Cashmere musk deer
| Cashmere musk deer | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Musk cupreus | ||||||||||||
| Grubb , 1982 |
The Kashmiri musk deer ( Moschus cupreus ) is a type of musk deer (Moschidae). It is common in Kashmir in northwestern India and northeastern Pakistan, and in eastern Afghanistan's province of Nuristan . The species was first described in 1982 by the English zoologist Peter Grubb as a subspecies of the Himalayan musk deer ( musk leucogaster ) , but is treated as an independent species in the Handbook of the Mammals of the World , a standard work on mammalogy . No subspecies are distinguished within the species.
features
The Kashmiri musk deer is a relatively large musk deer and reaches a body length of 85 to 100 cm, has a tail 4 to 6 cm long and weighs 12 to 17 kg. The skulls measured so far were 15 to 15.5 cm long. The basic color of the animals is gray-brown, often with a slight pattern through light spots. On the back there is an unspotted, copper-red colored area in the shape of a saddle. The ventral side is light gray, the throat and the lower sections of the front and rear legs are whitish. The ears are dark brown, their bases are white. The hair has extensive white bases. Their length is 37 to 58 mm on the torso and 33 to 38 cm on the withers . As with the Himalayan musk deer and the yellow-bellied musk deer ( musk chrysogaster ), the length of the tearbone is greater than the height.
Habitat and way of life
The Kashmiri musk deer occurs in the Pakistani part of Kashmir ( Gilgit-Baltistan ) at altitudes of 3000 to 4000 meters in the subalpine vegetation zone. In the Indian Dachigam National Park it has been observed at altitudes from 2710 to 3110 and in Nuristan it lives at altitudes of 1500 to 3500 meters in evergreen oak and conifer forests. Almost nothing is known about the way of life, nutrition, reproduction and other behaviors of the species, but it is assumed that there are no major differences to the Himalayan musk deer.
Danger
The IUCN estimates the existence of the Kashmiri musk deer as endangered. The range is not very large and therefore it is assumed that the total population of the species is also small. In the last three generations (approx. 21 years) the population is said to have decreased by 50%, which, as with the other musk deer species, is mainly due to excessive hunting for the extraction of musk . However, more precise data are not available.
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d Colin Groves : Family Moschidae (Musk-deer) in Don E. Wilson , Russell A. Mittermeier : Handbook of the Mammals of the World - Volume 2. Hoofed Mammals. Lynx Editions, 2011, ISBN 978-84-96553-77-4 , pages 336-348.
- ↑ Stephane Ostrowski, Haqiq Rahmani, Jan Mohammad Ali & Rita Ali: Musk deer Moschus cupreus persist in the eastern forests of Afghanistan. Oryx -1: 1-6, 2014, DOI: 10.1017 / S0030605314000611
- ↑ musk cupreus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2015 Posted by: Timmins, RJ & Duckworth, JW, 2014. Retrieved on January 26 of 2019.