Maral, Noble deer, Eastern red deer
The Caspian red deer (Cervus elaphus maral) is one of the easternmost subspecies of Red deer. It is sometimes called maral, Noble deer, or Eastern red deer.
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NocturnalNocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal",...
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HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
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GraminivoreIn zoology, a graminivore (not to be confused with a granivore) is an herbivorous animal that feeds primarily on grass. Graminivory is a form of g...
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FolivoreIn zoology, a folivore is a herbivore that specializes in eating leaves. Mature leaves contain a high proportion of hard-to-digest cellulose, less ...
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ViviparousAmong animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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CursorialA cursorial organism is one that is adapted specifically to run. An animal can be considered cursorial if it has the ability to run fast (e.g. chee...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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PrecocialPrecocial species are those in which the young are relatively mature and mobile from the moment of birth or hatching. Precocial species are normall...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
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BrowsingBrowsing is a type of herbivory in which an herbivore (or, more narrowly defined, a folivore) feeds on leaves, soft shoots, or fruits of high-growi...
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PolygynyPolygyny is a mating system in which one male lives and mates with multiple females but each female only mates with a single male.
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HerdingA herd is a social grouping of certain animals of the same species, either wild or domestic. The form of collective animal behavior associated with...
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Dominance hierarchyA dominance hierarchy (formerly and colloquially called a pecking order) is a type of social hierarchy that arises when members of animal social gr...
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Altitudinal MigrantAltitudinal migration is a short-distance animal migration from lower altitudes to higher altitudes and back. Altitudinal migrants change their ele...
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starts withThe coat of the Caspian red deer is dark gray, except in the summer when it is a dark brown. Their antlers are around 4 feet (1.2 m) in length, and 6 inches (150 mm) in girth. They shed their antlers in late winter and their new antlers reach full growth in late summer. One, occasionally two, fawns are born in mid-spring. The fawns are reddish brown and have white spots.
This subspecies is found in areas between the Black Sea and Caspian Sea such as Crimea, Asia Minor, the Caucasus Mountains region bordering Europe and Asia, and along the Caspian Sea region in Iran. They migrate seasonally moving to higher elevations for the summer, and to lower elevations over winter. Red deer prefer to live in woodlands and they avoid dense unbroken forests. They can be found in coniferous swamps, aspen-hardwood forests, clear cuts, coniferous-hardwood forests, open mountainous areas, grasslands, meadows, valleys, and pastures.
Caspian red deer is a social and primarily nocturnal animals. In general, mature Red deer usually stay in single-sex groups for most of the year. Males retain their antlers for more than half the year and are less gregarious and less likely to group with other males when they have antlers. The antlers provide self-defense, as does a strong front-leg kicking action performed by both sexes when attacked. Once the antlers are shed, males usually form bachelor groups which allow them to cooperatively work together. Herds have one or more members watching for potential danger, while the remaining members eat and rest. After the rut, females form large herds of up to 50 individuals. The newborn calves are kept close to the females by a series of vocalizations between the two, and larger nurseries have an ongoing and constant chatter during the daytime hours. When approached by predators, the largest and most robust females may make a stand, using their front legs to kick at their attackers. They can also use guttural grunts and posturing.
Caspian red deer are herbivores (graminivores, folivores). They eat various grasses, tree shoots, and leaves, and occasionally berries and mushrooms.
Little is known about the reproductive habits of Caspian red deer. Generally, Red deer are polygynous, meaning that one male mates with multiple females. During the mating season, called the rut, mature males compete for the attention of the females and will then try to defend the hinds they attract. Rival males challenge opponents by belling and walking in parallel. Dominant males follow groups of females during the rut, from August into early winter. They may have as many as 20 females to keep from other, less attractive males. Male European red deer have a distinctive roar during the rut, which is an adaptation to forested environments. The male roars to keep his harem of females together and when competing with other males for females during the rut. Females can produce one or very rarely two fawns per year. The gestation period is 240 to 262 days, and the fawn weighs about 15 kg (35 lb). After 2 weeks, it can join the herd and is fully weaned after 2 months. The young will remain with their mothers for almost one full year and will leave before the next offspring is born. Female Red deer become reproductively mature maturity at 2 years of age while males usually wait until a few years have passed before they can compete with the more mature males.
Within Russia, Caspian red deer have been hunted for velvet antlers since the 1930s. Historically, the demand for velvet antlers from Asia was met by organized deer farms in the Soviet Union. The approximate number of Caspian red deer in eastern Georgia dropped from 2,500 in 1985 to 880 in 1994.
The total population size of the Caspian red deer is unknown. According to the IUCN Red List site, this subspecies seriously declined in the Russian part of the Caucasus in the 1990s and is still seriously threatened. In Georgia and other parts of the Caucasus, it is very rare. Presently, this subspecies is not included in the IUCN Red List and its conservation status has not been evaluated.
Caspian Red deer have an important impact on the plant communities where they live, due to their browsing. They also serve as important prey during certain times of the year for some large predators, including Persian leopards, wolves, and Brown bears.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...