Sambar

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Sambar
Sambar deer, male

Sambar deer, male

Systematics
without rank: Forehead weapon bearer (Pecora)
Family : Deer (Cervidae)
Subfamily : Cervinae
Tribe : Real deer (Cervini)
Genre : Red deer ( Cervus )
Type : Sambar
Scientific name
Cervus unicolor
Kerr , 1792
Young sambar deer

The sambar or horse deer ( Cervus unicolor , Syn . : Rusa unicolor ) is a deer widespread in South and Southeast Asia .

features

The sambar is a very large deer with a head-to-trunk length of 160 to 250 centimeters and a shoulder height of 100 to 160 cm. The weight is 110 to 260 kilograms. Male sambars are significantly larger and heavier than females. The body size decreases within the range from west to east, so that the largest sambars can be found in India and the smallest in Southeast Asia. The coat is always monochrome, but the color varies between individuals. The fur color ranges from yellow-brown to dark brown, rarely there are almost black or gray sambars. Females and pups are usually lighter in color than males, and the pups are always unspotted.

The tail has a length of 25 to 30 cm and is therefore quite long for deer. Its underside is white, this signal color is clearly visible when the sambar flees and raises its tail. The sambar's coat is usually short; in areas with climatically changing seasons it becomes thicker and longer in winter.

Characteristic is the large antlers of the male, the rods of which are almost always three-ended. The forward eyeship reaches about 50% of the length of the pole. The bar forks further, with the front end usually longer than the rear. In 10% of the males there is a fourth end through a further fork in the rod, rarely also the eyepiece. The average length of the antlers is 110 cm. Among the deer, this is only surpassed by the elk , the red deer and the reindeer . In this tropical deer species the antler growth is not synchronized; in the same habitat there are male animals that are currently pushing their antlers and those that have already freed their antlers from the nourishing and protective bast skin .

distribution and habitat

Distribution area of ​​the sambar deer

The distribution area of ​​the Sambar extends from India and southern China to the Malay Peninsula and also includes the islands of Sri Lanka , Sumatra , Borneo , Taiwan and Hainan . Its habitat is mainly forests that are free from human disturbance. In mountainous areas it can be found up to heights of 3500 meters.

Sambars have also been introduced in Australia , New Zealand , South Africa and the US states of California , Texas and Florida . In contrast, an introduction to Tasmania and Brazil has failed. The related Philippines deer were also introduced in Australia and New Zealand . Since the two species have mixed with each other, many of the populations there are no longer pure sambars.

Way of life

activity

Female of the sambar deer

Sambars are crepuscular and nocturnal animals, which are also very shy and therefore rarely seen. The nocturnal activity may however be caused by humans, because in areas without human disturbance there are also diurnal populations.

Females and their young form small groups. As a rule, these only include a dam with its calf from the current year and possibly a female calf from the previous year. Occasionally two or more females band together. Young males under the age of six also form small groups. Males over six years of age are loners.

In India, 1,500 hectares for males and 300 hectares for females were established as action space .

Whether sambars live in small family groups or packs is determined by the respective habitat. In forest areas, small family groups predominate, while older males are predominantly solitary or form very small groups of two or three individuals. Where they colonize more open habitats, packs can be found that comprise up to fifty individuals. Here, too, the adult males tend to be at the edge of the pack.

nutrition

Sambars are generalists in their choice of plant-based foods. They eat grass, herbs, leaves and fruits, with food obtained from shrubs and trees making up a higher proportion than plants taken from the ground. In India, the sambar has a greater number of plant species on the menu than any other ungulate. In areas with climatically changing seasons, for example on the slopes of the Himalayas, ferns, bamboo and tree bark are taken in winter. Sambars have to drink regularly and therefore never stray too far from the water.

Reproduction

Male sambars set up territories during the rut , which they bitterly defend against conspecifics of the same sex. In this phase, their necks swell, the pre-eye glands are enlarged, they give off a strong odor and are extremely aggressive. They increasingly roll around in the mud, so that their fur is often covered with mud. They rub their pre-eye glands on trees and use their flexible penis to spray urine on all parts of the body, including the face. In fights among males, sambars often stand on their hind legs and then hit the competitor from above with their antlers - a behavior that is unique among deer and more reminiscent of goats. Due to the pointed, protruding eyepiece, serious injuries, which can also be fatal, regularly occur in these fights.

Young sambar around six weeks old

Females break away from their groups, seek out the males in heat and copulate with them. There does not seem to be a preferred season for this; Copulations and births take place throughout the year. There are 330 to 370 days between two births. The gestation period is eight months. Usually a young is born, twin births are very rare. Young animals stay with the mother for at least one year; male boys then go their own way, while female boys can stay for another year.

In captivity, sambars lived to be 28 years and five months. In the wild, they rarely get older than twelve years. Research in India showed that 50% of sambars die before the age of one.

Diseases and enemies

The diseases found in Sambars include foot and mouth disease , sickle cell anemia , bovine virus diarrhea and malignant catarrhal fever . However, none of these diseases has any significant impact on populations. 18 endo- and 40 ectoparasites are known. When horseflies , calf biters and other biting flies appear en masse during the rainy season, sambars often flee into the water and stay there for a long time. Often they willingly let cattle egrets , wandering tree stars and other birds read the parasites from their fur.

Adult sambars hardly have any enemies to fear. An exception is the tiger , to which even adult males fall victim. Where tigers and sambars are found together, deer are among the most important prey for cats. In the national parks of Bandipur and Nagarhole , 29 and 37% of all tiger prey are sambar deer. On the other hand, leopards usually tear calves; in these parks 5 to 10% of the prey animals are Sambars.

Also Dhole can tear Sambarkälber. In contrast, it has never been proven that wolves and striped hyenas can be dangerous to sambars.

Sambars are among the few deer who actively defend themselves against enemies. Females in particular put a lot at risk for the defense of their calves. Several females sometimes form a circle and take young animals in the middle, just as muskoxes do. In one case, a mother was seen following a leopard that was carrying her calf away; their pursuit was so persistent that the leopard eventually dropped its prey. Sambar are more likely to attack red and domestic dogs that harass them. Hunters often take advantage of this behavior and set dogs on them. Because the dogs distract the sambars, hunters can get close enough to kill them.

System and name

Male of the Sambar in Sri Lanka

The sambar is assigned to the genus Rusa or Cervus , depending on the doctrine . Wherever he is placed with Cervus , Rusa is the subgenus. Originally described by Kerr in 1792 as Axis unicolor and Axis major - he thought smaller and larger sambars were two different species. In 1799 Bechstein corrected Cervus unicolor . The combination most commonly used today Rusa unicolor was first in 1910 by Pocock used

A variety of names have been used for the sambar since it was first described. In its huge distribution area, individual populations of the sambar were repeatedly thought to be new species. In addition, a large number of subspecies has been described.

According to today's doctrine there are seven subspecies:

The name "Sambar" comes from the Hindi ( Sambar or Sabar ) and is derived ultimately from the Sanskrit designation Sambara from. Other common names in German are "Aristoteleshirsch" and "Pferdehirsch". In China, the name "four-eye deer" is also used, which comes from the large pre-eye glands. The British referred to the Sambar in India because of its size as elk , ie as "elk", which is zoologically incorrect

People and sambars

Front Indian Sambar Deer ( Cervus unicolor unicolor ), Ranthambhore National Park , India

The earliest description of a sambar goes back to Aristotle , who described it as an animal of India with three-ended antlers. Today the sambar is an animal that is often shown in zoos and has become at home on other continents through introductions. Still, stocks in Asia are not doing well; The IUCN classified the Sambar 2008, which was previously not at risk, as vulnerable ("endangered"), as there are dramatic population declines in numerous countries in its area of ​​distribution. The main causes are hunting and the destruction of forests. One reason for the hunt is the need for meat, another the mere pleasure and trophy hunting . Meat plays a role especially in Southeast Asia; Sambar meat is the most popular game meat in Vietnam and Indonesia . But trophy hunting by wealthy city dwellers has also increased. Sambar antlers can be found in some tourist markets in Southeast Asia.

The following list shows the situation of the sambar in the countries of its natural range:

  • India : The sambar is not common anywhere. Due to the good protective measures in the country's national parks, the population is considered stable. Outside of such protected areas, sambars are rarely found.
  • Sri Lanka : steady population decline due to poaching.
  • Nepal : The sambar was only ever found in the extreme south of the country. There are only abundant stocks in Bardiya National Park . Otherwise, also here population declines due to poaching.
  • Bangladesh : In the 1960s, the sambar was still considered common. There has been a steady decline since then. Today's remaining stocks are so small that the Sambar in Bangladesh must be considered critically endangered.
  • China : During the 20th century there was a decline in stocks for most of the time, which meant that there was only a scattered distribution area with many island-like occurrences, especially in Central China. More recently, however, there has been a relaxation. On Hainan and in Guangdong the populations are even growing again.
  • Taiwan : Sambar hunting has been banned since 1989. The protection is effective and has ensured that Taiwan has a higher population density of sambars than any other Asian country. Here, too, the occurrence is largely limited to protected areas.
  • Myanmar : The sambar is still widespread, but the population has plummeted by an estimated 50% in the past thirty years.
  • Thailand : The sambar is extinct in most of the country; only in some protected areas are there residual populations.
  • Laos : The sambar used to be a very common animal, now the populations have collapsed extremely.
  • Vietnam : In the north of Vietnam, where the sambar was once abundant, it is now completely or almost extinct. In the south the situation is a little better; there are still large stocks in Cat Tien National Park . In Vietnam, meat from muntjaks is now often sold as "sambar meat", as real sambars are rarely found.
  • Cambodia : The local sambars are in very bad shape due to excessive hunting; the situation is considered to be even more dramatic than in Laos and Vietnam.
  • Malaysia (mainland): Sambars are still relatively common in Johor , otherwise they are almost extinct.
  • Sumatra : The sambar is still relatively common on Sumatra; the populations are not acutely threatened.
  • Borneo : Sambars have become extremely rare in the Malaysian part; in Sarawak they are facing extinction, in Sabah the situation is said to be a little better. In the Indonesian part of Borneo Sambars are still relatively common.

literature

  • David M. Leslie Jr.: Rusa unicolor . In: Mammalian Species 2011, Vol. 871, pp. 1-30.
  • Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World . Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999. ISBN 0-8018-5789-9 .
  • Bernhard Grzimel (Ed.): Grzimeks animal life . Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, 1979. ISBN 3-423-03207-3 .
  • Leonard Lee Rue III: The Encyclopedia of Deer . Voyageur Press, Stillwater 2003, ISBN 0-89658-590-5

Web links

Commons : Sambar  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. a b Nowak 1999, pp. 1104/1105
  2. a b c Leslie 2011, p. 7
  3. a b c Rue, p. 48
  4. a b c Leslie 2011, p. 14
  5. a b c Leslie 2011, p. 8
  6. a b c Leslie 2011, p. 13
  7. a b Leslie 2011, p. 20
  8. a b c Leslie 2011, p. 18
  9. Leslie 2011, p. 15
  10. a b Leslie 2011, p. 19
  11. Leslie 2011, p. 12
  12. Leslie 2011, p. 16
  13. Leslie 2011, p. 17
  14. Leslie 2011, p. 4
  15. Leslie 2011, p. 2
  16. Leslie 2011, p. 5
  17. ^ Henry Yule: Hobson-Jobson: A Glossary of Colloquial Anglo-Indian Words and Phrases, new ed. London: J. Murray, 1903, keyword: “Sambre, Sambur”  ( page no longer available , search in web archivesInfo: Der Link was automatically marked as broken. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ; RL Turner: A Comparative Dictionary of Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, 1962–1966, keyword: “śambara” .@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / dsal.uchicago.edu  
  18. a b Grzimek 1979, p. 172
  19. Leslie 2011, p. 6
  20. a b IUCN Species Account , accessed June 5, 2011