MUNTJACS
Muntjac — also called barking deer and rib-faced deer — are not much larger than small dogs. They are reddish brown in color and use their small size to stay concealed in the grass. They stand about 80 centimeters (30 inches) at the shoulder, have two-tined antlers that are only about 10 centimeters (four inches) long, and make a barking noise like a dog when they get exited. There are 14 species of muntjac, all native to South and Southeast Asia.
Muntjac deer (Muntiacus) are usually solitary. They are cautious and sensitive. They often come out in the night, in early morning, or at dusk. During the daytime, they usually hide in bushes to take rests and bark when they are frightened. Barking deer have a fixed range. No matter how far away they are chased from a place, they always return to their original territory. Barking deer reproduce easily and can mate all the year round. Their gestation period is about 210 days. They give birth to one young at a time. Barking deer reach sexual maturity at the age of one year. Muntjacs live up to 17 years in the wild and 23.2 years in captivity.
Muntjacs belong to the genus Muntiacus in th family Cervidae and subfamily Cervinae. The name "muntjak," comes from the native name for small deer in the Sundanese language. Many muntjacs have a set of elongated canine teeth that protrude below their upper lip and are used for intraspecies combat. Because of the wide karyotypic (chromosome set) range of muntjacs — from 2n=6 (M. muntjak) to 2n=46 (M. reevesi) — muntjacs are of interest to scientists. M. muntjak and M. reevesi can mate and produce viable but sterile offspring, despite the strong karyotypic differences. [Source: Petey Maxwell, Animal Diversity Web (ADW)]
Southern Red Muntjacs (Indian Muntjacs, Muntiacus muntjak) have a body length of one meter and a tail length of 17-21 centimeters and weigh 25-30 kilograms. Their preferred habitats are forests and bushes in low altitude mountains and hills. They eat branches, leaves, flowers, fruit, various kinds of f vegetation and crops. Their skin has traditionally been a source of leather in China. For this reason they were widely hunted in South China. In China they can be found in Southeast, South and Southwest China and are not considered threatened or endangered. [Source: Center of Chinese Academy of Sciences, kepu.net.cn]
See Separate Articles: MUNTJACS (BARKING DEER): CHARACTERISTICS, BEHAVIOR, SUBSPECIES factsanddetails.com ; MUNTJAC SPECIES factsanddetails.com
Reeves's Muntjacs
Reeves’s muntjacs (Muntiacus reevesi) are 75 to 95 centimeters (29.6 to 37.4 inches) long, not including their 17-centimeter (6.7-inch) tail, and weigh 10 to 18 kilograms (22 to 40 pounds) . Native to China and eastern Asia, they have small 10-centimeter (3.9-inch)-long antlers and feed on a wide variety of vegetation ranging from shoots, herbs and blossoms to tough grass and nuts. Males are capable of breeding year round. In fights they try to push their rivals off balance, sometimes inflicting nasty wounds with their antlers. Their average lifespan in the wild is 10-12 years. Their lifespan in captivity is as high as 23.2 years.
Reeves’s muntjacs are sometimes called Chinese muntjacs. They are native to the subtropical forests of southeastern China and Taiwan. They have become established in England after being introduced at Woburn, England (located in the middle of Bedfordshire county) around 1900. Feral populations may also exist in France, where introduced individuals escaped gardens and zoos.[Source: Sara Deuling, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
Reeves’s muntjacs live in temperate and tropical areas in forests, rainforests and scrub forests as well as urban, suburban and agricultural areas. They create paths through the subtropical rainforests and are sometimes called bush huggers because of this. Muntjacs in general tend to prefer habitats near water, but evidence of this not forthcoming with Reeve’s muntjacs. Reeves’s muntjacs fight to defend a fairly specific territory, but males also tolerate the presence of a subordinate male in their territory so long as that male is not in rut. In England, Reeves’s muntjac have slightly different preferences for habitat than those in China. They appear to be equally content in habitats with and without cover. They have been found in deciduous and coniferous forests as well as agricultural land, and even suburban and urban areas.
See Separate Articles: REEVES'S MUNTJACS: CHARACTERISTICS, BEHAVIOR AND REPRODUCTION factsanddetails.com
Black Muntjacs
Black muntjacs (Muntiacus crinifrons) have been documented in Anhui, Fujian, Jiangxi, and Zhejiang provinces of eastern China as well as in Hkakabo Razi National Park in northern Myanmar. It has been suggested that the range of these animals once extended from the mouth of the Yangtze River, through the southeastern provinces that border the South China Sea, and into Yunnan province and Myanmar. Fragmentation of their former range has been caused by deforestation, logging and agriculture. [Source: Aaron Wood, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
Black muntjacs live in temperate and tropical land environments in forests at elevations of 800 to 1000 meters (2624.67 to 3281 feet). They inhabits hilly, often very steep, mountain forests consisting a patchwork of deciduous broadleaf, evergreen, and bamboo patches with dense undergrowth and a subtropical monsoonal climate. Their lifespan in the wild is estimated to be as high as 11 years. /=\
Some muntjac species are as omnivores (eat a variety of things, including plants and animals) but black muntjacs are primarily herbivores (primarily eat plants or plants parts) and also regarded as folivores (eat leaves) and frugivores (eat fruit). Among the plant foods they eat are leaves, wood, bark, stems fruit. A study of the rumen contents of black muntjacs showed no animal matter. The contents included woody shrubs, vines, fallen fruit, herbs, grasses, twigs, conifers, bamboo leaves.
On the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List black muntjacs are listed as Vulnerable. In CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild) they are in Appendix I, which lists species that are the most endangered among CITES-listed animals and plants. During the early 1980s, the estimated population size of Black muntjacs in China was around 10,000 individuals. A 1989 estimate lowered the population size to between 5000-6000 individuals. The discovery of Black muntjacs in Myanmar suggests that the total population size may be closer to 12,000 individuals. /=\
Black muntjacs inhabit mountainous areas with little or no human populations and have no negative impact on human economies. In both China and Myanmar black muntjacs are hunted and trapped for their meat, skin and antlers which are used in traditional medicine. Local people in Myanmar sell the skins and antlers to Chinese traders for essential items and amenities. The main natural predators of Black muntjacs are dholes and perhaps leopards and clouded leopards. Black muntjacs use visual and sound cues when a predator is detected and perhaps, like other muntjacs, flee predators down well-maintained trails and hide in the dense undergrowth until the danger has passed.
Black Muntjac Characteristics
Black muntjacs are one of the larger muntjac species. They range in weight from 21.3 to 36.1 kilograms (46.9 to 79.5 pounds) and their head and body length ranges from 98 to 113 centimeters (38.6 to 44.5 inches), with the average being around 104 centimeters (41 inches). Sexual Dimorphism (differences between males and females) is present: Females are larger than males. Ornamentation is different. On average, females weigh 24.1 kilograms and males weigh 23.1 kilograms. [Source: Aaron Wood, Animal Diversity Web (ADW) /=]
The fur of black muntjacs is mostly black or dark brown. The thick and long frontal tuft above and between the eyes is cinnamon red in color and often hides the long pedicles of the antlers. The tail is longer than in other muntjac species (around 21 centimeters) and is thickly tufted with white fur that extends onto the inner thighs. The ventral side is only slightly lighter in color compared to the dorsal side. During winter, the coat is much thicker and darker, but becomes thinner and lighter in color during the summer. Black muntjacs fawns have a coat similar to that seen in adults, except for the addition of four dorsal, subparallel, white spots. /=\
Like other members of the subfamily Cervinae, Black muntjacs have enamel-covered upper canines, which are elongated into tusks in males. In Black muntjacs, only males bear short (20-60 centimeters), single-branched antlers on long, hair-covered pedicles (8-10 centimeters) that extend from the frontal bone. Annual shedding of the antlers is presumed to occur but actually may not based on observed similarities in antler size and morphology between black muntjacs and Bornean yellow muntjacs, a species in which the frontal cavity extends into the pedicle preventing the development of a burr. /=\
Black Muntjac Behavior
Black muntjacs are cursorial (with limbs adapted to running), terricolous (live on the ground), motile (move around as opposed to being stationary), sedentary (remain in the same area), solitary and very territorial (defend an area within the home range). They defend their territories from members of their own species as well as other deer species When a male black muntjac enters another male’s territory, the resident male attacks the other male, using its large, tusk-like, upper canines.
Muntjac species are generally active at dusk and dawn. Secretions from the frontal and pre-orbital glands of black muntjac are rubbed against vegetation to mark territories. Although other deer are found at similar altitudes and habitats in southern China, black muntjacs do not share their territories with any other deer species.
According to Animal Diversity Web: The pedicles and antlers of black muntjacs are thought to be used to engage opponents head-on in order to secure the opponent's head and avoid injuries from his tusks. However, the small size of the pedicles and antlers relative to body size imply that very little sparring occurs between males, suggesting lack of a social hierarchy among males. This contrasts with the social structure of larger-antlered Muntiacus species in which dominant males may tolerate subordinate males along peripheries of their territories. The lack of a social structure in Black muntjacs males is further supported by the smaller size of the males compared to the females, because small size is advantageous in fighting (i.e. increased agility) and disadvantageous in sparring and dominance displays. /=\
In antagonistic encounters or during times of increased anxiety, Black muntjacs produces a deep, barking sound and raises it long tail, exposing the bright, white fur underneath. In addition, the fur of the distinctive red frontal tuft is raised. These behaviors may be used by Black muntjacs to inform predators or opponents that they have been detected. /=\
Black muntjacs sense and communicate with vision, sound and chemicals usually detected by smelling. They also leave scent marks produced by special glands and placed so others can smell and taste them. Scent marks may indicate reproductive status as well as mark territory. Visual cues, such as a raised frontal tuft or exposed white fur of the upturned tail, as well as barking, convey anxiety and may inform a predator or opponent that it has been spotted. Auditory signals may also be used, such as a barking sound used when a predator has been detected.
Black Muntjac Mating, Reproduction and Offspring
Black muntjacs are polygynous (males have more than one female as a mate at one time) and engage in year-round breeding. Females have an estrous cycle, which is similar to the menstrual cycle of human females. Females may give birth up to once a year, with the average number of offspring being one. On average females reach sexual or reproductive maturity at one year.
The details of the mating system is not known specifically for black muntjacs. Much of what is surmised is based on the behavior of Reeves’s muntjacs.Males of that species demarcate and aggressively defend small territories exclusive of other males, these territories may overlap with those of several females. Females may enter estrous before acquiring full body size. In one study, some lactating females were found carrying fetuses, implying that post-partum estrus is possible in this species.
The gestation period for Black muntjacs is not known, but in Reeves’s muntjac gestation lasts 209-220 days. Pre-weaning provisioning and protecting are done by females. The dappled coat of the fawn indicates that the young spend some time hidden in forest undergrowth until they are large enough to follow their mothers. Little is known about the parental involvement of black muntjacs. However, in other muntjac species maturation progresses rapidly and females may simultaneously carry one young in utero while nursing another.
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Text Sources: Animal Diversity Web animaldiversity.org ; National Geographic, Live Science, Natural History magazine, CNTO (China National Tourism Administration) David Attenborough books, New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Smithsonian magazine, Discover magazine, The New Yorker, Time, BBC, CNN, Reuters, Associated Press, AFP, Lonely Planet Guides, Wikipedia, The Guardian, Top Secret Animal Attack Files website and various books and other publications.
Last updated March 2025