Schomburgk's Deer | |
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Specimen in West Berlin Zoo, 1911 | |
Information | |
Range | Thailand |
Scientific Classification | |
Kingdom | Animalia |
Phylum | Chordata |
Class | Mammalia |
Order | Artiodactyla |
Family | Cervidae |
Genus | Rucervus |
Species | †R. schomburgki |
Conservation Status | |
Extinct |
The Schomburgk's deer (Rucervus schomburgki) was a member of the family Cervidae. Native to Thailand, Schomburgk's deer was described by Edward Blyth in 1863 and named after Sir Robert H. Schomburgk, who was the British consul in Bangkok from 1857-1864. It is thought to have gone extinct by 1938, but there is speculation that the deer might still be extant.
Description[]
This deer was a graceful species similar in appearance to the Barasingha. The pelt was a dark brown with lighter underparts. The underside of the tail was white. Males possessed basket-like antlers, upon which all the main tines branched. This caused the deer to have up to 33 points on their antlers and the outer edge of the rack to be up to 35 inches long. Females had no antlers.
Habitat[]
Schomburgk's deer inhabited swampy plains with long grass, cane, and shrubs in central Thailand, particularly in the Chao Phraya River valley near Bangkok. This deer avoided dense vegetation. They lived in herds that consisted of a single adult male, a few females, and their young. However, during the flooding that occurred during the rainy season, the herds were forced together upon higher pieces of land which could turn into islands. This made them easy targets for hunters.