Aepyceros melampus (impala)

The impala (Aepyceros melampus) is a medium-sized antelope found throughout eastern and southern Africa, inhabiting savannas, grasslands, and open woodlands. Males are highly territorial and engage in elaborate courtship and dominance displays, including the characteristic tongue-flicking behavior seen here, which is part of their mating and social signaling repertoire. Found across Kenya's Masai Mara and surrounding regions, impalas are gregarious animals that form herds and are a keystone prey species for the region's large predators.