Tibetan Antelope
Tibetan Antelope
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チルー | |||
Character Data | |||
AKA | Chiru
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Romaji | Chirū
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Debut | Kemono Friends (2015 Game) | ||
Animal Data | |||
Scientific Name | Pantholops hodgsonii
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Distribution | Tibetan Plateau
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Diet | Herbivore
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Avg. Lifespan | 8 years
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Read More | Tibetan antelope
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Conservation | |||
Tibetan Antelope | Nexon Game |
The Tibetan Antelope is a type of Friend that appeared in the original Kemono Friends mobile game.
Series Appearances
Media | Role | |
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2015 | Nexon Game | ↪ Minor character, playable |
In Real Life
The Tibetan antelope (or chirú) is a medium-sized species of artiodactyl mammal of the subfamily Antilopinae, indigenous to the Tibetan plateau, northern India, central China, and certain regions of Nepal. With a height of 2.7 feet (83cm) and a weight of about 86 pounds (39kg), males are significantly larger than females, and can easily be distinguished by their horns - capable of reaching up to 2.2 feet (70cm) in length - and by black stripes on their legs, both of which the female antelopes lack. The coat is a pale fawn to reddish-brown color, with a whiteish belly; the coat is also particularly thick and woolly. Their face is almost complete black in color with prominent nasal swellings, which have a paler appearance in males.
The Tibetan antelope prefers environments between 10,660 feet and 18,040 feet above sea level, primarily the harsh steppe and alpine regions with flat and open terrain. They are herbivores with a diet consisting mostly of herbs, grasses, and shrubs; and as such prefer habitats with little vegetation covering their food.
The Tibetan antelope's woolly belly possesses the softest and warmest wool in the world. Incomparably delicate and matchlessly dense, their underfur is called "soft gold" by their poachers. Predominantly, this underfur is woven into a traditional Indian shawl known as a shahtoosh, a wedding present with a value that can reach up to $40,000 for just one garment. These clothes are in high demand in India and Europe, where they function as a symbol of wealth and status. Because of this, an illegal hunting epidemic over the course of two decades almost resulted in the Chiru’s extinction, with an estimated population death of over 50%. Since 1979, the Tibetan antelope has had legal protection under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, which has made hunting, harming, and trading the fur of the animal illegal all over the world.