The common eland is a Class E Antelope and is considered to be the largest of all the African Antelopes. They are spiral-horned antelopes of the Bovid tribe of Tragelaphini. Eland are sexually dimorphous with females being 125-153 cm tall and averaging 340-445 kg and males averaging 151-183 cm tall and 500-600 kg (Pappas 2002 and Estes 1991). It is this enormous size that mainly protects the eland from predators.Both males and females have horns, but the males are shorter (17-26 in) and thicker than the females (20-27 in), which are more pointed (Lydon). Eland are too large and slow to outrun most predators so it is their size and horns that are used against predators. Both males and females have a reddish-brown coat with vertical white stripes, but as males age they tend to turn a grayer color (Pappas 2002). As males mature they form a dewlap that can become very pronounced in the very old males (Eland). Adult male eland also have a large tuft of darker hair on the forehead and nose, and very large necks and shoulders(Estes 1991). Eland have an average lifespan of 15-20 years, and some have been known to live for as many as 25 years (Pappas 2002).