Reeves's muntjac

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Template:Short description Template:Speciesbox

Reeves's muntjac (Muntiacus reevesi), also known as the Chinese muntjac,[1] is a species of muntjac found widely in south-eastern China (from Gansu to Yunnan) and Taiwan.[2] It has also been introduced in the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Japan. It takes its name from John Reeves,[3] a naturalist employed by the British East India Company in the 19th century.

Description

Reeves's muntjac grows to Template:Convert high at the shoulder[4] and Template:Convert in length, plus a short tail up to Template:Cvt long. It weighs between Template:Convert when fully grown. It is reddish-brown in appearance with striped markings on its face.[4] The belly is creamy-white, with lighter fur extending to the neck, chin, and the underside of the tail. The males have short antlers,[4] usually Template:Cvt or less, and long upper canines (tusks), usually about Template:Cvt long. Females have bony lumps on their foreheads and localized black spots. The Taiwanese subspecies (M. r. micrurus), commonly known as the Formosan Reeves's muntjac, is darker than other subspecies.

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Behavior

Reeves's muntjac feeds on herbs, blossoms, succulent shoots, fungi, berries, grasses, and nuts, and has also been reported to eat tree bark. Eggs and carrion are eaten opportunistically.[5] It is also called the barking deer due to its distinctive barking sound,[6] though this name is also used for other species of muntjacs. The barking sound is common during mating or when provoked. Its preferred habitats are forest and shrubland. It is a solitary and crepuscular animal. Both males and females defend small territories that they mark with preorbital gland secretions that are thought to be pheromonal in nature.[7] When fighting, males first use their antlers to push enemies off balance so they can wound them with their Template:Cvt upper canine teeth.

File:HachijojimaIsland-kyon-2018-5-5.webm
On Hachijō-jima

Reproduction

Template:Plain image with caption Female muntjacs (known as "does"[6]) become sexually mature within the first year of life.[8] Mating occurs throughout the year. Their gestation period lasts from 209 to 220 days.[9] Females limit the number of mating bouts, though time between successive bouts is determined by males[10] (known as "bucks"[6]).

Distribution

It is widely found in south-eastern China (from Gansu to Yunnan) and Taiwan.[2] It has also been introduced in several other regions.

Continental Europe

It has been introduced in Belgium and seen in the Netherlands.[11]

In Europe, this species is included since 2016 in the list of Invasive Alien Species of Union concern (the Union list).[12] This implies that this species cannot be imported, bred, transported, commercialized, or intentionally released into the environment in the whole of the European Union.[13]

Great Britain

Reeves's muntjacs were first introduced to the UK in the early 19th century.[14]

In the late 19th century, the then Duke of Bedford brought some to Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire, then in 1901 released them into the surrounding woods.Template:R A few more probably escaped from the nearby Whipsnade Zoo. During the mid-20th century, Woburn conducted several deliberate releases in distant locations throughout England.Template:R 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.Template:R The estimated population of Reeves's muntjacs in England was 52,000 in 1995,[1] and 104,000 in 2008.Template:R

Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 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.[15] Template:As of, colonies exist throughout England south of the Humber, and the population continues to grow.[16]

Ireland

It has been introduced in the Republic of Ireland.[17]

Sightings in 2008 caused the government, concerned at the risk of the species becoming established, to quickly introduce a year-round hunting season.[18]

Japanese archipelago

Sometime before the 1980s, several specimens escaped from an exhibition zoo in Chiba Prefecture in eastern Japan.[19] By 2023, their numbers had grown to 71,500.[19] It is considered a harmful invasive species.[20] 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 Template:Transliteration plantations.[21] 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.[21]

Conservation

In Hong Kong, Reeve's muntjac is a protected species under the Wild Animals Protection Ordinance Cap 170. It is listed as least concern by the IUCN due to being generally common and widespread.[22]

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.[23]

References

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External links

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  1. ↑ a b Template:Cite report
    • 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)
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  6. ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  8. ↑ Chapman, Norma G., M. Furlong, and S. Harris. "Reproductive strategies and the influence of date of birth on growth and sexual development of an aseasonally‐breeding ungulate: Reeves' muntjac (Muntiacus reevesi)". Journal of Zoology 241.3 (1997): 551–570.
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  11. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  12. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  14. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
    • cited sources: History and distribution: Chapman 1994, 1995; Population: Harris et al. 1995, Chapman 2008
  15. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  16. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  17. ↑ Sleeman, D. P. and Carlsson, J. Introduction in Sleeman, D. P., Carlsson, J. and Carlsson, J. E. L. (eds) 2014. "Mind the Gap 11.: new insights into the Irish postglacial". Ir Nat J. Template:ISBN
  18. ↑ Under Statutory Instrument 346 of 2008
  19. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
    • 令和4年度=Fiscal year Reiwa 4. Reiwa 4 = AD 2022, and fiscal years end next March, therefore the end of fiscal year Reiwa 4 is March 2023.
  20. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  21. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  22. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named iucn status 12 November 2021
  23. ↑ Charles Smith, Muntjac: Managing an Alien Species Template:ISBN
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