Black muntjac

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Black muntjac
Black muntjac in Shanghai Zoo

Black muntjac in Shanghai Zoo

Systematics
without rank: Forehead weapon bearer (Pecora)
Family : Deer (Cervidae)
Subfamily : Cervinae
Tribe : Muntjak deer (Muntiacini)
Genre : Muntjaks ( Muntiacus )
Type : Black muntjac
Scientific name
Muntiacus crinifrons
( Sclater , 1885)

The black muntjac ( Muntiacus crinifrons ) is a species of deer from the genus of muntjacs . It occurs exclusively in the east of China . and lives there in a relatively narrow area. The inhabited habitats consist of dense mountain forests. Little information is available about the animals' way of life. They are solitary, territorial, and feed on a soft vegetable diet. Mother animals give birth to one young per birth. The species was scientifically introduced in 1885. The stock is considered endangered.

features

The black muntjac is a larger representative of the muntjac. It reaches a head-trunk length of 90 to 110 cm, the tail becomes another 20 cm long. The shoulder height is around 55 cm, the body weight varies from 20 to 25 kg. Females are on average slightly larger than males. The fur is usually dark brown to black in color. White hairs appear underneath the comparatively long and fringed tail. The limbs mostly appear dark in color. A reddish brown to golden yellow long-haired tuft grows on the forehead. The ears are pointed and have a white inside. The antlers are around 7 to 8 cm long, they can end with one or two tips. The rose bushes are about the same length.

distribution and habitat

The distribution area of ​​the black muntjac is limited to eastern China . It occurs in a relatively narrow area in the south of Anhui Province and in the west of Zhejiang Province . There are three core zones here with larger populations of the black muntjac. These include the Tianmu Shan on the border between Zhejiang and Anhui Provinces, the Huang Shan in Anhui Province and Suichang County in Zhejiang Province. The three core zones are about 150 km apart in an east-west direction (Tianmu Shan and Huang Shan) and 230 to 240 km in a north-south direction (Tianmu Shan / Huang Shan and Suichang). In addition, the species occurs in adjacent areas, so in addition to Suichang in other areas of the prefecture-level city Lishui , around Mount Huaiyuan in the east of Jiangxi Province and in the Wuyi Mountains in the north of Fujian Province . It was first observed in 2010 using camera traps in the Wuyi Mountains . The stocks outside the core zones are often viewed as not particularly stable. The entire distribution area thus occupies an area of ​​76,500 km².

The animals predominantly live in mountain forests with dense subsurface vegetation; they are less common in scrubland. The forests consist of a mosaic of deciduous, thick-leaved vegetation, evergreen plants and bamboo growing communities. They are subject to the influence of the monsoons . The altitude distribution in the three core zones ranges from 200 to 1200 m above sea level, in the Wuyi Mountains, according to the observations, the animals are at altitudes of 1080 to 2130 m.

Way of life

Territorial behavior

The black muntjac lives solitary and territorial, but little information is available about its exact behavior. Individual territories are marked with scent marks from the pre-eye glands by rubbing in the vegetation. Males defend their territory against strangers with the help of their enlarged canine teeth. The main activities from spring to autumn are limited to the times at 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. and at 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. In winter the animals are only more active once a day. Rest periods take place during the midday heat and shortly after midnight. In the Jiulongshan Nature Reserve in Zhejiang Province, the black muntjac prefers mixed forests on medium slopes (15 to 30 °) at altitudes of 1000 to 1200 m in spring and autumn. In summer it changes to mixed forests in higher altitudes over 1200 m on steeper slopes (30 to 45 °), in winter, on the other hand, it is mainly in coniferous forests on medium, south-facing slopes (15 to 30 °). In all types of landscape, the food supply is plentiful in the corresponding seasons, but the distances to the next water source can drop to around 500 m in winter, while they are over 1000 m for the rest of the year.

nutrition

The animals feed on a large variety of leaves , twigs , herbs , fruits and grasses .

Reproduction

Females become sexually mature around one year old. Reproduction is not seasonally restricted. Mother animals give birth to a single young animal after a gestation period of about 210 days. They may be ready to receive again after birth, as various observations have shown that nursing mothers have already given birth to offspring. According to genetic analyzes in the Jiulongshan Nature Reserve, a male usually mates with several females, whereas females only mate with one male.

Systematics

Internal systematics of the Muntjak deer according to Zurano et al. 2019
  Muntiacini  
  Elaphodus  

 Elaphodus cephalophus


  Muntiacus  


 Muntiacus reevesi


   

 Muntiacus vuquangensis


   

 Muntiacus rooseveltorum


   

 Muntiacus truongsonensis


   

 Muntiacus putaoensis






   

 Muntiacus atherodes


   


 Muntiacus muntjac


   

 Muntiacus vaginalis



   

 Muntiacus feae


   

 Muntiacus crinifrons


   

 Muntiacus gongshanensis








Template: Klade / Maintenance / Style
Philip Lutley Sclater
historical depiction of the black muntjac from Sclater's first description from 1885

The black Muntjak is a kind from the genus of the barking ( Muntiacus ) within the family of deer (Cervidae). Within the deer the Muntjaks are in the subfamily of Cervinae and the tribe of muntiacini (Muntiacini) to the latter is additionally tufted deer ( Elaphodus ) counted. The Muntjak deer are in turn the sister taxon of the real deer (Cervini). Characteristic features of the muntjaks can be found in the simply built antlers and in the canine teeth, which are mostly enlarged in males. All known representatives are forest dwellers. Neither the exact relationship of the various muntjac representatives to one another nor the exact number of species have been fully clarified. In a 2011 revision of the ungulates, Colin P. Groves and Peter Grubb relegated the black muntjac to a family group together with the Gongshan muntjac ( Muntiacus gongshanensis ) and the Tenasserim muntjac ( Muntiacus feae ). They named the group after the type form with Muntiacus crinifrons group. They put the Muntiacus muntjak and the Muntiacus reevesi group as well as an unnamed group consisting of some dwarf forms from the Southeast Asian mainland (sometimes also referred to as the Muntiacus roosveltorum group). The distinction is largely based on anatomical characteristics, but also partly on genetic data.

Already in the first genetic studies in the transition from the 20th to the 21st century, the black muntjac was found to be closely related to the Gongshan muntjac. The Gongshan muntjac, scientifically named only in 1990 and occurring in a mountain region in the extreme northwest of the Chinese province of Yunnan , was then synonymous with the black muntjac by some authors . However, a larger proportion of scientists consider both forms to be independent. More comprehensive, recent genetic studies excluded the Gongshan muntjac for the time being, but confirmed the close relationship between the black muntjac and the tenasserim muntjac, which had also been recognized in the previous analyzes. These newer analyzes worked out a division of the genus of muntjacs into two clades . In addition to the black and tenasserim muntjac, one also contains the Indian muntjak ( Muntiacus muntjak ) and the Borneo muntjak ( Muntiacus atherodes ). Second, some dwarf forms are of mainland Southeast Asia as the Annam muntjac ( Muntiacus truonsonensis ), the Roosevelt muntjac ( Muntiacus rooseveltorum ) and the Burma-muntjac ( Muntiacus putaoensis ), but also the Riesenmuntjak ( Muntiacus vuquangensis ) and the Chinese muntjac ( Muntiacus reevesi ). In a work from 2019, the complete genome of the Gongshan muntjak was finally published. Here it actually turned out to be the closest related to the black muntjac. The close relationship to one another can also be seen in the set of chromosomes , which in both forms has a diploid number of 2n = 8/9, while in the tenasserim muntjak it is 2n = 12/13/14.

In connection with the close relationship of the black muntjak and the Gongshan muntjak, various reports of sightings or occurrences of the former in northern Myanmar and southeastern Tibet are worth mentioning. In several cases there are also genetic indications that are considered methodologically problematic, at least in the case of the Tibetan document. From the current point of view, the situation cannot be fully explained. It is possible that the reports and genetic evidence refer to the Gongshan muntjac, on the other hand, in some sighting cases, confusion with a melanistic North Indian muntjac or with a species that has not yet been described is conceivable. As early as the 1990s, individual scientists speculated about an originally much larger distribution area for the black muntjak. This should have reached from the mouth of the Yangtze River to Yunnan, but there was no evidence of this.

Investigations of the mitochondrial DNA of the three main populations of the black muntjak (Tianmu Shan, Huang Shan and Suichang) reveal a certain isolation from one another, which is probably due to a reduced gene exchange on the part of female animals and which is caused by the strong landscape fragmentation. Two clades could be distinguished, the animals in Suichang bearing haplotypes of both clades. This is attributed to an earlier population decline that occurred in the historical past, probably also caused by habitat destruction, which, however, was followed by expansion. The individual populations have a very different diversity. This is partly controlled by the progressive deforestation and the consequent lack of gene flow .

The first scientific description of the black muuntjak was provided by Philip Lutley Sclater in 1885 under the name Cervulus crinifrons . In the treatise, which was only a few lines long, Sclater set the black muntjac apart from other muntjaks by the bushy head of hair on the forehead and the long tail. In the former also refers the specific epithet (from Latin crinis is "Hair" or "pigtail" frons is "forehead"). Sclater specified Ningbo as the type locality south of the mouth of the Yangtze River, where the species no longer occurs today. Until the mid-1970s, the species was mainly known through individual museum specimens and was considered extremely rare. It was not until the 1980s that larger stocks were discovered in eastern China.

Threat and protection

The black muntjac has been classified by the IUCN as "endangered" ( vulnerable ) since 1990 , although there has been very little evidence for this assessment in recent years. The newly discovered populations in the Wuyi Mountains should be mentioned here. In 2008, the categorization was justified by the fact that the population has declined by an estimated more than 30% in the last three generations (around 18 years), which is due to overhunting and the destruction of habitats through deforestation and the expansion of agricultural land. A last population estimate at the end of the 1990s assumed around 7000 to 8500 individuals. The species is present in several protected areas, such as the Wuyishan, Gutianshan and Jiulongshan nature reserves. The most important protective measure is the preservation of the wooded habitats of the species. In addition, more detailed analyzes of the risk factors are necessary.

literature

  • S. Mattioli: Family Cervidae (Deer). In: Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier (eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 2: Hooved Mammals. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2011, ISBN 978-84-96553-77-4 , pp. 350–443 (p. 410)
  • John MacKinnon: Order Artiodactyla. In: Andrew T. Smith, Yan Xie, Robert S. Hoffmann, Darrin Lunde, John MacKinnon, Don E. Wilson and W. Chris Wozencraft (Eds.): A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press, 2008, pp. 451-481

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g John MacKinnon: Order Artiodactyla. In: Andrew T. Smith, Yan Xie, Robert S. Hoffmann, Darrin Lunde, John MacKinnon, Don E. Wilson and W. Chris Wozencraft (Eds.): A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press, 2008, pp. 451-481
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g S. Mattioli: Family Cervidae (Deer). In: Don E. Wilson, Russell A. Mittermeier (eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 2: Hooved Mammals. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2011, ISBN 978-84-96553-77-4 , pp. 350–443 (p. 410)
  3. ↑ a b Cheng Song-Lin, Zou Si-Cheng and Yuan Rong-Bin: Preliminary Report of Muntiacus crinifrons and Its Habitat Survey in Wuyishan National Natural Reserve, Jiangxi, China. Jiangxi Science 30, 2012, pp. 594-598
  4. ↑ a b Wu Hai-Long, Wan Qiu-Hong and Fang Sheng-Guo: Population structure and gene flow among wild populations of the Black Muntjac (Muntiacus crinifrons) based on mitochondrial DNA control region sequences. Zoological Science 23, 2006, pp. 333-340
  5. ↑ Zhang SS, Bao YX, Wang Y., Fang PF and Ye B .: Activity rhythms of black muntjac (Muntiacus crinifrons) revealed with infrared camera. Acta Theriologica Sinica 32, 2012, pp. 368-372
  6. ↑ Zheng X., Bao Y., Ge B. and Zheng R .: Seasonal changes in habitat use of black muntjac (Muntiacus crinifrons) in Zhejiang. Acta Theriologica Sinica 26, 2006, pp. 201-205
  7. ↑ Chen L., Bao Y., Zhang L., Cheng H., Zhang J. and Zhou Y .: Seasonal changes in habitat selection by Black Muntjac (Muntiacus Ctinifrons) in Jiulong Mountain Nature Reserve. Acta Ecologica Sinica 30, 2010, pp. 1227-1237
  8. ↑ Chen Xiaonan, Jiang Kuang, Bao Yixin, Wang Hua, Shi Weiwei, Zheng Weicheng and Liu Julian: The mating system study of black muntjac (Muntiacus crinifrons) based on fecal DNA. Acta Ecologica Sinica 35, 2015, pp. 137-141
  9. ↑ Juan P. Zurano, Felipe M. Magalhães, Ana E. Asato, Gabriel Silva, Claudio J. Bidau, Daniel O. Mesquita and Gabriel C. Costa: Cetartiodactyla: Updating a time-calibrated molecular phylogeny. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 133, 2019, pp. 256-262, doi: 10.1016 / j.ympev.2018.12.015
  10. ^ A b Colin Peter Groves and Peter Grubb: Ungulate Taxonomy. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2011, pp. 1-317 (pp. 71-107)
  11. ^ A b George Amato, Mary G. Egan and George B. Schaller: Mitochondrial DNA variation in muntjac: evidence for discovery, rediscovery, and phylogenetic relationships. In: Elisabeth S. Vrba and George B. Schaller (Eds.): Antelopes, deer, and relatives. Yale University Press, 2000, pp. 285-295
  12. ↑ George B. Schaller and Alan Rabinowitz: Species of barking deer (genus Muntiacus) in the eastern Himalayan region. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 101, 2004, pp. 442–444 ( [1] )
  13. ↑ Jiffy James, Uma Ramakrishnan and Aparajita Datta: Molecular evidence for the occurrence of the leaf deer Muntiacus putaoensis in Arunachal Pradesh, north-east India. Conservation Genetics 9, 2008, pp. 927-931, doi: 10.1007 / s10592-007-9410-3
  14. ↑ Alexandre Hassanin, Frédéric Delsuc, Anne Ropiquet, Catrin Hammer, Bettine Jansen van Vuuren, Conrad Matthee, Manuel Ruiz-Garcia, François Catzeflis, Veronika Areskoug, Trung Thanh Nguyen and Arnaud Couloux: Pattern and timing of diversification of Cetartiodactalia, Lauriala (Mammia ), as revealed by a comprehensive analysis of mitochondrial genomes. Comptes Rendus Palevol 335, 2012, pp. 32-50
  15. ↑ Nicola S. Heckeberg, Dirk Erpenbeck, Gert Wörheide and Gertrud E. Rössner: Systematic relationships of five newly sequenced cervid species. PeerJ 4, 2016, p. E2307, doi: 10.7717 / peerj.2307
  16. ↑ Yun-Chun Zhang, Chen Xiao-Yong, Guo-Gang Li and Quan Rui-Chang: Complete mitochondrial genome of Gongshan muntjac (Muntiacus gongshanensis), a Critically Endangered deer species. Mitochondrial DNA B 4 (2), 2019, pp. 2867-2868, doi: 10.1080 / 23802359.2019.166024
  17. ↑ Wang Wen and Lan Hong: Rapid and Parallel Chromosomal Number Reductions in Muntjac Deer Inferred from Mitochondrial DNA Phylogeny. Molecular Biology and Evolution 17 (9), 2000, pp. 1326-1333
  18. ↑ Alongkod Tanomtong, Arunrat Chaveerach, Gittichai Phanjun, Wiwat Kaensa and Sumpars Khunsook: New Records of chromosomal features in Indian muntjacs (Muntiacus muntjak) and Fea's muntjacs (M. feae) of Thailand. Cytologia 70, 2005, pp. 71-77
  19. ^ A b Alan Rabinowitz, G. Amato and U. Saw Tun Khaing: Discovery of the black muntjac, Muntiacus crinifrons (Artiodactyla, Cervidae), in north Myanmar. Mammalia 62 (1), 1998, pp. 105-108
  20. ↑ Min Chen, Guangpu Guo, Pengju Wu and Endi Zhang: Identification of black muntjac (Muntiacus crinifrons) in Tibet, China, by cytochrome b analysis. Conservation Genetics 9, 2008, pp. 1287-1291
  21. ^ A b R. Timmins and R. Chan: Muntiacus crinifrons. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016. e.T13924A22160753 ( [2] ); last accessed on January 1, 2020
  22. ↑ Bao Yi-Xin, Cheng Hong-Yi, Zhou Xiang-Wu, Chen Liang, Hu Zhi-Yuan and Ge Bao-Ming: Genetic diversity of three populations of the black muntjac (Muntiacus crinifrons). Acta Ecologica Sinica 8, 2008, pp. 4030-4036
  23. ↑ Cheng H.-Y., Bao Y.-X., Chen L., Hu Z.-Y., Ge B.-M .: Effects of habitat fragmentation on gene flow of the black muntjac (Muntiacus crinifrons). Acta Ecologica Sinica 28, 2008, pp. 1109-1119
  24. ↑ Cheng Hong-Yi, Bao Yi-Xin, Chen Liang, Zhou Xiang-Wu, Hu Zhi-Yuan and Ge Bao-Ming: Genetic diversity of the black muntjac Muntiacus crinifrons population in the central area of ​​Anhui and Zhejiang Province. Acta Zoologica Sinica 54, 2008, pp. 96-103
  25. ^ Philip Lutley Sclater: Description of a new species of Cervulus. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, 1885, pp. 1–2 ( [3] )

Web links

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