Capreolus pygargus
TAXONOMY
Capreolus pygargus (Pallas, 1771), Volga area, Russia.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
French: Chevreuil de Siberie; German: Reh von Sibirien; Spanish: Corzo siberiano.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Middle sized deer. Body length: males 47–61 in (120–156 cm), females 46–59 in (116–150 cm); weight: males 66–132 lb (30–60 kg), females 55–121 lb (28–55 kg). Coat in winter is grayish to brownish on back, and creamy at belly and inside legs. Rump patch is white or cream. Summer coat is red at head and body. Fawns develop distinct spots arranged in four or five rows. Antlers to 16 in (40 cm) and long, pockmarked with bumps, some of which transform to protuberances and tines.
DISTRIBUTION
From the Volga to Russian Far East and northern China via northern Kazakhstan and north of Middle Asia.
HABITAT
Inhabit both plains and mountains to altitudes of 6,900 ft (2,100 m). The species adapt to deep snow to 20 in (50 cm) and to harsh winters, surviving in Yakutia and Transbaikal; also inhabit pine forests and mature coniferous-deciduous forests.
BEHAVIOR
In winter, they form groups of four to six, live solitary (does with fawns). Daily home range of 99 ac (40 ha) and annual range about 990 ac (500 ha). In Amur basin, home range in winter is to 34,500 ac (14,000 ha). Migrations (to avoid deep snow) to distances 62–250 mi (100–400 km) are frequent. In mountain ranges of the Caucasus, Altai, and the Urals, they make short migrations between altitudes 1,600–3,300 ft (500–1,000 m).
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
In winter, feed on tree and shrub branches, dry herbs, fallen leaves, mosses; in summer, mostly on sedges and grasses.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Polygynous. Rut peak is in August to the beginning of September, calving is May–June. Gestation period lasts 264–318 days. Does give birth to one, twins, or triples. Lifespan is about seven years; average age in wild is two and a half years. Strong hunting pressure and predators cause high mortality.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Not threatened.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
Important game animal; in Russia, annual harvest is 5,000–10,000 deer, mostly in the Urals and in Amur valley.
