"Momma - - There be Something Wrong With My Nosie....."
This is a baby Speke's Gazelle or Gazella spekei I had the pleasure of encountering at the Zoo.
They come from semi-desert plateaus of Somalia and parts of Ethiopia.
Their situation is considered vulnerable.
Now, in regards to their "nosies"....
From the Zoo's Web page I've found out this... A distinctive trait of these shy gazelle is their ability to inflate the skin on top of their noses to the size of a baseball, amplifying the loud snorts they use to alert the rest of their group of danger. Also, that blood is cooled in the vessels lining the nasal passages as water evaporates from inside of their noses. Cooled blood then surrounds the artery that carries blood to the brain, making these delicate beings able to live in their harsh & hostile environment. This little guy/gal only managed to make a golf ball sized one.....
NIKON CORPORATION NIKON D300, f/8 @ 290 mm, 1/125, ISO 400, No Flash
Copyright © Lil Judd aka LilKnytt Photography 2008
