The
bushbuck is the most widespread
antelope in
Sub-Saharan Africa, and is found in rain forests,
montane forests, forest-savanna mosaics and bush
savannaforest and woodland. Recently, genetic studies have shown that the bushbuck is, in fact, a complex of two geographically and phenotypically distinct species. The most compelling evidence for the division of the bushbuck into the
kéwel (
Tragelaphus scriptus) and the
imbabala (
Tragelaphus sylvaticus) is that both species are more closely related to other members of the tragelaphine family (the imbabala to the
bongo and the
sitatunga, and the kéwel to the
nyala) than to each other. The bushbuck bull is regarded by sports hunters as the most dangerous medium-size antelope, as it will hide in the bush after being wounded and charge the hunter when he comes looking for it, impaling the hunter with its sharp horns.