Elk information

Latin scientific name: elk

Common name: four unlike

English name: Pere David's Deer

National key protected animals level 1: level 1.

IUCN: Endangered

Endemic species: Yes.

Endangered level: wild extinction

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Animals and Plants (CITES): Not included.

Ecological environment: low-lying wetlands and swamps

Risk factors: habitat destruction, overfishing.

Domestic distribution: Beijing and Jiangsu (artificially introduced)

Classification status:

Boundary: animals in the animal kingdom

Door: Chordata, Chordata.

Class: mammals

Objective: Artiodactyla in Artiodactyla.

Family: Cervidae

Subdivision; Cervinae

Genus: Elk, Milne Edwards, 1866.

Species: Elk

Edit this historical development.

Elk is a rare animal unique to China. Elk used to be a wild animal. Good at swimming, with wide hooves, it is very suitable for finding grass, leaves, aquatic plants and other foods in muddy and sparse swamp areas, and its habitat is in today's Yellow River basin. The Yellow River Basin is a breeding ground for human beings, and the elk living here naturally become the target for people to hunt for food, which leads to a sharp decline in the number of this rare animal and its wild population will soon cease to exist. Fortunately, as early as 3,000 years ago in the Zhou Dynasty, the elk was captured in the Royal Hunting Garden, domesticated artificially and propagated for generations. Until the reign of Kangxi and Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty, there were still more than 200 elk in the Nanhaizi Royal Hunting Park in Beijing. This is the last group of elk living in the artificial environment in China. According to a large number of fossils and historical data, the wild elk was on the verge of extinction in the Qing Dynasty.

1865 Father Armand David, a French missionary and naturalist, discovered this strange animal when he was inspecting animals and plants in the south of Beijing. This is the first time the world has learned about elk from an academic point of view. In the following decades, the living elk were transported out of China to the west. At this time, due to the change of ecological environment, the elk in zoos in some European countries are facing the threat of extinction. Duke Bedford Xi of England, who loves animals and plants, bought all 18 elk raised in zoos in Paris, Berlin, Cologne, Antwerp and other places at a high price, and kept them in his Wubang Temple manor with rich water and grass. After careful care and stocking, 18 elk gradually multiplied.

1894, Yongding River overflowed and broke through Nanyuan city wall, and scattered elk became food for the hungry. By 1900, Eight-Nation Alliance invaded Beijing, and almost all the elk in the South Garden were killed. It is said that only one pair was left, which was kept in a palace and later moved to Wansheng Garden (now Beijing Zoo) and died. At this point, elk, a unique animal in China, was completely extinct in China. The elk raised in Wubang Temple Manor has also become the only elk herd in the world. China people want to see their native animals, so they have to go abroad.

Although the wild milu deer became extinct, the natural population of milu deer was finally re-established in China through stocking. 1In August, 985, 20 young milu deer were welcomed from Wubang Temple in England, and raised in Nanhaizi, where milu deer were raised in Qing Dynasty, and an elk ecological research center and an elk garden were established. 1In August, 1986, London Zoo in England provided 39 milu deer free of charge and kept them in Dafeng Elk Reserve. So far, the elk in these two places have grown well and bred offspring. To this end, China has re-listed elk as a first-class protected animal.

Edit the shape characteristics of this paragraph.

Elk is about 200 cm long. Shoulder height: 80-85cm (male), 70-75cm (female), larva weight: 35-40kg (male), 24-28kg (female). Generally, male elk can weigh up to 250 kg and have long horns, which are replaced once every two years. The female elk has no horns and is smaller. Because its head is like a horse, its horn is like a deer, its tail is like a donkey, and its hoof is like an ox, it is commonly called "four unlike". Only the stag has horns, and each branch of the cutting angle is backward, which is the first unique horn among deer. The back of the neck is thick and the limbs are thick. The main hoof is wide and separable, with skin between toes and developed lateral hoof, which is suitable for walking in swamp. Hair is reddish brown in summer and grayish brown in winter; Newborn cubs are orange with white spots.

The male deer is bifurcated at the age of two, and the bifurcation angle is fully developed at the age of six. The head is big, the snout is long and narrow, the exposed part of the nose is wide, the eyes are small, and the suborbital glands are prominent. The limbs are stout, the main hoof is wide and fleshy, there are well-developed hanging hooves, and the knocking sound is loud when walking. The tail is particularly long, fluffy, gray-black, with a yellowish-white abdomen and a dark brown tail. In summer, the body hair is red rust color, with black longitudinal stripes on the back of the neck, and the abdomen and buttocks are brown and white. After September, body hair was replaced by long and thick gray winter hair.

Edit the distribution scope of this paragraph

Elk live in groups, are good at swimming and like to feed on tender grass and other aquatic plants. Courtship estrus began at the end of June, lasted about 6 weeks, and reached its climax in the middle and late July. The male beast suddenly had a bad temper, not only gave out bursts of cries, but also scraped the ground with his horns, shot urine and rolled, smearing the liquid secreted by the infraorbital gland on the trunk. Confrontation and fighting often occur between males. The pregnant period of females is about 270 days, which is the longest among deer, and they usually give birth in April-May of the following year. The newborn baby weighs about 12kg, with orange-red fur and white spots. The leukoplakia disappears after 6-8 weeks, and the weight will reach 70kg after 3 months of birth. Sexually mature at the age of 2, with a life span of 20 years.

From its own factors, elk is a docile deer. According to our years' observation, the running speed of elk is not as fast as that of sika deer and roe deer, and the male deer in estrus does not attack people like sika deer, red deer and white-lipped deer, accounting for a group of male deer who run when they see people approaching. During lactation, when people call their ears and measure their cubs, their cries can only attract the doe to watch from a distance, unlike other deer who attack people to protect their cubs. The struggle between male elk for mates is very mild, and there is no fierce collision and large-scale sports. The fighting time generally does not exceed 10 minute. The loser just turned and walked away, and the winner stopped chasing. There was almost no disability between deer and deer. After the male deer occupied the herd, when other male deer peeped at the female deer, the male deer occupied the herd only drove each other away by yelling and chasing. These characteristics determine that their ability to escape enemy harm is very poor, and they are easily killed by natural enemies and humans. Elk mainly feed on aquatic and terrestrial grasses and legumes, and its narrow feeding habits are also its own factors threatening its survival.

From 65438 to 0985, with the efforts of the World Wildlife Fund, the British government decided that five zoos in London would provide China with elk free of charge. 1In August, 985, 22 elk were transported from England to Beijing by plane, and were transported to Royal Hunt Park in Nanhaizi that night. The monster returned to the last place where it disappeared in China. In August, 1986, 39 elk were selected from 7 zoos in Britain and transported to Dafeng City, Jiangsu Province via Shanghai. The elk returned to the coastal beach where its wild ancestors last lived.

At present, China has implemented the plan of free-range rearing of elk in Beijing, Dafeng City, Jiangsu Province, Shishou City, Hubei Province and Yuanyang County, Henan Province. At present, there are more than 2,000 elk in China. At present, there are 648 milu deer in Jiangsu Dafeng National Elk Nature Reserve, with an effective population of 50, which indicates that the world's first milu deer gene bank has been formed in this reserve, and the genetic genes of milu deer will not be lost again. In March 2003, the world's first pure wild elk was born in Dafeng Elk Reserve.

Now, the largest elk herd lives in Dafeng Elk Nature Reserve.

Deer-a rare animal recovered after being lost.

Elk is a large herbivore with a body length of170-217cm, a tail length of 60-75cm, a shoulder height of122-137cm and a weight of120-180kg. Females are slightly smaller than males. There are no horns on the female's head, and the shape of the male's horns is quite special. No eyebrows. The corner trunk is divided into two branches above the corner base. The front branch extends upward and then divides into two branches. There are some small forks on each branch. The back branches extend straight backward, and sometimes some small forks grow at the ends. The longest angle can reach 80 cm. The head is big, the snout is long and narrow, the exposed part of the nose is wide, the eyes are small, and the suborbital glands are prominent. The limbs are stout, the main hoof is wide and fleshy, there are well-developed hanging hooves, and the knocking sound is loud when walking. The tail is particularly long, fluffy, gray-black, with a yellowish-white abdomen and a dark brown tail. In summer, the body hair is red rust color, with black longitudinal stripes on the back of the neck, and the abdomen and buttocks are brown and white. After September, body hair was replaced by long and thick gray winter hair. Elk is commonly known as "four unlike" because its hoofs are like cattle, its head is like a horse, its tail is like a donkey, and its horns are like deer.

Elk live in groups, are good at swimming and like to feed on tender grass and other aquatic plants. Courtship estrus began at the end of June, lasted about 6 weeks, and reached its climax in the middle and late July. The male beast suddenly had a bad temper, not only gave out bursts of cries, but also scraped the ground with his horns, shot urine and rolled, smearing the liquid secreted by the infraorbital gland on the trunk. Confrontation and fighting often occur between males. The pregnant period of females is about 270 days, which is the longest among deer, and they usually give birth in April-May of the following year. The newborn baby weighs about 12kg, with orange-red fur and white spots. The leukoplakia disappears after 6-8 weeks, and the weight will reach 70kg after 3 months of birth. Sexually mature at the age of 2, with a life span of 20 years.

. Elk is more than 2 meters long and its shoulder height is 1 meter. The coat is light brown, with deep back and shallow abdomen. Male elk have beautiful horns. Elk horn has a concave-convex surface and a black texture inside, which makes it attractive. Elk's tail is longer than other deer species, and it has tufts of hair, so it is also called "big-tailed deer". Its deer hoof is wide and can be separated, and it can run like a fly in the swamp. What is even more peculiar is its appearance. Its horns are like deer instead of deer, its neck is like camel instead of camel, its hooves are like cows instead of cows, and its tail is like donkeys instead of donkeys. Therefore, people commonly call elk "four unlike" and regard it as "monster".