15 Indian Deer Species – Antelope and Gazelle
Deer is the most common name of all the wild goat, goat-antelopes, Gazelle and Antelopes found in India, The Blackbuck, Chital, Chinkara, Chousingha, Nilgai, Serow, Goral, Chevrotain, Muntjac, Takin, Blue Sheep and Nilgiri Tahr are different species of wild goat, blue sheep, gazelle, antelope and deer found in India.
Chital – चीतल
Chital also known as spotted deer and axis deer, The most common species of deer found in the Indian subcontinent along with sambar deer and swamp deer. Spotted deers are found from Rajasthan and Gujarat to the Sunderbans of West Bengal and also in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Sambar – साम्भर
The sambar deer is a large species of deer native to the Indian subcontinent and feed on a wide variety of food including leaves, branches, fruits and water plants. Sambar are the favourite prey of Bengal Tigers and Gujarat Lions in India along with dholes,leopards and mugger crocodiles.
Barasingha – बारहसिंगा
Barasingha or swamp deer is a twelve-horned deer species distributed in the Indian subcontinent. The swamp deer differs from all other Indian deer species due to antlers and is a large deer that feed on water grasses and aquatic plants.
Sangai – संगाई
Sangai deer is an endemic and endangered subspecies of Eld’s deer found found only in Manipur, In and around the floating marshy grasslands of the Keibul Lamjao National Park. The brow-antlered deer also known as dancing deer is the state animal of Manipur.
Hog Deer – पाढ़ा
Indian hog deer is a small species of deer found in the forest of Assam in north east India,native to the Indo-Gangetic Plains. Clouded leopard,Tiger and the spotted leopards are the well known predators of the Indian hog deer in the Kaziranga National Park.
Musk Deer – कस्तूरी मृग
Himalayan musk deer and Alpine musk deer are two different species of musk deer native to the eastern Himalayas of India and listed as endangered due to poaching for its musk. Alpine musk deer is the state animal of Uttarakhand and belongs to the family Moschidae,also found in Himachal Pradesh and Sikkim.
Barking Deer – काकड़
Indian muntjac is known as barking deer in India and among the smallest deer species native to South and Southeast Asia. Barking deer are classified as omnivores and also considered both browsers and grazers.
Blackbuck – काला हिरण/ कृष्णमृग
Blackbuck or Indian Antelope is native to India and active mainly during the day, grazes on low grasses and occasionally browsing as well. Indian antelope found mainly in India in small groups and are the sole living member of the genus.
Chousingha – चौसिंगा
Four-horned antelope also known as chousingha is a small antelope found in India and classified as vulnerable. The small deer species looks like Indian muntjac and Indian hog deer but lacks antlers and can be confused with chinkara.
Chinkara – चिंकारा
Chinkara also known as Indian Gazelle live in arid plains and hills of Thar deserts and mostly share their habitat with other deer species such as blackbuck and chausingha. The chinkara was a common prey of the leopard and cheetah in India alongside blackbucks.
Nilgai – नीलगाय
Nilgai is the biggest and largest antelope found in India and is the sole member of the genus Boselaphus. The blue cow/bull is diurnal prefer grasses and herbs but also very common in agricultural land.
Hangul – हंगुल
Kashmir stag is known as hangul in Kashmir, found in the Dachigam National Park and high valleys, mountains of Himachal Pradesh as well. Critically Endangered Kashmir stag is endemic to India and a Central Asian red deer species.
Bharal – भरल
The blue sheep is known as bharal and is the only member of the genus, This caprid is native to the high Himalayas and is a major prey of the snow leopard. Bharal are wild mountain ungulates occurs in Spiti Valley and Ladakh area of India.
Nilgiri Tahr – नीलगिरि तहर
Nilgiri tahr (Nilgiritragus hylocrius) is the pride of Tamil Nadu and Kerala state, Endangered and Endemic to the Nilgiri Hills of Western Ghats and found only in India. The wild goat or closest relatives to wild sheep along with Himalayan tahr and Arabian tahr are from the family of Bovidae.
Himalayan Goral and Himalayan Serow – हिमालयन घोरल / हिमालयन सेरो
Himalayan gorals are found in the high forests of the Himalayas, from Jammu and Kashmir to eastern Arunachal Pradesh. The bovid species is one of the prey of the snow leopard and himalayan wolf also hunted by human for meat.
Himalayan Serow is wild goat like mammal, native to the Himalayas and state animal of Mizoram. The Himalayan mammal somewhere lies between wild goat, deer and an antelope or a cross between donkey and goat.
Indian spotted chevrotain, leaf deer, Himalayan tahr, Tibetan antelope or chiru, takin, Goa antelope or Tibetan gazelle are also different species of deer, antelope, gazelle found in India along with wild goat and sheep including Himalayan Ibex, Urial, Argali or mountain sheep.
