Other Kinds of Deer
There are some 37 species of deer:
or Chital, lives on the plains and foothills of India. The animal measures three feet (90 cm) at the shoulder and is reddish brown with white spots.
The axis deer is Axis axis.
The axis deer has white spots and a white neck.or Muntjac, is found in southeastern Asia, especially in Indonesia. Its doglike bark is used as a mating call or cry of alarm. Unlike other deer, the male has tusklike upper canine teeth. The coat is reddish. The animal measures about two feet (60 cm) at the shoulder and weighs about 30 pounds (13.6 kg). The most common species is the Chinese, or Reeve's, muntjac.
The Chinese muntjac is Muntiacus reevesi.
is found from Mexico to South America. Its short antlers have no branches. The brocket is brown and measures two feet (60 cm) at the shoulders.
The brocket belongs to the genus Mazamba.
The Caribou
The Elk
The Fallow Deer
lives in swampy regions of Brazil and Argentina. The largest South American deer, it stands four feet (120 cm) at the shoulder. Its coat is reddish in summer, brownish in winter. The population is endangered due to hunting and loss of habitat from swamp drainage for agriculture.
The marsh deer is Blastocerus dichotomus.
The Moose
The Mule, or Black-tailed, Deer
is native to forests and brush lands of Asia. This relatively small deer stands 20 to 24 inches (51 to 61 cm) at the shoulder and weighs about 20 to 24 pounds (9 to 11 kg). The coat, thick and grayish-brown, is sometimes marked with creamy spots. This species is endangered.
The musk deer is Moschus moschiferus.
is named for the French naturalist who was the first European to see the deer. Until his time it was unknown outside the gardens of the Summer Palace in Beijing, China. The original Chinese specimens were exterminated in the Boxer Rebellion of 1900, but the species survived through animals that had been sent to England. In 1989, specimens were reintroduced into China in two reserves: one near Shanghai, the other near Beijing. Père David's deer stands nearly four feet (120 cm) at the shoulder and is grayish buff.
Père David's deer is Elaphurus davidianus.
The Red Deer
The Reindeer
is found in Europe and Asia. It is a good jumper and climber and has a doglike bark. The roe deer measures two to three feet (60 to 90 cm) at the shoulders and weighs about 60 pounds (27 kg). The summer coat is yellow, the winter coat brown.
The roe deer belongs to the genus Capreolus.
is the largest and most common deer of southeastern Asia. It measures five feet (150 cm) at the shoulders and weighs up to 500 pounds (227 kg). The coat is dark brown. Like the hog and buffalo, the sambar wallows in mudholes, probably to rid itself of insects.
The sambar is Cervus unicolor, or Rusa unicolor.
is found in eastern Asia, especially in Japan. It measures three feet (90 cm) at the shoulder. The summer coat is chestnut spotted with white; the winter coat is a dull brown with faded spots.
The sika is Cervus nippon.
is found in northern India. Despite its name, it prefers forests and grassy plains. It stands four feet (120 cm) at the shoulder and weighs up to 560 pounds (254 kg). In summer, the swamp deer's coat is light red spotted with white. The winter coat is a yellowish brown. This species is endangered.
The swamp deer is Cervus duvauceli.
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