Hyemoschus aquaticus
Encyclopedia
The water chevrotain also known as the fanged deer, is a small ruminant
found in tropical Africa. It is the largest of the ten species of chevrotain
s, evolutionarily primitive even-toed ungulates which are similar to deer but are barely larger than small dogs. The water chevrotain is found mostly in coastal West Africa
and the rainforest
s of central Africa
.
The water chevrotain has a stocky, rounded body, thin legs with hooves, and a mouselike head. The male has tusk
s, which give the species the appellation "fanged deer". As its other common name suggests, the water chevrotain is a good swimmer and can dive underwater. Its nostrils are slits which it can squeeze shut to keep water out. It will never stray far from a water source, and it will retreat to water and jump in when threatened. It has a reddish brown coat with white stripes and spots. Adults average 10-12 kilograms and up to 80 centimeters in length.
Chevrotains are true ruminant
s, feeding mostly on a diet of plants, especially fruit
. The water chevrotain is nocturnal and mainly solitary. Males' territories overlap those of females, but the males are rarely aggressive toward each other. While they do occasionally fight, using their tusks as weapons, they apparently prefer to avoid each other and keep to themselves. An estrous female will mate with the male with whom she shares a home range, and then gives birth to one precocial fawn. Gestation is 4 months.
The water chevrotain is a vulnerable species due to two main forces. Its tropical rainforest habitat
is being rapidly consumed by humans, and the animals themselves are hunted for bushmeat
.
Ruminantia
Ruminantia includes many of the well-known large grazing or browsing mammals: among them cattle, goats, sheep, deer, and antelope. All members of the Ruminantia are ruminants: they digest food in two steps, chewing and swallowing in the normal way to begin with, and then regurgitating the...
found in tropical Africa. It is the largest of the ten species of chevrotain
Chevrotain
Chevrotains, also known as mouse deer, are small ungulates that make up the family Tragulidae, the only members of the infraorder Tragulina. There are 10 living species in three genera, but there are also several species only known from fossils...
s, evolutionarily primitive even-toed ungulates which are similar to deer but are barely larger than small dogs. The water chevrotain is found mostly in coastal West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
and the rainforest
Rainforest
Rainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with definitions based on a minimum normal annual rainfall of 1750-2000 mm...
s of central Africa
Central Africa
Central Africa is a core region of the African continent which includes Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda....
.
The water chevrotain has a stocky, rounded body, thin legs with hooves, and a mouselike head. The male has tusk
Tusk
Tusks are elongated, continuously growing front teeth, usually but not always in pairs, that protrude well beyond the mouth of certain mammal species. They are most commonly canines, as with warthogs, wild boar, and walruses, or, in the case of elephants and narwhals, elongated incisors...
s, which give the species the appellation "fanged deer". As its other common name suggests, the water chevrotain is a good swimmer and can dive underwater. Its nostrils are slits which it can squeeze shut to keep water out. It will never stray far from a water source, and it will retreat to water and jump in when threatened. It has a reddish brown coat with white stripes and spots. Adults average 10-12 kilograms and up to 80 centimeters in length.
Chevrotains are true ruminant
Ruminant
A ruminant is a mammal of the order Artiodactyla that digests plant-based food by initially softening it within the animal's first compartment of the stomach, principally through bacterial actions, then regurgitating the semi-digested mass, now known as cud, and chewing it again...
s, feeding mostly on a diet of plants, especially fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
. The water chevrotain is nocturnal and mainly solitary. Males' territories overlap those of females, but the males are rarely aggressive toward each other. While they do occasionally fight, using their tusks as weapons, they apparently prefer to avoid each other and keep to themselves. An estrous female will mate with the male with whom she shares a home range, and then gives birth to one precocial fawn. Gestation is 4 months.
The water chevrotain is a vulnerable species due to two main forces. Its tropical rainforest habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
is being rapidly consumed by humans, and the animals themselves are hunted for bushmeat
Bushmeat
Bushmeat initially referred to the hunting of wild animals in West and Central Africa and is a calque from the French viande de brousse. Today the term is commonly used for meat of terrestrial wild animals, killed for subsistence or commercial purposes throughout the humid tropics of the Americas,...
.
External links
- Picture
- Hyemoschus aquaticus Edwards, H. 2000. Animal Diversity Web. Accessed October 19, 2006.
- Ungulate Fact Sheet
