Sri Lanka Spotted Deer (Axis Axis Ceylonensis)

Sinhalese: Tith-muwa

Tamil: Pulli-mann

Description: The adult male grows to about 91 cm at the shoulder, the female being a little smaller. Only the stags have antlers which can grow to a length of 91 cm, but usually average out at about 76 cm. at the end of every rutting season the antlers fall off and new ones grow, each set being longer than the last. While the antlers are growing, they are covered in a very sensitive skin called ‘velvet’ which eventually dies and is rubbed off by the stag once the antlers attain their full length and hardness. At this stage the stag moults his light coloured coat and grows a beautiful dark one. And rutting starts.

Distribution: Found in open jungle areas of the low-lands and foothills of the dry zone. Now-a-days they are mostly confined to National Parks and reserves.

Habits: This deer is gregarious forming herds of anything from 6 to 100 of stags, hinds and their young. Sometimes the stags will form small groups of their own in the ‘off’ season while their antlers are growing. These deer feed on grasses, leaves and fruit, and are often seen morning and evening grazing in open areas. During the heat of the day they prefer to retire into the shaded jungle edges. They have very acute senses of sight, hearing and smell, and the older hinds are always on the alert for danger. In captivity they have been known to live for about 10 years.

Breeding: The gestation period seems to be in some doubt, but it is somewhere between 6 and 8 months. Usually one fawn is born; occasionally two, and the female sometimes gives birth twice a year.


Sri Lanka Hog-Deer (Axis Porcinus Oryzus)

This special is almost, if not entirely, extinct in the island. Its haunts were scrub jungles in what is now a heavily populated south-west zone. It is believed to have been introduced into the island by either the ancient Sinhalese, the Portuguese or the Dutch.