Lesser Oriental Chevrotain
Tragulus kanchil
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassMammalia (Mammals)
- OrderArtiodactyla (Even-toed Ungulates and Cetaceans)
- FamilyTragulidae (Chevrotains)
- GenusTragulus (Southeast Asian Chevrotains)
- SpeciesTragulus kanchil (Lesser Oriental Chevrotain)
About the Lesser Oriental Chevrotain
The lesser mouse-deer, lesser Malay chevrotain, or kanchil (Tragulus kanchil) is a species of even-toed ungulate in the family Tragulidae. The lesser mouse-deer is found widely across Southeast Asia in Indochina, Myanmar (Kra Isthmus), Brunei, Cambodia, China (Southern Yunnan), Indonesia (Kalimantan, Sumatra and many other small islands), Laos, Malaysia (Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak and many other small islands), Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
It is one of the smallest known hoofed mammals, its mature size being as little as 45 cm (18 inches) and 2 kg (4.4 lb) and related to the even smaller Java mouse-deer. It is threatened by predation by feral dogs. Research revealed that this species which was initially believed to be nocturnal actually conduct their activities during the day. Also, though many births occur in May, November or December, the females are able to reproduce throughout the year.
Males stamp their feet to communicate—possibly as a signal of dominance or resource holding potential. In Indonesian and Malaysian folklore, the mouse-deer Sang Kancil is a cunning trickster similar to Br'er... Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Sepilok
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 2 | Cat Tien National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 3 | Danum Valley Conservation Area | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 4 | Taman Negara National Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 5 | Bako National Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 6 | Kerinci Seblat National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 7 | Sepilok | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 8 | Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 9 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand |