Black wildebeest by the German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm von Zimmermann in 1780. He based his description on an article written by natural philosopher Jean-Nicolas-Sébastien Allamand in 1776. The generic name "Connochaetes" derives from the Greek words κόννος, "kónnos", "beard", and χαίτη, "khaítē", "flowing hair", "mane". The specific name "gnou" originates from the Khoikhoi name for these animals," gnou". The common name "gnu" is also said to have originated from the Hottentot name "t'gnu", which refers to the repeated calls of "ge-nu" by the bull in the mating season. The black wildebeest was first discovered in the northern part of South Africa
Wildebeest level. Blue wildebeest fossils dating back some 2.5 million years ago are common and widespread. They have been found in the fossil-bearing caves at the Cradle of Humankind north of Johannesburg. Elsewhere in South Africa, they are plentiful at such sites as Elandsfontein, Cornelia, and Florisbad. The earliest fossils of the black wildebeest were found in sedimentary rock in Cornelia in the Orange Free State and dated back about 800,000 years. Today, five subspecies of the blue wildebeest are recognized, while the black wildebeest has no named subspecies. The diploid number of chromosomes in the wildebeest is 58. Chromosomes were