Philippine Mouse-deer
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| Philippine Mouse-deer | ||||||||||||||
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| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||
| Tragulus nigricans Thomas, 1892 |
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Tragulus napu nigricans Muntiacus nigricans |
The Philippine Mouse-deer (Tragulus nigricans), also known as the Balabac Mouse Deer or Pilandok (in Filipino), is a small, nocturnal ruminant, which is endemic to Balabac and nearby smaller islands south-west of Palawan in the Philippines. It has often been considered a subspecies of the Greater Mouse Deer (T. napu). Contrary to its common name, the Philippine mouse deer does not belong to the deer family Cervidae, but is a member of the chevrotain family.
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[edit] Anatomy and morphology
It has a brown coat with black and white stripes. The Philippine Mouse-deer is only 40 centimeters at the shoulder level and is thereby one of the smallest ungulates. The male of its species does not have any antlers like a real deer. They use their large, tusk-like canine teeth on the upper jaw for self-defense.
[edit] Ecology and life history
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[edit] Culture
The Philippine Mouse-deer is usually portrayed as a trickster in Philippine folklore. In a Maranao tale, the Philippine Mouse-deer tricks a prince into giving up his bag of gold and face a hive of angry bees.
[edit] Conservation
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Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. |
[edit] References
- Groves, Colin (16 November 2005). in Wilson, D. E., and Reeder, D. M. (eds): Mammal Species of the World, 3rd edition, Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-801-88221-4.
- UCN Red List of Threatened Species: Tragulus napu ssp. nigricans
- BioLib - Tragulus nigricans (Balabac mouse deer)
- Smallest in the Philippines
- The Philippines in Brief (Cliparts and Graphics)
- Tales of Laughter - Pilandok and the Sumusong-sa-Alongan
