The sambar deer (scientific name: Rusa unicolor) is stout and close to a red deer. Adult males are about 130 cm tall, 130 to 140 cm long, and weigh 200 to 250 kg. Females are shorter. The sambar deer has large tear sockets, black nose mirrors, long neck hairs, and dense, fluffy black hairs at the end of the tail. The coat is dark brown and the winter hair is dark gray. There is a black-brown dorsal line, and the rump is rusty brown around the buttocks, without rump spots. The horns are single-door piles and eyebrow branches. It is water-loving, often active at the water's edge, inhabiting broad-leaved forests, mixed forests, savanna meadows and high grassland belts, foraging in the early morning and dusk. Especially active after the rain. Usually alone, there is a certain line of action. It is found in China, Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Indochina and Southeast Asia.
< h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > appearance features</h2>
The sambar deer is the largest deer in tropical and subtropical regions, with a length of 140 to 260 cm, a tail length of 20 to 30 cm, a shoulder height of 120 to 140 cm, a weight of 100 to 200 kg, and the largest can reach more than 300 kg. The stag has thick, long, three-pointed horns, up to 1 meter long. The coat color is light brown or black brown, and the female deer has a slight reddish color. Dark brown mane on the neck. Body hair is generally dark chestnut brown , no white spots on the arms , and yellowish white under the jaw , abdomen , medial limbs , and under the tail.
Important features that distinguish it from other deer species are: small horns and few forks, incisors are active, there is an inverted retrograde hair on the neck and abdomen with the size of the palm, and the hair is rounded and wavy.
The body of the sambar deer is tall and thick, the body hair is rough and sparse, the male's back is generally black brown or dark brown, the ventral surface is yellowish-white, the female is lighter and slightly redder than the male, and there are also tan and gray-brown individuals. The dark brown longitudinal stripes of the neck along the dorsal midline to the tail are one of the distinguishing features of the sambar deer. The face is slightly longer, the nasal snout is bare, the ears are large and erect, the eyes are larger, and the infraorbital glands are particularly developed, especially when angry or frightened, and can swell to the size of the eyes.
The limbs of the sambar deer are slender and powerful, the main hooves are large, and the side hooves are particularly small. The sides of the tail are densely covered with long fluffy hairs, which look like a fan, and the back half of the tail is black, and the ventral surface is white. Only the male has long horns on its head, and the horns emerge from the posterior lateral side of the forehead and tilt slightly outward, and the opposite horns form a "U" shape. The angle is simple and triangular. The anterior part of the horn is smoother, the rest is rough, and there is a ring of bony neoplastic process at the base, called the "horn seat", commonly known as the "grinding disc". The horns of the sambar deer are relatively long among deer, generally 70 to 80 cm, and the longest can reach 125 cm.
When people think of deer in China, the first thing that comes to mind is the cute appearance of Bambi in the Disney animation, but the Chinese sambar deer has two 4-inch-long fangs, so it has a nickname called vampire deer.
<h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > habitat</h2>
The altitude of the habitat is 2000-3700 meters above sea level. It lives in tropical and subtropical forest areas, grasslands, broad-leaved forests, monsoon forests, savannas, alpine valleys and plateaus. He is active after sunset, has no fixed nests, and has the habit of making vertical migration along the hillside. It has a large range of motion, no fixed nests, and rarely goes to places far away from water.
< h2 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > life habits</h2>
The sambar deer feel sensitive, sexually alert, and good at running. Happy group living. Active in the morning, evening and evening, resting during the day. He prefers to forage at the water's edge, feeding on grasses, fruits, leaves and shoots. In the summer, it is good to bathe in the mountain stream, hence the name sambar deer. The main predators are tigers and crocodiles, and it is commonly said that tigers squat in the grass mountain deer Muxi, because they also like water.
< h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > distribution range</h2>
It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, China (Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hunan, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Taiwan), India (Sumatra), Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam.
Introduced: Australia, New Zealand, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, South Africa, USA (California, Florida, Texas).
<h2 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > breeding method</h2>
The breeding season is not very fixed, and it can be mated every month, mostly in the late summer and early autumn of each year. The gestation period of females is about 6 to 8 months, the following spring birth, the estrus cycle averages 20 days, the average gestation period is 8 to 9 months, each litter is 1 to 2 litters, the lactation period is 12 to 24 months, and its fecundity is relatively low. The pups have white spots on their bodies. It matures at the age of 2 to 3 years and has a lifespan of 14 to 16 years.
<h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > population status</h2>
Sambar deer are listed as vulnerable species. The severity of the danger also varies in different regions, with declines of more than 50% in mainland Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, Malaysia), Bangladesh, Borneo and Sumatra. Overall declines have been modest in India, but large in these regions outside india, with declines averaging 30% in China, Sri Lanka and Nepal. A slowing trend in population declines suggests a decline in marketing for wild meat and deer antler velvet in Southeast Asia and China.
< h2 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > protection level</h2>
Listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2008 ver 3.1 – Endangered. [5]
Listed in Appendix I of the Washington Convention (CITES).
Listed in China's "List of Wild Animals under National Key Protection" China Key List - Grade II