Kingswood hits hole-in-one with black springbok calf

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GEORGE NEWS & VIDEO - Residents and those fortunate enough to have played a round of golf at Kingswood Golf Estate are sure to have encountered the herd of springbok roaming the fairways. On Friday 4 October, the golf estate welcomed its 'one in a million', a black springbok calf that was born during the night.

Black springboks are exceptionally uncommon and result from a rare genetic variation. While exact numbers are unknown, they are significantly scarcer than their common counterparts.

The cause of blackness in animals (black springbok, black impala) is melanism, a process where melanin is produced in excess, causing black or very dark-coloured animals.

"We don't exactly know at what time the calf was born, but it had to be somewhere during the early morning hours. One of the homeowners, who saw the calf first, immediately contacted our CEO Willem Jacobs, with the great news," says Kingswood's communications and marketing manager, Charleen le Roux.

One of the residents' daughters named the baby springbok Charkie - derived from the word charcoal.

On Sunday, Kingswood shared a Facebook post about the birth of the springbok and within minutes South African humour shone through.

"Dis nie 'n Springbok nie dis 'n All Black!" someone said.

Other comments ranged from "All Black wat 'n Bok wil wees", "That mama has some explaining to do!", "Hulle weet nie wat ons weet nie", "Um so mama hot daddy hot baby burn....eish welcome to Satafika where even the animals play by the BEE rules," to, "Now you gonna confuse the Springbok supporters. An all-black springbok?"

Most naming comments suggested calling the cutie 'Siya'.

"We're not 100% certain yet, but it looks like the baby is a ram," says Le Roux. "Kingswood HOA will consult with Dr Christiaan Blignaut of the George Animal Hospital for advice."

And for those concerned about the little one's safety, Le Roux says they have it covered.

"It is always of utmost importance to us that the animals on the estate can move around as naturally as possible and live safely in their habitat here. There are strict security, rules and regulations in place to ensure this," she says.