Friday, September 17, 2010

"Knee-clicks and visual traits indicate fighting ability in eland antelopes"

In a fine, fully mature male Common eland, a gigantic curtain-like dewlap can hang down to below the wrists, a dark, brush-like tuft may extend prominently from the forehead, pale vertical stripes decorate the flanks, a dark tan patch draws attention to the massive, thick neck, and further decoration is provided by a shoulder mane, the straight, spiralling horns and dark elbow patches.
The dark elbow patches are visible enough in the staffroom -- usually sewn onto the tweed jacket -- not to mention the shoulder mane. Maybe not so much the gigantic dewlap or the massive thick neck. Your university may vary.

Disappointingly for the tender love poem limerick I was working on, it turns out that 'Penelope' does not actually rhyme with 'antelope'. Or indeed 'cantaloupe'.

Now if you will excuse me, I need to touch up my forehead patch with some dye to ensure my dominance in the next departmental meeting.

UPDATE: Bonus knee-clicking (thnx BBBB):
‘It's me,’ he said, and took a step forward into the room, his knee joints cracking as he did so. His passage across the room - in fact his passage through life - was accompanied by these cracking sounds, one per step, which might be likened to the breaking of twigs.
Swelter does not believe in Flay's superior fighting ability, despite the latter's knee-clicking, leading to the climactic duel in the Hall of Spiders.

18 comments:

fish said...

I have seen eyebrows like this on some of the older faculty.

Usually it connects directly to the hair growing out the ears.

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

No man is an eland.
~

77south said...

are those tactical elands?

tigris said...

Colonoscopy?

mikey said...

I gazed upon your dewlap
And considering my ewe gap
I ran to the bathroom to fap
'Cause I don't need any of that new crap

Though your brush-like tuft is prominent
I find it perfectly cromulent
I watched as with your fawn you went
Hooves loudly clicking on cement...

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

The knee-clicks indicate fighting ability and aggression towards chefs.

guitarist manqué said...

Even on level ground I have knee clicks that sound like chopsticks being broken. It just figures that that would be a strong signifier in an ungulate. It's never helped me with primates.

opplogi ? je ne regrette rien.

Smut Clyde said...

Would someone like to comment on the chronically bad behaviour of wildebeests? Anyone?

mikey said...

I would, but I think I would have to rhyme them with "yeasts" and frankly, that frightens me...

tigris said...

Would someone like to comment on the chronically bad behaviour of wildebeests?

Are they really that bad? It's gnus to me.

Smut Clyde said...

No gnus is good gnus.
I have to do everything myself around here.

Unknown said...

He lands a kick and lopes off. (It's an Indian name).
Wild beasts, curse by Indian naming.

glypers, young lying fools.

Hamish Mack said...

the chronically bad behaviour of wildebeests
What were they thinking of to put a
Hispano-Suiza in it.

Unknown said...

A match for the Sopwirth Camel?

Unknown said...

Sopwith (demons in the machine).

Hamish Mack said...

Jeepers! The Hall of Spiders! Just a little geometrical observation but wouldn't it be called The Octagon of Spiders?

Substance McGravitas said...

Count me among the silent majority who are prolope.

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

The Hall of Spiders! Just a little geometrical observation but wouldn't it be called The Octagon of Spiders?

It's been renamed the Hall of Helping Jennifer.