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28
Musk Deer
The musk deer (Moschus species) is so small that
(like other ungulates in this section) it is only as large
as an average-size dog. A gland in males produces
musk, a thick, oily secretion that is one of the most
valuable substances in the animal kingdom. Musk is
used in Oriental medicines as well as in European
perfumes, and in recent years it has sometimes sold for as much as
three times the price of gold.
Musk is traditionally obtained by killing these deer and removing
their glands. The dried glands, called pods, contain a reddish brown
musk powder that has been a commodity in international commerce
for more than 1,000 years. Despite bans in India (1972) and Nepal
(1973), musk continues to be illegally exported, mainly via Hong Kong,
for use in Japan and Europe. In Japan, for example, it is an ingredient
in more than 200 different medicines.2 In Europe, musk goes into some
of the most famous perfumes.
The international trade in Himalayan musk, originating from both
northern and southern sides of the Himalayan divide, amounts to 200
kg per year, representing an annual slaughter of 20,00~32,000 male
deer.
The commercial value of the animal makes it highly attractive for
development as a livestock species. The economic force causing its
slide toward extinction could be employed to protect and restore both
the species and its habitat. Ranching these deer might put musk
production on a sustainable footing. It might also encourage habitat
protection, because in the harsh climate of the high Himalayas, rearing
an
~ This is not a true deer. Although superficially similar to living deer, it is currently
placed in its own family, the Moschidae. Traditionally, only one species, Al. moschiferus,
was recognized. However, the taxonomy of the genus is currently under revision by P.
Grubb, Wang Yingziang, and C.P. Groves, who are proposing several species. In their
classification, the common species in western China and most of the Himalayas is M.
chrysogaster.
2 Information from S.K. Dhungel.
307
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MICROLIVESTOCK
musk deer could be much more profitable to villagers than raising
crops or cattle.
Musk deer are already being farmed under primitive conditions in
China, where techniques for extracting musk without killing the animal
have been developed. In India, small collections of musk deer have
been established by the forest departments of Himachal Pradesh and
Uttar Pradesh. For several years authorities in Nepal have successfully
extracted musk from an adult male at the Kathmandu Zoo, without
apparent harm to the animal.3 These experiences suggest that musk
might become a farmed product. So far, however, success has been
limited. The Chinese animals, for example, have a high mortality rate
and the musk is said to be of poor quality. Nonetheless, these examples
are valuable pioneering case studies that deserve recognition, support,
and further development.4
APPEARANCE AND SIZE
With their long ears, arched back, and bounding gait, these diminutive
deer remind one of large hares. The pointed face and large ears make
their heads strikingly reminiscent of kangaroos. The coarse hair gives
them a stocky appearance. The color varies according to species (and
subspecies) from rich reddish brown to dark gray or black. The
peculiarly brittle and wavy hair probably has good insulating properties,
as it consists of air-filled cells arranged like a honeycomb.
Musk deer have an average mature weight of about ~11 kg and a
body length of 5~90 cm. They stand 50 60 cm high at the shoulder
and 5 cm higher at the rump because the hind legs are longer than the
forelegs. Some dwarf types are only 40~6 cm high. The tail is short,
and in males it is naked, except for a terminal tuft of hair, because
they mark their territories by constantly rubbing the caudal gland,
which is located near the tail, onto objects.
All four toes are flexible, which, compared to the rigid hoof of other
ungulates, gives a firmer grip on precipitous slopes. The dew claws
are enlarged and, together with the central digits, splay out, to minimize
sinking in soft snow.
Neither sex possesses antlers, but males have long upper canine
teeth that project well below the lips. The lower front teeth have a
spatulate form that probably helps the animals scrape lichens from the
surfaces of rocks and trees in winter, when most vegetation is snow
covered.
~ Information from B. Kattel.
4 In France, at least one perfume factory is keenly interested in the domestication of
the musk deer because it needs musk for its perfumes and wants to regularize the trade.
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MUSK DEER
~0
10
The musk deer's native range.
DISTRIBUTION
309
~-
The genus is distributed patchily throughout the forested mountain-
ous parts of most of Asia. One population extends from just north of
the Arctic Circle southward to the northern edge of Mongolia and
Korea. Others occur in China, northern Vietnam, and the Himalayan
region including Bhutan, Assam, Tibet, the Indian Himalayas, Nepal,
and northern Pakistan.
STATUS
During this century, the musk deer has rapidly declined throughout
its former regions. In many parts of Afghanistan, Pakistan, India,
Nepal, and probably Tibet, it is already regarded as rare, with a
distribution that is becoming increasingly localized. Possible exceptions
are Bhutan and most of China, where its population is thought to be
stable. In southern China, ~ recent estimate puts the musk deer
population at 100,000 head. In western and northwestern China, the
population is estimated at 200,00~300,000 head.5
It is the uncontrolled hunt for musk that in most places is driving
this animal toward extinction, but its habitat is also being increasingly
destroyed by livestock and woodcutters. Part of the loss to hunters is
5 Information from Sheng Helin and Lu Honji.
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MICROLIVESTOCK
owing to the mindless way in which the animals are caught. Most are
snared in traps or nets or killed by poisoned stakes set on trails. This
kills all the animals indiscriminately, even females and fawns, which
produce no musk. This waste of reproductive animals is extremely
destructive to the populations and is senselessly hastening the musk
deer's extinction.
HABITAT AND ENVIRONMENT
Musk deer mainly occur in upland woodland and scrub areas. They
prefer remote, dense vegetation, especially birch-rhododendron forests
in mountainous terrain. They are seldom found in treeless regions or
areas thickly populated by people. In the Himalayas, the upper limit
coincides approximately with the tree line, which is as high as 4,600 m
at the eastern end.6
BIOLOGY
Despite its economic importance and wide distribution, little is
known of the musk deer's biology. Nonetheless, it is known that musk
deer have a gall bladder, a bovid feature that distinguishes it from the
true deer.
The animals are browsers, relying on young 1eaves7
. , ~_ . . ~.
buds, fruits.
and Rowers. During the winter, as snow deepens, they depend more
on lichens growing above the snow on rocks or tree bark, although in
shallow snow they scrape for vegetation with their hooves.
The male's musk sac is unique among deer. Situated between the
umbilicus and penis, it contains the gelatinous, odoriferous oil. The
amount varies with the season and the age of the animal, but pods of
adult males usually weigh about 30 g; occasionally up to 45 g.
Males also have a caudal gland under the tail, which secretes a
viscous yellow substance with a goaty smell. They mark vegetation
with this secretion by rubbing their hindquarters against stems and
branches.
Males become sexually mature at about 18 months, but females
seem capable of reproducing in their first year. The estrous cycle is
18-25 days; the receptive period lasts 36 60 hours. Gestation varies
from 178 to 192 days. Each female usually bears one or two fawns,
rarely three. The fawn is precocious-able to stand and move within
15 minutes.
~1 ~· . . ~. ~
6 Information from M. Green.
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MUSK DEER
BEHAVIOR
311
Musk deer are shy, furtive animals with keen senses of hearing,
smell, and sight. They are normally solitary and are most active at
dawn and dusk. Only under cover of darkness do they frequent the
more open spaces. Except in the rutting season, more than two animals
are seldom seen together; groups usually consist only of a female and
her young. The alarm call, a loud hiss, is often accompanied by a high-
stepping, springy gait.
In the wild, musk deer lead "orderly" lives. They use well-
established trails connecting well-established feeding places, resting
places, and "latrines" where they deposit their droppings. Migration
is uncommon.
Remarkably sure footed, musk deer climb cliffs and even the trunks
of leaning trees. Being small and solitary, they rely on camouflage to
avoid predators but flee through established escape routes when
disturbed. If cornered, males defend themselves by slashing with their
tusks, often inflicting deep cuts and severe injuries.
USES
The strong-smelling, reddish-brown musk is obtainable only from
this animal.7 It is used as a fixative in expensive perfumes to increase
the retention of the fragrance on the skin. In Oriental medicines it is
used in stimulants, sedatives, and other products. Some medicinal
properties appear to be genuine.8 Recently, highly purified musk has
been selling for as much as $27 a gram.
Trade in the Himalayan musk deer or its products is banned by all
countries that are parties to the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). However,
products from musk deer in the Soviet Union and China can be traded
legally under license. It seems likely that if formal, self-sufficient,
musk-deer farming projects can be established elsewhere, with safe-
guards to minimize poaching, a wider trade would be officially sanc-
tioned.
HUSBANDRY
Since at least 1919, Chinese scientists have been experimenting with
the extraction of musk without killing the males. When the sexual
7 Substances similar to musk are also found in some small solitary bovids such as the
steinbok, but are not used commercially.
Information from M. Green.
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activity is at its peak, the males are caught and musk removed from
the pod with a runcible spoon (curved fork) inserted into the sac's
aperture. The procedure takes only minutes. There are records of up
to 9 g being recovered at a time.
As noted, China established formal musk deer farms in 1958. They
are clustered in the Maerkang, Miyalo, and Manchuan areas of Sichuan
Province; the Zhenping county of Shanxi Province; and the Fuziling
area of Anhui Province. Despite heavy initial losses of animals, mainly
during transportation and acclimatization, the Chinese now breed musk
deer in considerable numbers. However, juvenile mortality is still high
and longevity relatively short. Zoos in other parts of the world have
also had difficulties maintaining the animals.9
In captivity, musk deer readily accept many foods: lettuce, carrots,
potatoes, apples, rolled oats, hay, alfalfa, bananas, some grass, bamboo
leaves, and pumpkins, for example.
LIMITATIONS
The musk deer's social system may represent an impediment to its
successful reproduction in captivity. It is irascible and scares easily.
In close confinement, males fight and may have to be isolated from
each other.
There is an inherent danger in any captive-breeding scheme in the
Himalayas: resumption of legal trade in natural musk could damage
the remaining populations by stimulating the market and providing an
outlet for illicit musk from poached animals. Some biologists (notably
in India) consider that a total ban on the trade in natural musk from
all sources is essential.
So far, removing the musk without damaging the animals has not
proved commercially successful because of market resistance. Most
purchasers require the entire pod in order to be certain that they are
receiving the genuine product. Given a regularized farming program,
however, it seems likely that mutual trust would circumvent this lack
of confidence.
RESEARCH AND CONSERVATION NEEDS
To protect this species will not be easy. It occurs in vast, remote
areas that are difficult to patrol. The local people are poor and
traditionally have used it as a source of income and food. The value
9 Information from M. Green.
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MUSK DEER
313
of musk is so high that smuggling is already well organized and will
be difficult to eradicate.
It is imperative that the status of existing musk deer populations be
established. This is especially important in Nepal. The total population
may be not more than 500 in the wild.
No matter what is achieved in farming, pressure on populations will
only be reduced by protecting the wild specimens. Thus, the dietary
requirements and behavior of musk deer should also be evaluated with
a view to building up the wild populations directly. If the techniques
of breeding and handling can be improved, farming the animal may
also indirectly help wild populations by reducing the pressure to
harvest them.
An alternative to captive breeding might be ranching the wild animals.
In this process, males would be caught periodically and the musk
extracted before releasing them. The organized, sustainable harvesting
is particularly attractive if developed at the rural level with revenue
going directly to local people; it would provide them incentive to
conserve not only "their" musk deer but also its habitat. For this
purpose, today's musk deer hunters could be trained to extract musk
from live animals, releasing and recapturing them on a controlled basis.
Another alternative could be controlled culling at a sustainable level,
as is now done in the Soviet Union, where about 5 percent of the
population is harvested each year. However, elsewhere annual culls
at any level would not be feasible for at least 10 years because the
populations are now so low.
splat
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Pudu
Representative terms from entire chapter:
caudal gland
