The Kashmir musk deer (''Moschus cupreus'') is an endangered species of

musk deer Musk deer can refer to any one, or all seven, of the species that make up ''Moschus'', the only extant genus of the family Moschidae. Despite being commonly called deer, they are not true deer belonging to the family Cervidae, but rather their f ...

native to

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

, and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. Recent studies have shown that the species is also native to western

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is ma ...

. This species was originally described as a subspecies to the

alpine musk deer The Alpine musk deer (''Moschus chrysogaster'') is a musk deer species native to the eastern Himalayas in Nepal, Bhutan and India to the highlands of Tibet. The Alpine musk deer recorded in the Himalayan foothills is now considered a separate sp ...

, but is now classified as a separate species. The deer stand at tall, and only males have tusks and they use them during mating season to compete for females. The Kashmir musk deer, which is one of seven similar species found throughout Asia, is endangered due to

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

and also because of poachers hunting the animal for its prized scent glands. In Afghanistan no musk deer sighting had been scientifically reported from 1948 until 2009. A survey conducted in June 2009 by WCS in the province of

Nuristan Nuristan, also spelled as Nurestan or Nooristan (Dari: ; Kamkata-vari: ), is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. It is divided into seven districts and is Afghanistan's least populous province, wi ...

found at least three specimens, confirming that the species still persists in this country despite unregulated hunting, extensive

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated ...

, habitat degradation, and the absence of the rule of law. In summer, musk deer inhabit remote alpine scrub on scattered rock outcrops and in upper fringes of closed coniferous forests at an elevation of using invariably use steep slopes (≥ 20°). A data-driven geographical model predicted that suitable habitat for musk deer in Afghanistan extends over about in the contiguous Nuristan (75.5%), Kunar (14.4%) and

Laghman Province Laghman (Dari: ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. It has a population of about 502,148, which is multi-ethnic and mostly a rural society. Laghman hosts a large number of historical landmarks, m ...

s (10.1%). Although relatively vast, the area of habitat potentially available to musk deer in Afghanistan appears to be highly fragmented.

References

Notes

Kashmir musk deer Fauna of Jammu and Kashmir Mammals of Afghanistan Mammals of Pakistan Kashmir musk deer Mammals of Nepal {{eventoedungulate-stub