Both mane and neckbeard are tinted with darker tips, which run the length of the animal's back and belly, ending in a dark-coloured tail.

[7] In 1996, an analysis of mitochondrial DNA extracted from a mounted specimen of the bluebuck found that it was outside the clade containing the roan and sable antelopes.

The roan antelope seems to have appeared in the Nelson Bay Cave region following climatic changes in the Holocene.

Only elands, bongos and large male greater kudus can exceed them in weight on average.

Characteristic features include a short, erect mane of grayish brown hair extending from the back of the neck along the midline of the back up to the withers, white patches around the eyes and the mouth on the otherwise black face, and long, narrow ears with 3–5 cm (1.2–2.0 in) long tufts.

The horns are ringed and arched backwards, which can reach 100 cm (39 in) long in males, slightly shorter in females.