---
title: "Nijlgau"
description: "Boselaphus tragocamelus — Zoogdieren. The nilgai is the largest antelope in Asia."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/nl/animal/nilgai
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Nijlgau

> Boselaphus tragocamelus — Zoogdieren. The nilgai is the largest antelope in Asia.

- Scientific name: *Boselaphus tragocamelus*
- Category: `mammals` (Zoogdieren)
- Habitats: `forest` (Bos), `grassland` (Weiden en velden), `savanna` (Savanne)
- iNaturalist observations: 3884
- Wikidata: [Q200444](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q200444)
- iNaturalist taxon: [42426](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/42426)

## Names

- en: Nilgai
- de: Nilgau
- es: Nilgo
- fr: Nilgau
- nl: Nijlgau
- pl: Nilgau indyjski

## Countries with the most observations

IN (2406), US (728), NP (30), MX (7), PK (5)

## Summary

The nilgai is the largest antelope in Asia. It is ubiquitous across the northern Indian subcontinent. It is the sole living member of the genus Boselaphus, which was first scientifically described by Peter Simon Pallas in 1766. It is a sturdy, thin-legged antelope with a sloping back, a deep neck with a white patch on the throat, a short crest of hair along the neck terminating in a tuft, and white facial spots. A column of pendant, coarse hair hangs from the dewlap ridge below the white patch. It stands 100–150 cm (39–59 in) at the shoulder; males weigh 109–288 kg (240–635 lb), and the…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nilgai

## Photo

![Nijlgau](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/nilgai/medium.jpg)

Photo: Jean-Paul Boerekamps · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/69201285

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/nilgai?lang=nl` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).