01

Status

Category I. Endangered species.

02

Taxonomic significance

The only subspecies of red deer found in the desert zone of Central Asia and Kazakhstan.

03

Distribution

Endemic to Central Asia. Historically inhabited the floodplain forests of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers and the Kyzylkum desert. In Kazakhstan, it was found in the lower and middle reaches of the Syr Darya river until the mid-20th century.

04

Habitat

Tugai forests and reed thickets in the floodplains of desert rivers.

05

Population

Never numerous in Kazakhstan. In the 1980s, there were 60 deer in Karachingil, in the 1990s – 200, and now – 350.

06

Main threats

Disappeared due to direct extermination and habitat degradation (burning and clearing of tugai forests, plowing of floodplain lands, and overgrazing).

07

Biology

Seasonal migrations. Herd animals, but females lead solitary lives before and after calving. Active mainly in the morning and evening. The rut occurs from late August to early October, with calving in May-June. Usually, one fawn is born. Feeds on herbaceous plants, leaves, shoots, and fruits of shrubs and trees.

08

Breeds in the Almaty Zoo. In 2001, a breeding center for Bukhara deer was established in the Syr Darya floodplain, with 17 deer currently housed.

09

Conservation measures

Listed in the IUCN Red List (Category I) and in Appendix II of CITES. Protected in the Karachingil state hunting reserve.