Uiser:Corsicanwarrah/Chevrotain
Chevrotains, or moose-deer, is smaa even-taed ungulates o the faimily Tragulidae, the anely livin memmers o the infraorder Tragulina. The 10 livin species ar dealt intae three genera,[1] but there's sindry fossil species o chevrotain an aa. The livin species ar maistly fand in wids in Sooth and Sootheast Aisie, wi ane species, the watter chevrotain, in the rainforests of Central and Wast Africae.[2] They are solitary or live in pairs, and feed almost exclusively on plant material.[2] Chevrotains is the smawest hoofed mammals in the warld, bein the same size as a maukin. The Asian species weigh between 0.7 an 8.0 kilogram (1.5 an 17.6 lb), while the African chevrotain is considerably larger at 7–16 kilogram (15–35 lb).[3] With an average length of 45 centimetre (18 in) and an average height of 30 centimetre (12 in), the Java mouse-deer is the smallest extant (living) ungulate or hoofed mammal, as well as the smallest extant even-toed ungulate.[4]
In November 2019, conservation scientists announced that they had photographed silver-backed chevrotains (<i id="mwMg">Tragulus versicolor</i>) in a Vietnamese forest for the first time since the last confirmed sightings in 1990.[5][6][7]
Etymology
eeditThe word "chevrotain" comes from the French word chevrot (kid or fawn), derived from the Middle French chèvre (gait).[8]
Biology
eeditThe family was widespread and successful from the Oligocene (34 million years ago) through the Miocene (about 5 million years ago), but has remained almost unchanged over that time and remains as an example of primitive ruminant form. They have four-chambered stomachs to ferment tough plant foods, but the third chamber is poorly developed. Though most species feed exclusively on plant material, the water chevrotain occasionally takes insects and crabs or scavenges meat and fish.[9] Like other ruminants, they lack upper incisors. They give birth to only a single young.
In other respects, however, they have primitive features, closer to nonruminants such as pigs. All species in the family lack antlers and horns, but both sexes have elongated canine teeth. These are especially prominent in males, where they project out on either side of the lower jaw, and are used in fights.[2] Their legs are short and thin, which leave them lacking in agility, but also helps to maintain a smaller profile to aid in running through the dense foliage of their environments. Other pig-like features include the presence of four toes on each foot, the absence of facial scent glands, premolars with sharp crowns,[10] and the form of their sexual behaviour and copulation.[11][10]
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They are solitary or live in pairs.[2] The young are weaned at three months of age, and reach sexual maturity between 5 and 10 months, depending on species. Parental care is relatively limited. Although they lack the types of scent glands found in most other ruminants, they do possess a chin gland for marking each other as mates or antagonists, and, in the case of the water chevrotain, anal and preputial glands for marking territory. Their territories are relatively small, on the order of 13–24 hectare (32–59 acre), but neighbors generally ignore each other, rather than compete aggressively.[10]
Some of the species show a remarkable affinity with water, often remaining submerged for prolonged periods to evade predators or other unwelcome intrusions. This has also lent support to the idea that whales evolved from water-loving creatures that looked like small deer.[12][13] [[Category:Mammals o Sootheast Asie]] [[Category:Even-taed ungulates]] [[Category:Extant Miocene first appearances]]
- ↑ Groves, C.; Meijaard, E. (2005). "Intraspecific variation in Moschiola, the Indian chevrotain". The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology. Supplement 12: 413–421.
- ↑ a b c d Nowak, R.M., ed. (1999). Walker's Mammals of the World (6th ed.). Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "walker" defined multiple times wi different content - ↑ "Hyemoschus aquaticus". Ultimate Ungulate. Retrieved 12 October 2010.
- ↑ Fukuta, K.; Kudo, H; Jalaludin, S. (1996). "Unique pits on the erythrocytes of the lesser mouse-deer, Tragulus javanicus". Journal of Anatomy. 189 (1): 211–213. PMC 1167845. PMID 8771414.
- ↑ Chappell, Bill. "Silver-Backed Chevrotain, with Fangs and Hooves, Photographed In Wild for First Time". NPR.org. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
- ↑ Nguyen, An (11 November 2019). "Camera-trap evidence that the silver-backed chevrotain Tragulus versicolor remains in the wild in Vietnam". Nature.com. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
- ↑ "Tiny deer-like animal spotted after 25 years" (Video). CNN. 11 November 2019.
- ↑ Merriam-Webster Dictionary Chevrotain
- ↑ Kingdon, J. (1997). The Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals. Academic Press. ISBN 0-12-408355-2.
- ↑ a b c Dubost, G. (1984). Macdonald, D. (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Mammals. New York: Facts on File. pp. 516–517. ISBN 978-0-87196-871-5. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "EoM" defined multiple times wi different content - ↑ Valerius Geist (1998). Deer of the World: Their Evolution, Behaviour, and Ecology. Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0-8117-0496-0.
- ↑ Walker, M. (7 Julie 2009). "Aquatic deer and ancient whales". BBC News. Retrieved 26 Mairch 2010.
- ↑ Meijaard, E.; Umilaela; de Silva Wijeyeratne, G. (September 2010). "Aquatic escape behaviour in mouse-deer provides insight into tragulid evolution". Mammalian Biology. 75 (5): 471–473. doi:10.1016/j.mambio.2009.05.007.