DUIKERS of AFRICA Issued 7Th October 1987
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DUIKERS OF AFRICA Issued 7th October 1987 (Extracts from Philatelic Bureau Bulletin No 4 of 1987)2 This is a unique set of stamps on Zimbabwe flora and fauna, as most of the species illustrated are indigenous to Zimbabwe. In 1985 Mr Vivian J Wilson launched a ten year survey known as “Duikers of Africa”. The survey is intended to study the distribution and status of the duikers of Africa and to carry out research on captive animals. The project was extremely worthwhile and valuable one which is of major importance to international antelope conservation and will greatly enhance our knowledge of this important group of antelopes. As a result of this research Viv Wilson published a book in April 2002 entitled, appropriately enough, “Duikers of Africa” Viv Wilson, with his wife Paddy, were the founders of a Chipangali Wildlife Orphanage near Bulawayo Viv was to write two other books about his life in animal conservation. “Lions, leopards and Lynxes: twenty years with wild cats”, and “Orphans of the wild – The Story behind Chipangali. Viv passed after in 2012, a short Viv and Paddy Wilson time after the death of his wife. Chipangali continues to be managed by his son, Kevin, and his wife Nicky. www.chipangali.com The Chipangali logo appropriately has the head of a duiker This issue – which consists of six of the fifteen or more species of Duiker – a type of African antelope. The stamps were designed by Patricia “Paddy” Wilson. ~ 1 ~ Common Grey Duiker (Sylvicapra grimmia) This animal has the widest distribution of all African antelope and is found from sea level up to 4267 metres on Mount Kenya. It occurs from the Cape in South Africa to south of the Sahara Desert. It is a savannah and open bush country species and is not found in the dense forests of Central and West Africa. It is a medium-sized animal weighing from 10-18 kg, and only males have horns. Zebra Duiker (Cephalophus zebra) A very beautiful medium sized duiker of up to 15 kg in weight. It is reddish-brown in colour and has 12-15 transverse stripes. It has a very limited distribution stretching from Sierra Leone through Liberia to the Ivory Coast and occurs in the lowland evergreen rain forests. Yellow-Backed Duiker (Cephalophus sylvicultor) This is the largest of all duikers reaching a weight of up to 80 kg, and occurs throughout the evergreen forest areas of West and Central Africa. However, it has also been found in the more open forests and dense bush in Zambia and elsewhere. It has a yellow dorsal crest which is apparently raised when the animal is alarmed or under stress. Blue Duikers (Cephalophus spp) The Blue duikers are the smallest of all duikers and are in fact one of the smallest antelope in Africa. They have a wide distribution stretching from Nigeria to Gabon and east to Kenya and down the coast of Africa to South Africa. One species is found in the evergreen forests of Eastern Zimbabwe, and if these forests are destroyed it could cause the extinction of the animal in Zimbabwe. Another Blue duiker known as Maxwell's duiker occurs from Nigeria west to The Gambia and Senegal. ~ 2 ~ Jentink's Duiker (Cephalophus jentinki) A beautiful large duiker which occurs in a limited area of West Africa in the lowland evergreen forests of Liberia, Sierra Leone and the Ivory Coast. It is a very rare and endangered species and almost nothing is known of its natural history. The Sapo National Park in Liberia and the Tai Forest in Western Ivory Coast are two of the few places in Africa where this animal occurs. Jentink's duiker is a large animal weighing up to 70 kg. Red-Forest Duikers (Cephalophus Spp) There are several species and many forms of Red duikers but much confusion still exists concerning their classification and distribution. They are small to medium-sized animals weighing 10-12 kg, occurring both in lowland and montane forests from Somalia south through eastern Africa and down through Mozambique to South Africa. The Stamps ~ 3 ~ Catalogue listings SG ZSC1 Value Description 718 145 15c Common Grey Duiker 719 146 23c Zebra Duiker 720 147 25c Yellow-backed Duiker 721 148 30c Blue Duiker 722 149 35c Jentink’s Duiker 723 150 38c Red-forest Duiker Technical details Stamp size: All values 35 x 30 mm Sheet Size: 50 stamps (10 rows of 5 stamps), two panes per printed sheet Artist: Patricia Wilson Paper: ZSC paper type D – HS8, fluorescent front and back, with cream PVA gum. Print colours: All values - Black, magenta, cyan, yellow Perforations: SG 14½, ZSC 14¼ Top margin: Perforated through. Other margins: Imperforate Printer: Mardon Printers (Pvt) Ltd., Harare, Zimbabwe Printer’s Imprint: Bottom Margin, below Row 10 Columns 2 to 4. Imprint printed in black Cylinder numbers: Top margin above column 5. Colours reading from left – cyan, magenta, yellow, black Colour register: Type TL 4– round boxed – right margin opposite R1/5. Colours reading down – cyan, magenta, yellow, black Sheet Value: To margin, above R1/1, printed in black. Sheet Number: Type SN 4a with ‘PTC’ prefix, left margin, opposite R1/1, reading down. Print numbers: 15c 1,000,000 23c 500,000 25c 300,000 30c 260,000 35c 210,000 38c 180,000 Issue date: 7th October, 1987 ~ 4 ~ Withdrawal from sale: Demonetarisation: 31st January, 1994 Listed varieties No listed varieties have been noted Unlisted Varieties There are numerous small dots and specks in the printing of these stamps, particularly in the backgrounds. Some dots and specks shown below are a bit more distinctive, some may be constant. 38c: Yellow island off the Cape of Good Hope coast. 30c: Black smudges on or below ‘Zimbabwe’ in Column 2 23c: Green vertical smudges in columns 3 & 4 ~ 5 ~ First Day Covers The cover numbering comes from the catalogue produced by Geoff Brakspear. A pictorial first day of issue canceller was produced for this issued and was used by the Philatelic Bureau. Other first day cover cancellers continued to be used at main post offices. ZW032.1 (PTC) 240 x 163 mm Related Material First Day Cover with albino postmarks ~ 6 ~ Bibliography: 1. “The Zimbabwean Concise Postage Stamp Catalogue”, published by Harare Stamp Company, edited by Ken Allanson, Mike Amos and Geoff Brakspear. The catalogue continues to be updated and expanded by Geoff Brakspear 2. PTC Philatelic Bureau Bulletin No 4 of 1987. ~ 7 ~ .