The chital or cheetal also
known as chital deer, spotted deer or axis deer, is a deer
which commonly inhabits wooded regions of India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan,
and in small numbers in Pakistan. The chital goes by various names in India,
among which include: chital horin in Bengali, thith muwa in
Sinhalese, jinke in Kannada, pulli maan in Tamil and Malayalam, jinka
in Telugu, phutuki horin in Assamese, haran/harin in Marathi, and
hiran in Hindi/Urdu (the latter two derived from harini, the
Sanskrit cognate for 'deer'). It is the most common deer species in Indian
forests. The name chital comes from the Bengali word chitral (চিত্রল)/chitra (চিত্রা), which means
"spotted". The chital is monotypic within the genus Axis, but
this genus has also included three species that now are placed in Hyelaphus
based on genetic evidence.
The chital's coat is pinkish
fawn, marked with white spots, and its underparts are also white. Its antlers,
which it sheds annually, are usually three-pronged and curve in a lyre shape
and may extend to 75 cm (2.5 ft). Compared to the hog deer, its close
relative, the chital has a more censorial build. It also has a more advanced
morphology with antler pedicles being proportionally short and its auditory bullas
being smaller. It also has large nares. The male chital averages about
90 cm (35 in) tall at the shoulder, with a total length of
170 cm (67 in), including a 20 cm (7.9 in). Males, at a
typical weight of 30 to 75 kg (66 to 165 lb), are somewhat larger
than females, at 25 to 45 kg (55 to 99 lb) Chital have well-developed
preorbital glands which have hairs that are like stiff little branches. They
also have well-developed metatarsal glands and pedal glands on their hind legs.
Males have larger preorbital glands than females and are opened very often in
response to certain stimuli.
The chital is listed by the IUCN
as Least Concern "because it occurs over a very wide range within which
there are many large populations". Currently, no range-wide threats to
chitals are present, and they live in many protected areas. However, population
densities are below ecological carrying capacity in many places due to hunting
and competition with domestic livestock. Hunting for the deer's meat has caused
substantial declines and local extinctions. The axis deer is protected under
Schedule III of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act (1972) and under the Wildlife (Preservation)
(Amendment) Act, 1974 of Bangladesh. Two primary reasons for its good
conservation status are its legal protection as a species and a network of
functioning protected areas.
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