Hello! We are the most common deer found in India and Sri Lanka. We are the Spotted Deer. We are also called as Chital. This word comes from Sanskrit and means which exhibits different patterns or streaks.
Have a look at few important things about us:
- We are very powerful runners and jumpers. We can run faster than hog deer and jump as high as 1.5m.
- Do you know? Males of our species are territorial and often fight with each other for dominance. The fights are interesting to watch as we interlock our antlers and push each other to submission.
- When faced with predators, we stand motionless to locate the predator and escape in herds.
- We stay alert all the time for predators and receive cues from various other animals like langurs, other deer, etc for predators.
- Langurs also help us providing fruits and other dietary material by dropping them from treetops while they eat.
- Common Mynas are often attracted to us and groups of them live together with us.
- Like many deer, we are timid creatures and are really shy to approach humans.
- Did you know? We are the first-ever deer species that are introduced in Australia. We are also introduced to the USA and Croatia.
Some Quick Facts:
Our Scientific Name: Axis axis.
Our Identification: Moderate-sized golden-brown deer with white spots all over the body.
Our Habitat: dense deciduous forests along with semi-evergreen and open forests, especially near water sources.
Our Range:
Our Food Habits: Herbivorous, feed on various types of grasses, tall grasses, foliage, herbs, fruits, and shrubs.
Our Breeding Period: All around the year.
Number of calves born: 1 (occasionally 2)
Our Gestation period: 230 months.
Our Lifespan: about 5-10 years in wild; 22 years in captivity.
IUCN red list status: Least Concern.
CITES: Not listed.
Indian Wildlife Protection Act: Schedule III.
SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Artiodactyla
Family: Cervidae
Subfamily: Cervinae
Genus: Axis
Species: A. Axis
More Information for Animal Enthusiasts
We are the Spotted Deer also called “Chital”. We are a deer species covered in white spots. Let us tell you more about our species.
We are scientifically called as Axis Axis.
HOW TO IDENTIFY US:
We are moderate sized deer and are sexually dimorphic, which means males and females look different. Males are gold to golden-brown in color with the throat, ears, insides of legs, rump, abdomen, and tail being white in color. They have small white spots covering all their body and have antlers with the length of up to 1m.
Females look similar to males except they are quite small and do not possess antlers. Young ones of our species look similar to females.
Males are around 90cm whereas females are around 70cm tall. The body length of our species is about 1.7m and weigh 30kg-75kg with males being bigger, longer and heavier than females.
WE ARE FOUND IN:
We can be found easily in dense deciduous forests along with semi-evergreen and open forests, especially near water sources.
Our range mostly lies in India with many of us living in Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka.
WHAT WE EAT:
We are herbivores and browse for food on the ground. We prefer eating various types of grasses, tall grasses, foliage, herbs, fruits, and shrubs.
OUR REPRODUCTION:
In our species, we form matriarchal herds which means an adult female with its offsprings lives together. Males are solitary and territorial. Males often fight with other males for dominance. Breeding can take place at any time of the year. The single or two fawns (young chital) are born at a time and are taken care of by their mother. The gestation period is around 230 days and the bond between the newborn and the mother is very strong. Unlike other deer species, the young are hidden only for a week.
Males reach sexual maturity around 14 months and females reach sexual maturity in 9-10 months. In captivity, we can live up to 22 years whereas in the wild we can merely live 5-10 years.
MORE ABOUT US:
• We are excellent runners, better than hog deer.
• When faced with predators, we stand motionless to observe where the predator is and run as a herd to the safety, often a dense undergrowth.
• We can jump fences that are as high as 1.5m.
• Our predators include Foxes, Jackals, Wolves, Mugger crocodiles, Dholes, Leopards, Indian rock pythons, Pariah dogs, Bengal tigers, and Asiatic lions.
• We, like any other deer species, shed our antlers annually.
• We occasionally bite each other and when we are sparring, we interlock our horns against the enemy chital and push each other.
OUR CONSERVATION:
We are abundantly found and are listed as “Least Concern” in IUCN’s red list. Though there are no big threats, we are hunted down by many of our predators. We also suffer from habitat loss. In India, we are protected under schedule III of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
