Wildebeest "The Great Space Coaster" (newscaster Gary Gnu), and "The Lion King" (the wildebeest stampede that resulted in Mufasa's death). Michael Flanders wrote a humorous song called "The Gnu", which was very popular when he performed it, with Donald Swann, in a revue called "At the Drop of a Hat", which opened in London on 31 December 1956. The wildebeest is the mascot of the GNU Project and GNU operating system. In the "Llama Llama" picture-book series by Anna Dewdney, an anthropomorphized wildebeest named Nelly Gnu is the main character, Llama Llama's best friend, and is also featured in a title
Blue wildebeest of wildebeest existed 100 years ago, but currently, all but three migrations (Serengeti, Tarangire, and Kafue) have been disrupted, cut off, and lost. The blue wildebeest is preyed on by lions, leopards, African wild dogs, and hyenas, and predation is the main cause of death. They are also prone to outbreaks of disease, which may also lead to a decline in numbers. Major human-related factors affecting populations include large-scale deforestation, the drying up of water sources, the expansion of settlements and poaching. Diseases of domestic cattle such as sleeping sickness can be transmitted to the animals and take their toll.