What the Nilgai Actually Is
Boselaphus tragocamelus, the nilgai, is the largest antelope on the Asian continent, with adult males standing up to 1.5 metres at the shoulder and weighing as much as 300 kilograms. The name means "blue cow" in Hindi, and that etymology matters: the animal's bovine appearance gave it a degree of cultural protection in Hindu-majority regions long before any wildlife legislation existed. It is not a cow, not even close taxonomically, but the resemblance was enough to make culling politically complicated for centuries.
