sad face dips down to a sorrowful mouth. His chin has a goatish beard and his thick neck is creased with deep wrinkles. He wears a stiff mane and a long horsy tail.
Mr. Gnu is really a sad faced clown. In the wild, he roams grazing over the sunny plains with a herd of his close relatives. When startled, he kicks up his hoofed heels and starts off at a frolicsome gallop. After him gallop the rest of the herd, one behind another in follow the leader formation. Suddenly the line stops. Each gnu turns around to stare solemnly at whoever surprised them. Then back they all turn to their clownish antics and the frolicsome line gallops gaily into the distance.
The gnu fears the guns of the Great White Hunter. But his only serious enemy in nature is the lion. As a rule, the shaggy fellow is too big and too fast to fear just one lion, even a hungry one. But, strange to say, it is the lady lions who hunt for the family meat and several lionesses often hunt together. If these lady hunters can sneak among the herd,: they can bring down an old timer or a gnu calf. However, Mr. Gnu has sharp eyes and sharp ears. Chances are, he warns his kinfolk in time. And off they gallop, too fast for the lions and with time to spare for a bit of clowning.