Animals in Cambodia 2

Even-toed ungulates in Cambodia

Banteng

 Bos javanicus, also known as tembadau.The banteng is similar in size to domestic cattle, measuring 1.55 to 1.65 m (5 ft 1 in to 5 ft 5 in) tall at the shoulder and 2.45–3.5 m (8 ft 0.5 in–11 ft 6 in) in total length, including a 60 cm (2.0 ft) tail. Body weight can range from 400 to 900 kg (880 to 2,000 lb). It exhibits sexual dimorphism, allowing the sexes to be readily distinguished by colour and size.

Banteng live in sparse forest where they feed on grasses, bamboo, fruit, leaves and young branches.

 

     

                                   

 

 

 Eld's deer

(Panolia eldii), also known as the thamin or brow-antlered deer, is an endangered species of deer indigenous to Southeast Asia. Head–body length: 150–180 cm (59–71 in), Shoulder height: 110–125 cm (43–49 in), Tail length: 20–30 cm (8–12 in), Weight: 125–175 kg (276–386 lb), Antler length: 99 cm (39 in).

their diets comprise a variety of grasses, herbaceous plants, and shoots, grasses, fruit and wetland plants and they poach into cultivated crops to graze and browse in nearby fields of rice, lentils, maize, peas and grapes.

 They are hunters' favourite game – as prized game – because of their impressive antlers and hides that are in demand in the local markets. They are widely hunted for food; they were believed to have been hunted to feed armies during many Asian wars. Their population has declined due to intense development activities necessitating reclamation of land for grazing, cultivation and fish farming, in all countries. 

Populations found in Myanmar, India, Thailand, China, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam

                          

 

 

Gaur

Bos gaurus, also called Indian bison. The gaur is the worlds largest extant wild bovine and is native to South Asia and Southeast Asia.The gaur has a head-and-body length of 250 to 330 cm (8.2 to 10.8 ft) with a 70 to 105 cm (28 to 41 in) long tail, and is 165 to 220 cm (5.41 to 7.2 ft) high at the shoulder. The average weight is 650 to 1,000 kg (1,400 to 2,200 lb), with an occasional large bull weighing up to 1,500 kg (3,300 lb). Males are about one-fourth larger and heavier than females.

Gaur historically occurred throughout mainland South and Southeast Asia, including Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, China, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, and India. Today, the species is seriously fragmented within its range, and regionally extinct in Sri Lanka.

 Gaur herds are led by an old adult female (the matriarch). Adult males may be solitary. During the peak of the breeding season, unattached males wander widely in search of receptive females. No serious fighting between males has been recorded, with size being the major factor in determining dominance. Males make a mating call of clear, resonant tones which may carry for more than 1.6 km (0.99 mi). Gaur have also been known to make a whistling snort as an alarm call, and a low, cow-like moo.

 Wild gaur graze and browse on a wider variety of plants than any other ungulate species of India, with a preference for the upper portions of plants, such as leaf blades, stems, seeds and flowers of grass species, including kadam.

Gaur have one calf (or occasionally two) after a gestation period of about 275 days, about nine months, a few days less than domestic cattle. Calves are typically weaned after seven to 12 months. Sexual maturity occurs in the gaur's second or third year. Breeding takes place year-round, but typically peaks between December and June. The lifespan of a gaur in captivity is up to 30 years.

In Laos, gaurs are highly threatened by poaching for trade to supply international markets, but also by opportunistic hunting, and specific hunting for home consumption. In the 1990s, they were particularly sought by Vietnamese poachers for their commercial value. In Thailand, gaurs are highly threatened by poaching for commercial trade in meat and trophies.

 

                        

 

 

 

Hog deer

A mature hog deer stag stands about 70 cm at the shoulder and weighs approximately 50 kg while hinds are much smaller, standing about 61 cm and weighing in the vicinity of 30 kg.

habitat ranges from Pakistan, through northern India, to mainland southeast Asia, which inhabits much of the Indo-Gangetic Plains of Pakistan, northern India, Nepal, Bangladesh, southwestern Yunnan Province in China, all the way to western Thailand. Introduced populations also exist in Australia the United States and Sri Lanka.

 

                       

 

 

 

common muntjac

Muntiacus muntjak, also called the red muntjac,Indian muntjac or barking deer. The Indian muntjac is also commonly called the "barking deer" due to the bark-like sound that it makes as an alarm when danger is present. 

The Indian muntjac is among the most widespread but least known of all mammals in South Asia. It is found in Bangladesh, southern China, northeastern India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Cambodia, Vietnam, the Malay Peninsula, the Riau Archipelago, Sumatra, Bangka Island, Belitung, Java, Bali, and Borneo. This species is most densely located in Southeast Asia. The Indian muntjac is found in tropical and subtropical deciduous forests, grasslands, savannas, and scrub forests, as well as in the hilly country on the slopes of the Himalayas. 

The Indian muntjacs are classified as omnivores. They are considered both browsers and grazers with a diet consisting of grasses, ivy, prickly bushes, low growing leaves, bark, twigs, herbs, fruit, sprouts, seeds, tender shoots, bird eggs and small warm-blooded animals

The Indian muntjacs are polygamous animals. Females sexually mature during their first to second year of life. These females are polyestrous, with each cycle lasting about 14 to 21 days and an estrus lasting for 2 days. The gestation period is six to seven months and they usually bear one offspring at a time but sometimes produce twins. Females usually give birth in dense growth so that they are hidden from the rest of the herd and predators. The young leaves its mother after about six months to establish its own territory. Males often fight between one another for possession of a harem of females. Indian muntjacs are distinguished from other even-toed ungulates in showing no evidence of a specific breeding season within the species.

 

                      

 

                                           Barking sound:

                                                       

                                     

      

Kouprey

A very large ungulate, the Kouprey can approach similar sizes to the wild Asian water buffalo. These bovids measure 2.1 to 2.3 m (6.9 to 7.5 ft) along the head and body, not counting a 1 m (3.3 ft) tail, and stand 1.7–1.9 m (5.6–6.2 ft) high at the shoulder. Their weight is reportedly from 680 to 910 kg (1,500 to 2,000 lb).

Kouprey live in low, partially forested hills, where they eat mainly grasses. They are diurnal, eating in the open at night and under the forest cover during the day. They live in herds of up to 20, generally consisting of only cows and calves, but also bulls during the dry season.

There are estimated to be fewer than 50 kouprey left in the world. These low numbers are attributed to uncontrolled hunting by locals and soldiers, in conjunction with diseases introduced from cattle and loss of habitat. However, no kouprey have been sighted since 1983, and during the last decade, several searches for the animal have proven fruitless.