Many animals have an interesting appearance, due to which they are often given names. A striking example is the crested deer - a representative of the deer family. But initially we learn about what types of these animals are the most common.
Deer species
List of the most common deer:
- roe deer;
- moose
- real deer;
- water deer;
- deer of David;
- American deer
- pudu;
- swamp deer;
- crested deer;
- reindeer.
People consider these animals to be the friendliest in the world. They are herbivores, timid and able to pose a threat only when they kick in fear. They are so named because of a small bunch of black fur, which is mainly located on their head crest. Large vampire fangs growing in animals from the mouth - this is what is interesting and remarkable crested deer. Why does he need fangs? The answer is simple - with their help, he rips off the bark from the trees.
This species was once listed in the Red Book. So what's so special about such an animal? Where does it live and what does it look like? Let's talk about everything in order …
Appearance
Basically, deer of this species are not large in size. The height of the animal is not more than 50 cm, while the body length can be about 110 cm.
But individuals were registered whose body weight was 50 kg at a height of 70 cm, while the body was 160 cm in length. Scientists have found that the parameters of height, mass and growth of such animals depend directly on the habitat and their nutrition.
Crested deer can have a coat of different colors. In some representatives of these artiodactyls, the upper body may have a brown or dark gray color, the rest may have a chocolate brown shade. The lower body, neck and head with a reddish tone are slightly lighter.
The forehead is quite dark, while there is no cutaneous frontal gland on it. The tips of his ears are white, the same color is on the lips and on the inner region of the tail of the animal. There are also individuals whose areas around the eyes are circled in white.
On the head there is a crest of a dark shade, reaching a height of 17 cm. Thanks to him, the deer was also called crested. At the same time, they cannot boast of horns, because they are very small and they are often not even visible due to the high crest. But nature endowed representatives of this species with very long incisors, as already mentioned in the article above.
Young individuals from adults differ in a strip of white spots located in the form of a strip along the entire spine. At the same time, for other signs, adolescents do not differ from adult animals.
Habitat
Crested deer lives in southern China. He prefers to live in alpine forests with large grasses of different colors. It often occurs near a person’s home. In this case, the person is not particularly afraid.
Food
The usual habitat of animals are forests, located at an altitude of about 4, 500 meters. The main food of this animal is cereals, herbaceous vegetation, and legumes. In spring, special importance is attached to the use of various protein vegetation, which is necessary for obtaining vitamin-rich fodder, as well as replenishing strength. In winter, if the cover of snow is not very large, the deer obtains leaves from trees that fell in the fall, bark of shrubs and all kinds of stems.
Lifestyle
These animals, as well as various representatives of deer of other species, are especially active in the evening, when dusk in the mountains sets in, in addition, in the morning. The crested deer prefers loneliness, although when meeting with the rest of the deer, they communicate with each other in a “talk” that is very reminiscent of barking.
If the animal feels something is amiss, it starts on the run, funny while raising its tail up with its white side. Interestingly, this is how he warns the rest of the impending danger.
Breeding
In these animals, puberty occurs in a year and a half. The breeding season is in September-December. Usually there is only one fawn in the litter. The female carries him only seven months. At the same time, the kids strongly resemble adults in color, although a white wide strip of spots stretches along their backs. In the female, breast milk is nutritious and oily, therefore the deer very quickly adds in height and weight.
Enemies
At the moment, information about the enemies of this animal is missing, since the crested deer, a photo of which can be viewed in this article, has not been studied much by scientists. According to experts, about 500, 000 individuals of this species live in China.
