Reeves's muntjac (''Muntiacus reevesi''), also known as the Chinese muntjac,
is a species of
muntjac
Muntjacs ( ), also known as the barking deer or rib-faced deer, (URL is Google Books) are small deer of the genus ''Muntiacus'' native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. Muntjacs are thought to have begun appearing 15–35 million years ago, ...
found widely in south-eastern China (from
Gansu
Gansu is a provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibetan Plateau, Ti ...
to
Yunnan
Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...
) and Taiwan.
It has also been
introduced in the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Japan. It takes its name from
John Reeves,
a
naturalist
Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...
employed by the
British East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...
in the 19th century.
Description
Reeves's muntjac grows to high at the shoulder
and in length, plus a short tail up to long. It weighs between when fully grown. It is reddish-brown in appearance with striped markings on its face.
The belly is creamy-white, with lighter fur extending to the neck, chin, and the underside of the tail. The males have short
antler
Antlers are extensions of an animal's skull found in members of the Cervidae (deer) Family (biology), family. Antlers are a single structure composed of bone, cartilage, fibrous tissue, skin, nerves, and blood vessels. They are generally fo ...
s,
usually or less, and long upper canines (
tusk
Tusks are elongated, continuously growing front teeth that protrude well beyond the mouth of certain mammal species. They are most commonly canine tooth, canine teeth, as with Narwhal, narwhals, chevrotains, musk deer, water deer, muntjac, pigs, ...
s), usually about long. Females have bony lumps on their foreheads and localized black spots. The Taiwanese
subspecies
In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...
(''M. r. micrurus''), commonly known as the Formosan Reeves's muntjac, is darker than other subspecies.
Behavior
Reeves's muntjac feeds on herbs,
blossom
In botany, blossoms are the flowers of stone fruit trees (genus ''Prunus'') and of some other plants with a similar appearance that flower profusely for a period of time in spring.
Colloquially, flowers of orange are referred to as such as w ...
s, succulent shoots, fungi, berries,
grasses
Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in ...
, and
nuts, and has also been reported to eat tree bark. Eggs and
carrion
Carrion (), also known as a carcass, is the decaying flesh of dead animals.
Overview
Carrion is an important food source for large carnivores and omnivores in most ecosystems. Examples of carrion-eaters (or scavengers) include crows, vultures ...
are eaten opportunistically. It is also called the barking deer due to its distinctive barking sound,
though this name is also used for other species of
muntjac
Muntjacs ( ), also known as the barking deer or rib-faced deer, (URL is Google Books) are small deer of the genus ''Muntiacus'' native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. Muntjacs are thought to have begun appearing 15–35 million years ago, ...
s. The barking sound is common during mating or when provoked. Its preferred habitats are forest and
shrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominance (ecology), dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbaceous plant, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally o ...
. It is a solitary and
crepuscular
In zoology, a crepuscular animal is one that is active primarily during the twilight period, being matutinal (active during dawn), vespertine (biology), vespertine/vespertinal (active during dusk), or both. This is distinguished from diurnalit ...
animal. Both males and females defend small territories that they mark with
preorbital gland
The preorbital gland is a paired exocrine gland found in many species of artiodactyls, which is homologous to the lacrimal gland found in humans. These glands are trenchlike slits of dark blue to black, nearly bare skin extending from the media ...
secretions that are thought to be pheromonal in nature. When fighting, males first use their antlers to push enemies off balance so they can wound them with their upper canine teeth.
Reproduction
Female muntjacs (known as "does"
) become sexually mature within the first year of life. Mating occurs throughout the year. Their gestation period lasts from 209 to 220 days. Females limit the number of mating bouts, though time between successive bouts is determined by males (known as "bucks"
).
Distribution
It is widely found in south-eastern China (from
Gansu
Gansu is a provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibetan Plateau, Ti ...
to
Yunnan
Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...
) and Taiwan.
It has also been
introduced in several other regions.
Continental Europe
It has been introduced in
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
and seen in the
Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
.
In Europe, this species is included since 2016 in the list of Invasive Alien Species of Union concern (the Union list). This implies that this species cannot be imported, bred, transported, commercialized, or intentionally released into the environment in the whole of the European Union.
Great Britain
Reeves's muntjacs were first introduced to the UK in the early 19th century.
[
* cited sources: History and distribution: Chapman 1994, 1995; Population: Harris et al. 1995, Chapman 2008]
In the late 19th century, the then
Duke of Bedford
Duke of Bedford (named after Bedford, England) is a title that has been created six times (for five distinct people) in the Peerage of England. The first creation came in 1414 for Henry IV's third son, John, who later served as regent of Fran ...
brought some to
Woburn Abbey
Woburn Abbey (), occupying the east of the village of Woburn, Bedfordshire, England, is a country house, the family seat of the Duke of Bedford. Although it is still a family home to the current duke, it is open on specified days to visitors, ...
in Bedfordshire, then in 1901 released them into the surrounding woods. A few more probably escaped from the nearby
Whipsnade Zoo
Whipsnade Zoo, formerly known as ZSL Whipsnade Zoo and Whipsnade Wild Animal Park, is a zoo located in Whipsnade, near Dunstable, Bedfordshire, England. It is one of two zoos (the other being London Zoo in Regent's Park, London) that is owned b ...
. During the mid-20th century, Woburn conducted several deliberate releases in distant locations throughout England. It is suspected that there were also other unrecorded releases or escapes from private collections. These releases later caused misperception that muntjacs spread very rapidly. The estimated population of Reeves's muntjacs in England was 52,000 in 1995,
[
* p101: in England around 40,000, in Scotland fewer than 50, in Wales fewer than 250.
* p102: additional fawn and immature individuals 30% (12,000)
] and 104,000 in 2008.
Under the
Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (c. 69) is an act of Parliament in the United Kingdom implemented to comply with European Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds. In short, the act gives protection to native species ...
it was illegal to release the species except where already established, and the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019 has subsequently prohibited the capture and re-release of muntjac in all cases. , colonies exist throughout England south of the
Humber
The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Trent, Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms ...
, and the population continues to grow.
Ireland
It has been introduced in the Republic of Ireland.
Sightings in 2008 caused the government, concerned at the risk of the species becoming established, to quickly introduce a year-round hunting season.
[Under Statutory Instrument 346 of 2008]
Japanese archipelago
Sometime before the 1980s, several specimens escaped from an exhibition zoo in
Chiba Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Chiba Prefecture has a population of 6,278,060 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Chiba Prefecture borders Ibaraki Prefecture to the north, Saitama ...
in eastern Japan.
By 2023, their numbers had grown to 71,500.
[
* 令和4年度=Fiscal year ]Reiwa
is the current and 232nd era of the official calendar of Japan. It began on 1 May 2019, the day on which Emperor Akihito's eldest son, Naruhito, ascended the throne as the 126th Emperor of Japan. The day before, Emperor Akihito abdicated ...
4. Reiwa 4 = AD 2022, and fiscal years end next March, therefore the end of fiscal year Reiwa 4 is March 2023. It is considered a harmful invasive species. Also, Reeves's muntjac escaped a zoo on
Izu Ōshima in 1970 when a fence fell due to a typhoon. They have inflicted severe damage to the local plantations.
A muntjac eradication effort on Izu Ōshima was undertaken in 2007–2014 but failed, and as of 2014, at least 11,000 individuals exist and have a yearly population growth rate of 15%. This failure has been blamed on inadequate survey methods.
Conservation
In Hong Kong, Reeve's muntjac is a
protected species
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, invasiv ...
under the Wild Animals Protection Ordinance Cap 170. It is listed as
least concern
A least-concern species is a species that has been evaluated and categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as not being a focus of wildlife conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wil ...
by the
IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...
due to being generally common and widespread.
Economic significance
The tanned skin of Reeves's muntjac is notable for its softness and is occasionally used in beauty-care products, musical instruments, lenses, and antique items packaging. Low-fat muntjac meat is also noted for its culinary qualities.
[Charles Smith, ''Muntjac: Managing an Alien Species'' ]
References
External links
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q695973
Reeves's muntjac
Reeves's muntjac (''Muntiacus reevesi''), also known as the Chinese muntjac, is a species of muntjac found widely in south-eastern China (from Gansu to Yunnan) and Taiwan. It has also been introduced in the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherla ...
Mammals of China
Mammals of Hong Kong
Mammals of Taiwan
Reeves's muntjac
Reeves's muntjac (''Muntiacus reevesi''), also known as the Chinese muntjac, is a species of muntjac found widely in south-eastern China (from Gansu to Yunnan) and Taiwan. It has also been introduced in the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherla ...