Sambar

About the Sambar

The sambar (Rusa unicolor) is a large deer native to the Indian subcontinent, South China and Southeast Asia. It has been listed as a vulnerable species on the IUCN Red List since 2008, as populations have declined substantially due to hunting, local insurgency, and industrial exploitation of habitat.

Genetic analysis shows that the closest living relative of the sambar is most likely the Javan rusa of Indonesia. This is supported by reports that sambar can still interbreed to produce fertile hybrids with this species.

Fossil sambar are known from the early Pleistocene, although they are very similar in form to early deer species from the Pliocene, with less of a resemblance to more modern cervines. The species probably arose in the tropical reaches of southern Asia, and later spread across its current range. Epirusa and Eucladoceros have both been proposed as possible ancestors of the living species and its closest relatives.

Seven sambar subspecies are recognised: The appearance and the size of the sambar vary widely across its range, which has led to considerable taxonomic confusion in the past; over 40 different scientific... Wikipedia →