Endangered
South Andean deer
Hippocamelus bisulcus
South Andean deer is a mammal in the family Cervidae (order Artiodactyla) — Hippocamelus bisulcus, recorded as Endangered.
Appearance
A brown to greyish-brown coat tapers to white undersides and a white marked throat. The long, curled hairs of the coat provide protection against cold and moisture. Males also have a distinctive black "face mask", that curves into an elongated heart-shape surrounding a forehead of the principal brown colour.
Does are 70 to 80 kg. (154-176 lbs.) and stand 80 cm. (31 in.), while bucks are 90 kg (198 lbs.) and 90 cm (35 in). (Other weight suggestions are lower.) There is no sexual size difference amongst fawns, that are born unspotted. Unusually for a dimorphic ungulate, research has shown south Andean deer will congregate in mixed-sex groups, and the length of time spent inter-mixing increases with group size.
Range and habitat
This deer ranges across a variety of often difficult habitats. It usually prefers open periglacial scrubland, low bluffs, and other rocky areas, as well as upland forests and forest-borders. One study of coastal fjord populations found males and juveniles preferred periglacial grassland. Females were mainly found on bluffs, and fawns exclusively so.
Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.
Diet
The distribution and habitat, behaviour, and diet of the deer have all been the subject of study.
In crisis
The viability of the small remaining population is an outstanding concern to researchers. According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the species' original global population is estimated to have suffered reductions of 99 per cent in size and more than 50 per cent in distribution range. Therefore, the species is listed as "Endangered" on the IUCN Red List.
Habitat fragmentation and poaching remain the main threats to the species.
CITES lists this taxon on Appendix I. Confirm the current appendix on the CITES checklist.
South Andean deer is Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.
Sources
Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on South Andean deer, Wikidata item Q860736. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.
