Wildlifeof Nepal
Swamp Deer
Deer & Chevrotains
Photo: desertnaturalist · CC-BY
Rucervus duvaucelii
Basic stats
Diet
Grasses and aquatic plants, including Saccharum, Imperata cylindrica and Phragmites karka
Habitat
Tall grassland and wetland
Range
Fragmented populations in India; two isolated populations in south-western Nepal
Gestation period
240–250 days
Size
Shoulder height 110–120cm; head and body nearly 180cm
Weight
Stags 170–280kg; females 130–145kg
The barasingha, or swamp deer, differs from other Indian deer in carrying antlers with more than three tines. The hair is rather woolly and yellowish brown above and paler below, with white spots along the spine, and in summer the coat turns bright rufous-brown. Stags stand 110 to 120cm at the shoulder and weigh 170 to 280kg (Wikipedia, general species account).
In Nepal it is present in Shuklaphanta and Bardiya National Parks. In the 1960s about 1,600 were estimated in Nepal. Numbers fell sharply in the 1930s to 1960s through unregulated hunting and conversion of habitat to cropland. It feeds throughout the day with peaks in the morning and from late afternoon, and births follow a gestation of 240 to 250 days. Nationally Endangered (Nepal National Red List 2011).
Quick answers
- What does the Swamp Deer eat?
- Grasses and aquatic plants, including Saccharum, Imperata cylindrica and Phragmites karka
- What habitat does the Swamp Deer live in?
- Tall grassland and wetland
- Where is the Swamp Deer found?
- Fragmented populations in India; two isolated populations in south-western Nepal
- How long is the gestation period of the Swamp Deer?
- 240–250 days
- How big is the Swamp Deer?
- Shoulder height 110–120cm; head and body nearly 180cm
- How much does the Swamp Deer weigh?
- Stags 170–280kg; females 130–145kg