Animal musk deer: description, interesting facts, photo

Kabarga is an animal that has produced many myths andsuperstitions. Its extraordinary appearance has long attracted the attention of naturalists, who were ready to easily overcome hundreds of kilometers in the mountains, just to see this creature alive. And today the interest in him is still not lost.

What kind of miracle-animal musk deer, the description of which has so many interesting facts? Why is it so remarkable? And why is it protected by the World Organization for the Protection of Animal Rights?

What a wondrous beast?

An animal of musk deer is one of the varietiesdeer. True, it is very different from its closest relatives, both in size and appearance. Another of its names is musk deer. His fame acquired the musk deer due to two reasons: unusual fangs and musk.

This deer has two front fangs, whichgrow from the upper jaw. Because of them, musk deer gained the glory of a vampire hunting other animals. Moreover, before people believed that this beast - an evil spirit, and shamans often hunted him, in order to get his teeth as a magical trophy.

Time of superstition has sunk to oblivion, but the persecution of theseanimals did not stop. After all, the musk deer is known for one more feature, namely musk. It was this substance that became the target of many poachers who were ready to destroy the whole species, just to get such a coveted reward.

Appearance

What does musk deer look like? In the photo, the animal resembles a cross between a roe deer and a deer, though without horns. It so happened that this species is completely devoid of bone growth on the head, as well as lacrimal pits under the eyes.

The length of musk deer rarely grows more than onemeter. As for its height, at the moment the largest seen specimen was not more than 80 cm. At the same time, its weight varies from 12 to 18 kilograms. The color of the coat can vary from dark brown to light brown.

Kabarga is an animal known for its longtusks. True, they are only in males and can reach up to 7 cm in length. For musk deer, they serve as an instrument of protection, and only in the mating season gentlemen can use them as a way to prove their superiority over others.

Animal musk deer: habitat

This animal prefers the mountainous terrain, andso the main area of ​​its habitat is designated by the mountains of China and Tibet. But in Russia you can meet him. So, musk deer lives in a very vast territory: from the lower Altai and ending with the Amur itself.

The favorite place of musk deer is the forest. Therefore, it is here that the animal spends most of the time. However, this does not mean that the deer does not stray high into the mountains. Thus, there is evidence that some individuals live in the Himalayas, at an altitude of more than 3000 m above sea level.

Habits of musk deer

This kind of deer is accustomed to a single way of life. This rule is violated only in the mating season, and then for a short while. By the way, during mating games, musk deer are very aggressive towards each other. Quite often their skirmishes lead to bloody fights on the fangs, which is sometimes fraught with fatal consequences.

In the rest of the year, they lead a quiet andmeasured way of life. They feed mainly on moss and fresh foliage. Therefore, the rumor that musk deer drinks blood is only an empty superstition that has nothing to do with the truth.

In addition, musk deer is very timid, anydanger makes him run without looking back. It is almost impossible to catch up with him. Thanks to the special structure of the body, he can change the trajectory of the run, even without slowing down.

Hunting for musk

In the old days, the musk deer population did notthreatened. Her meat was not fit for use, as it had an unpleasant aftertaste. As for the skin, although it kept the heat, it was still much worse than other animals. So the only enemies of the deer were shamans and mystics, gathering their fangs. But it all changed when the Chinese alchemists started using musk in their medications.

For those who do not know, musk is viscousa substance that has a pungent smell. Each male musk deer has a special gland that secretes this secret. She was the object of hunting for many healers and healers. If you believe Chinese traditional medicine, then there are more than 200 potions and ointments that are infused with musk.

A little later this substance began to be used inperfumery. Thanks to the astringency of the fragrance, it quickly gained popularity among women of fashion and fashion. Consequently, the pursuit of musk only intensified.

Eventually, everyone who wanted to make money quickly was hunted by the musk deer. This led to the fact that the number of these animals decreased to such a level that they were on the verge of total extinction.

The struggle for the rights of musk deer

Fortunately, the world is not without good people. Such a decrease in the number of musk deer caused resentment from the fighters for animal rights. And so they began to conduct active actions aimed at their protection.

Due to their interference, the musk deer was recordedin the Red Book, and the poachers who hunt for it, answered in all the strictness of the law. Such measures saved the animal from extinction, although a complete restoration of the musk deer population will not happen soon.

The Beast in Captivity

However, with the introduction of a ban on hunting,in musk was not lost. And so the farmers tried to breed a species that could live in captivity. The first attempts were failures, as the musk deer died very quickly. But over time, it turned out to breed a breed that lives by the rules of man.

True, as the farmers themselves say, caring for it -still that work. In particular, a lot of trouble arises at a time when males are ready to mate. And nevertheless, this approach greatly helped the wild musk deer, reducing the demand for their glands.

Interesting facts about musk deer

• Earlier, the appearance of a musk deer in the vicinity of the village foreshadowed grief. Therefore, after such a visit, the shamans conducted rituals, driving away evil spirits.
• Running away from the enemy, the musk deer behaves likethis hare. He winds from side to side, and in the case of a predator approaching, he can jump high and lightly change the trajectory of the run by 90 degrees.
• In 1845, the population of musk deer was more than 250 thousand individuals. After a hundred years, this number dropped to 10 thousand, which was a signal to save the musk deer.