The common duiker has a wide diet which includes browsing for leaves, flowers, fruits and tubers, and also eating insects, frogs, small birds, mammals, and even carrion. If there is plenty of vegetation to browse, the common duiker can go without water for long stretches as it gets the water from fruits and vegetation. In the rainy season they can often go without drinking water as they get most of it from fruits. They often eat fruits together with monkeys. Common duikers are active at all hours but when near human settlements or predators they become more nocturnal. Males are territorial and smear gland secretions on rocks and branches to mark their territories which is their preferred resting places are generally on elevated ground, where they can observe their territory. Females, by contrast, prefer deeper cover. The overall success of this species stems from its ability to inhabit a wide variety of habitats.