Cervus
Encyclopedia
Cervus is a genus
of deer
that primarily are native to Eurasia
, although one species occurs in northern Africa and another in North America
. In addition to the species presently placed in this genus, it has included a whole range of other species now commonly placed in other genera, but some of these should perhaps be returned to Cervus. Additionally, the species level taxonomy
is in a state of flux.
and Elaphurus
, and until the late 1980s it included members of Przewalskium
, Rucervus
and Rusa
. With the exception of the Chital
(Axis axis), Barasinga (Rucervus duvaucelii), Schomburgk's Deer
(R. schomburgki), and members of the genus Dama, genetic
evidence suggests all should be returned to Cervus.
from 2005, only the Red Deer
(C. elaphus) and Sika Deer
(C. nippon) were recognized as species in the genus Cervus. Genetic
and morphological
evidence suggests that more species should be recognized.
, some have recommending that the Elk
or Wapiti (C. canadensis) and Central Asian Red Deer
should be treated as species. If the Central Asian Red Deer (from the Caspian Sea
to western China
) is recognized as a species, it includes the Yarkand Deer
and Bactrian Deer
(the two may be synonymous
), but it could possibly also include the Kashmir Stag
, which has not been sampled in recent studies. If it is included in the Central Asian Red Deer, the scientific name of that species is C. hanglu. If it is not included in the Central Asian Deer, the scientific name of that species is C. yarkandensis, and the Kashmir Stag (C. hanglu) may represent a separate monotypic
species.
Others members of the Red Deer group that some believe represent separate species are C. corsicanus
, C. wallichii
and C. xanthopygus
. If so, C. corsicanus includes the subspecies
barbarus
(perhaps a synonym
of corsicanus), and is restricted to Maghreb
in north Africa, Corsica
and Sardinia
. C. wallichii would probably include the subspecies kansuensis
and macneilli
(both are perhaps synonyms of wallichii), and would be found from Tibet
to central China. C. xanthopygus would probably include the subspecies alashanicus
(perhaps a synonym of xanthopygus), and would be found from the Russian Far East
to northeastern China. This would restrict the "true" Red Deer (C. elaphus) to Europe
, Anatolia
, Caucasus
and northwestern Iran
, and the Elk
/Wapiti (C. canadensis) to North America and the Asian regions of Tian Shan
, Altai and Great Khingan. Alternatively, the barbarus group are subspecies of the "true" Red Deer, while the wallichii and xanthopygus groups are subspecies of the Elk/Wapiti.
should be split into four species based on genetics, morphology and voice, although others believe this is premature based on the presently available evidence. If split, the potential species are C. yesoensis from northern and central Japan
(Hokkaido
, and northern and central Honshu
), C. nippon of southern Japan (southern Honshu, Shikoku
, Kyushu
, Okinawa, Tsushima
and other small islands), C. hortulorum of mainland Asia (Russian Far East
, Korea
, central and eastern China
, and northern Vietnam
), and C. taiouanus
of Taiwan
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
that primarily are native to Eurasia
Eurasia
Eurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...
, although one species occurs in northern Africa and another in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. In addition to the species presently placed in this genus, it has included a whole range of other species now commonly placed in other genera, but some of these should perhaps be returned to Cervus. Additionally, the species level taxonomy
Taxonomy
Taxonomy is the science of identifying and naming species, and arranging them into a classification. The field of taxonomy, sometimes referred to as "biological taxonomy", revolves around the description and use of taxonomic units, known as taxa...
is in a state of flux.
Genus
Until the 1970s, Cervus also included the members of the genera Axis, DamaFallow Deer
The Fallow Deer is a ruminant mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. This common species is native to western Eurasia, but has been introduced widely elsewhere. It often includes the rarer Persian Fallow Deer as a subspecies , while others treat it as an entirely different species The Fallow...
and Elaphurus
Père David's Deer
Père David's Deer, Elaphurus davidianus, also known as the Milu , is a species of deer known only in captivity. It prefers marshland, and is believed to be native to the subtropics of China. It grazes on a mixture of grass and water plants. It is the only extant member of the genus Elaphurus...
, and until the late 1980s it included members of Przewalskium
Thorold's Deer
Thorold's deer is a threatened species of deer found in grassland, shrubland and forest at high altitudes in the eastern Tibetan Plateau...
, Rucervus
Rucervus
Rucervus is a genus of deer from India, Nepal, Indochina, and the Chinese island Hainan. They are threatened by habitat loss and hunting, and one species has already gone extinct....
and Rusa
Rusa (genus)
Rusa is a genus of deer from southern Asia. They have traditionally been included in Cervus, and genetic evidence suggests this may be more appropriate than their present placement in a separate genus....
. With the exception of the Chital
Chital
The chital or cheetal , also known as chital deer, spotted deer or axis deer is a deer which commonly inhabits wooded regions of Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and in small numbers in Pakistan...
(Axis axis), Barasinga (Rucervus duvaucelii), Schomburgk's Deer
Schomburgk's Deer
Schomburgk's Deer was a member of the family Cervidae. This deer was endemic 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.This deer was a graceful species similar in appearance to...
(R. schomburgki), and members of the genus Dama, genetic
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
evidence suggests all should be returned to Cervus.
Species
In the third edition of Mammal Species of the WorldMammal Species of the World
Mammal Species of the World, now in its 3rd edition, is a standard reference work in zoology giving descriptions and bibliographic data for the known species of mammals.An updated Third Edition of Mammal Species of the World was published late in 2005:...
from 2005, only the Red Deer
Red Deer
The red deer is one of the largest deer species. Depending on taxonomy, the red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Asia Minor, parts of western Asia, and central Asia. It also inhabits the Atlas Mountains region between Morocco and Tunisia in northwestern Africa, being...
(C. elaphus) and Sika Deer
Sika Deer
The Sika Deer, Cervus nippon, also known as the Spotted Deer or the Japanese Deer, is a species of deer native to much of East Asia and introduced to various other parts of the world...
(C. nippon) were recognized as species in the genus Cervus. Genetic
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
and morphological
Morphology (biology)
In biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
evidence suggests that more species should be recognized.
Red Deer species group
Within the Red Deer species groupSpecies group
A species group is an informal taxonomic rank into which an assemblage of closely related species within a genus are grouped because of their morphological similarities and their identity as a biological unit with a single monophyletic origin.-Use:...
, some have recommending that the Elk
Elk
The Elk is the large deer, also called Cervus canadensis or wapiti, of North America and eastern Asia.Elk may also refer to:Other antlered mammals:...
or Wapiti (C. canadensis) and Central Asian Red Deer
Central Asian Red Deer
The Central Asian Red Deer is a primordial group of Red deer subspecies, which live in central Asia from the Caspian Sea to western China.Recent DNA studies conducted on hundreds samples from Red Deer and Elk subspecies determined that Red deer and Elk represent two distinct species.The central...
should be treated as species. If the Central Asian Red Deer (from the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
to western China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
) is recognized as a species, it includes the Yarkand Deer
Yarkand deer
The Yarkand deer is a subspecies of Red Deer that is native to central Asia. It is similar in ecology to the Bactrian deer in occupying lowland riparian corridors surrounded by deserts...
and Bactrian Deer
Bactrian deer
The Bactrian deer , also called the Bukhara deer, Bokhara deer or Bactrian wapiti, is a lowland subspecies of Red Deer that is native to central Asia. It is similar in ecology to the Yarkand deer in occupying riparian corridors surrounded by deserts...
(the two may be synonymous
Synonym (taxonomy)
In scientific nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that is or was used for a taxon of organisms that also goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnaeus was the first to give a scientific name to the Norway spruce, which he called Pinus abies...
), but it could possibly also include the Kashmir Stag
Kashmir stag
The Kashmir stag , also called hangul, is a subspecies of Red Deer native to northern Pakistan and India, especially in Jammu and Kashmir where it is the state animal.-Description:...
, which has not been sampled in recent studies. If it is included in the Central Asian Red Deer, the scientific name of that species is C. hanglu. If it is not included in the Central Asian Deer, the scientific name of that species is C. yarkandensis, and the Kashmir Stag (C. hanglu) may represent a separate monotypic
Monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group with only one biological type. The term's usage differs slightly between botany and zoology. The term monotypic has a separate use in conservation biology, monotypic habitat, regarding species habitat conversion eliminating biodiversity and...
species.
Others members of the Red Deer group that some believe represent separate species are C. corsicanus
Corsican Red Deer
Corsican Red Deer , also known simply as Corsican or Sardinian Deer, is a subspecies of the Red Deer , endemic to the Mediterranean islands of Sardinia, Italy and Corsica, France....
, C. wallichii
Tibetan red deer
The Tibetan red deer also known as shou is a subspecies of Wapiti that is native to the southern Tibetan highlands and Bhutan.-Description:...
and C. xanthopygus
Manchurian wapiti
The Manchurian wapiti is a subspecies of elk, native to eastern Asia.-Description:This deer is reddish brown during summer, and brownish gray in winter. It has dark hairs on the neck and dark underparts, followed by a light-colored rump patch...
. If so, C. corsicanus includes the subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
barbarus
Barbary stag
The Barbary stag , or Atlas deer is a subspecies of red deer that is native to North Africa.-Description:...
(perhaps a synonym
Synonym (taxonomy)
In scientific nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that is or was used for a taxon of organisms that also goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnaeus was the first to give a scientific name to the Norway spruce, which he called Pinus abies...
of corsicanus), and is restricted to Maghreb
Maghreb
The Maghreb is the region of Northwest Africa, west of Egypt. It includes five countries: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Mauritania and the disputed territory of Western Sahara...
in north Africa, Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
and Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
. C. wallichii would probably include the subspecies kansuensis
Kansu red deer
The Kansu Red Deer is a subspecies of wapiti found in the Gansu province of China. This subspecies forms, along with the closely related Sichuan deer, and Tibetan red deer, the southernmost wapiti group ....
and macneilli
Sichuan deer
The Sichuan deer also known as MacNeill's deer is a subspecies of Wapiti native to Western China.-Description:...
(both are perhaps synonyms of wallichii), and would be found from Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
to central China. C. xanthopygus would probably include the subspecies alashanicus
Alashan wapiti
The Alashan Wapiti is a subspecies of elk found in Northern China and Mongolia. It is the smallest subspecies of elk, has the lightest color, and is the least studied, other than the extinct Merriam's Elk....
(perhaps a synonym of xanthopygus), and would be found from the Russian Far East
Russian Far East
Russian Far East is a term that refers to the Russian part of the Far East, i.e., extreme east parts of Russia, between Lake Baikal in Eastern Siberia and the Pacific Ocean...
to northeastern China. This would restrict the "true" Red Deer (C. elaphus) to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
, Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
and northwestern Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, and the Elk
Elk
The Elk is the large deer, also called Cervus canadensis or wapiti, of North America and eastern Asia.Elk may also refer to:Other antlered mammals:...
/Wapiti (C. canadensis) to North America and the Asian regions of Tian Shan
Tian Shan
The Tian Shan , also spelled Tien Shan, is a large mountain system located in Central Asia. The highest peak in the Tian Shan is Victory Peak , ....
, Altai and Great Khingan. Alternatively, the barbarus group are subspecies of the "true" Red Deer, while the wallichii and xanthopygus groups are subspecies of the Elk/Wapiti.
Sika Deer species group
It has been recommended that the Sika DeerSika Deer
The Sika Deer, Cervus nippon, also known as the Spotted Deer or the Japanese Deer, is a species of deer native to much of East Asia and introduced to various other parts of the world...
should be split into four species based on genetics, morphology and voice, although others believe this is premature based on the presently available evidence. If split, the potential species are C. yesoensis from northern and central Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
(Hokkaido
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
, and northern and central Honshu
Honshu
is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait...
), C. nippon of southern Japan (southern Honshu, Shikoku
Shikoku
is the smallest and least populous of the four main islands of Japan, located south of Honshū and east of the island of Kyūshū. Its ancient names include Iyo-no-futana-shima , Iyo-shima , and Futana-shima...
, Kyushu
Kyushu
is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands....
, Okinawa, Tsushima
Tsushima Island
Tsushima Island is an island of the Japanese Archipelago situated in the middle of the Tsushima Strait at 34°25'N and 129°20'E. The main island of Tsushima was once a single island, but the island was divided into two in 1671 by the Ōfunakosiseto canal and into three in 1900 by the Manzekiseto canal...
and other small islands), C. hortulorum of mainland Asia (Russian Far East
Russian Far East
Russian Far East is a term that refers to the Russian part of the Far East, i.e., extreme east parts of Russia, between Lake Baikal in Eastern Siberia and the Pacific Ocean...
, Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, central and eastern China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, and northern Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
), and C. taiouanus
Formosan Sika Deer
The Formosa sika deer, , is a subspecies of sika deer endemic to the island of Taiwan. Formosan sika, like most of the terrestrial fauna and flora of Taiwan, arrived on the island during Pleistocene glacial periods when lower sea levels connected Taiwan to the Asian mainland.-Appearance and...
of Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
.