Social structure of Goitred gazelles Gazella subgutturosa in Xinjiang,China

The social structure of goitred gazelles (gazella subgutturosa) in xinjiang province was studied over a two-year period (2005-2007). we observed 564 gazelle herds (3186 individuals),and distinguished among them 6 types: females,males,sub-adults,solitary individuals,mixed groups,and unidentified gazelles. in spring,male groups were noted most often (45.7%); in summer and autumn,female herds was more abundant (53.0% and 70.4%,respectively); and in winter,mixed groups were most numerous (60.0%). the observation frequency of herds varied significantly by season (x 2 = 68.45,p < 0.01). group size fluctuated from 1 to 95 individuals. groups of 1-5 individuals were recorded most often (65.5%),while bigger groups (6 - 10 gazelles) were less abundant (23.1%). large-scale groups (11 - 20 individuals) and groups of more than 20 individuals were quite rare (9.2% and 2.2%,respectively). groups of 3 gazelles were most common (20.0%). in spring and summer,gazelles preferred to stay in smaller groups (mean group size was 4.45 and 4.94,respectively),while in autumn and winter,they stayed in larger groups (6.66 and 6.00,respectively). spring group size was significantly different from the autumn and winter group sizes. solitary gazelles were noted most often during the birthing season in spring and the rutting season in early winter. copyright 2011 zoological society of pakistan.