{{Short description|Species of deer}} {{Speciesbox | status = VU | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn |title=''Rucervus duvaucelii'' |name-list-style=amp |author=Duckworth, J.W. |author2=Kumar, N.S. |author3=Pokharel, C.P. |author4=Sagar Baral, H. |author5=Timmins, R. |date=2015 |article-number=e.T4257A22167675 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T4257A22167675.en |access-date=15 January 2022}}</ref> | status2 = CITES_A1 | status2_system = CITES | status2_ref = <ref name=iucn/> | image = The Swamp deer (Indian Barahshinga).gif | image_caption = Male | image2 = Barasingha females.JPG | image2_caption = Adult female and yearling | taxon = Rucervus duvaucelii | authority = (G. Cuvier, 1823)<ref name=msw3>{{MSW3 Artiodactyla |pages=668–669 |id=14200429 |heading=Species ''Rucervus duvaucelii''}}</ref> | range_map = Rucervus duvaucelii range map.png |range_map_caption = Historic range (yellow); relict populations: ''duvaucelii'' (red); ''branderi'' (green); ''ranjitsinhi'' (blue) }}
The '''barasingha''' ('''''Rucervus duvaucelii'''''), sometimes '''barasinghe''', also known as the '''swamp deer''', is a deer species distributed in the Indian subcontinent. Populations in northern and central India are fragmented, and two isolated populations occur in southwestern Nepal. It has been extirpated in Pakistan and Bangladesh, and its presence is uncertain in Bhutan.<ref name=iucn/>
The specific name commemorates the French naturalist Alfred Duvaucel.<ref>{{cite book |author=Cuvier, G. |year=1823 |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_A0IAAAAAQAAJ/page/n511 <!-- pg=505 --> |title=Recherches sur les ossemens fossiles de quadrupèdes |edition=Nouvelle édition |volume=Tome Quatrième |publisher=Dufour & d'Ocagne |location=Paris, Amsterdam}}</ref>
The swamp deer differs from all other Indian deer species in that the antlers carry more than three tines. Because of this distinctive character it is designated ''bārah-singgā'', meaning "twelve-horned" in Hindi.<ref name=Lydekker1888>{{cite book |author=Lydekker, R. |year=1888–1890 |title=The new natural history |volume=2 |publisher=Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History) |place=London |chapter=The Swamp-deer Group |pages=360–361 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/newnatuhist02lyderich#page/360/mode/2up}}</ref> Mature stags usually have 10 to 14 tines, and some have been known to have up to 20.<ref name=Prater1948>{{cite book |author=Prater, S. H. |year=1948 |title=The Book of Indian animals |publisher=Oxford University Press |edition=10th}}</ref>
==Characteristics== The barasingha is a large deer with a shoulder height of {{convert|44|to|46|in|cm|abbr=on}} and a head-to-body length of nearly {{convert|6|ft|cm|abbr=on}}. Its hair is rather woolly and yellowish brown above but paler below, with white spots along the spine. The throat, belly, inside of the thighs and beneath the tail is white. In summer, the coat becomes bright rufous-brown. The neck is maned. Females are paler than males. Young are spotted. Average antlers measure {{convert|30|in|cm|abbr=on}} round the curve with a girth of {{convert|5|in|cm|abbr=on}} at mid beam.<ref name=Blanford>Blanford, W. T. (1888–1891). [https://archive.org/stream/mammalia00blan#page/538/mode/2up ''The fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Mammalia'']. Taylor and Francis, London.</ref> A record antler measured {{convert|104.1|cm|in|abbr=on}} round the curve.<ref name=Prater1948/>
Stags weigh {{convert|170|to|280|kg|lb|abbr=on}}. Females are less heavy, weighing about {{convert|130|to|145|kg|lb|abbr=on}}.<ref name="Schaller"/> Large stags have weighed from {{convert|460|to|570|lb|kg|abbr=on}}.<ref name=Lydekker1888/>
==Distribution and habitat== thumb|Barasingha herd in Kanha National Park thumb|Barasingha stag thumb|Illustration of barasingha antlers<ref name=Blanford/> Swamp deer were once common in many areas, including parts of the Upper Narmada Valley and to the south, in Bastar, prior to the 19th century.<ref name=Blanford/> They frequent flat or undulating grasslands, floodplains and marshes, and generally stay on the outskirts of forests. At times, they are also found in open forest.<ref name=Lydekker1888/> In the 1960s, the total population was estimated to be between 1,600-2,150 individuals in India, with about 1,600 in Nepal. Today, the distribution is further reduced and fragmented, due to major losses in the 1930s–1960s following unregulated hunting and conversion of large tracts of habitat into cropland.
In Nepal, the barasingha is present in Shuklaphanta and Bardiya National Parks.<ref name=iucn/> In India, it is present in six localities in Uttar Pradesh, in Kanha National Park and in Chhattisgarh near Dhamtari,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/41396553 |title=Barasingha in March 2013 by janconl |website=inaturalist.org |date=April 2020}}</ref> likely the most southerly extent of its distribution. It is regionally extinct in West Bengal,<ref name=Qureshi2004>{{cite journal |vauthors=Qureshi Q, Sawarkar VB, Rahmani AR, Mathur PK |year=2004 |title=Swamp Deer or Barasingha (''Cervus duvauceli'' Cuvier, 1823 |journal=Envis Bulletin |volume=7 |pages=181–192}}</ref> and also likely in Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Odisha.<ref>Choudhury, A. U. (2003). ''The mammals of Arunachal Pradesh''. Regency Publications, New Delhi {{ISBN|81-87498-80-3}}.</ref> A few barasingha still survive in Assam's Kaziranga and Manas National Parks.<ref>Choudhury, A. U. (1997). ''Checklist of the mammals of Assam''. 2nd ed. Gibbon Books & Assam Science Technology & Environment Council, Guwahati, India. {{ISBN|81-900866-0-X}}</ref><ref>Choudhury, A. U. (2004). ''Kaziranga: Wildlife in Assam''. Rupa & Co., New Delhi.</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Choudhury, A. U. |year=1987 |title=Railway threat to Kaziranga |journal=Oryx |volume=21 |issue=3 |pages=160–163 |doi=10.1017/S0030605300026892 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>Choudhury, A. U. (1986). ''Manas Sanctuary threatened by extraneous factors.'' The Sentinel.</ref>
In 2005, a small population of about 320 individuals was discovered in Jhilmil Jheel Conservation Reserve in Haridwar district, Uttarakhand, on the east bank of the Ganges. This likely represents the most northerly limit of the species.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Nandy, S. |author2=Kushwaha, S.P.S. |author3=Gaur, P. |year=2012 |title=Identification of swamp deer (''Cervus duvauceli duvauceli'' Cuvier) potential habitat in Jhilmil Jheel Conservation Reserve, Uttarakhand, India using multi-criteria analysis |journal=Environmental Management |volume=49 |issue=4 |pages=902–914 |doi=10.1007/s00267-012-9826-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Tewari, R. |author2=Rawat, G.S. |year=2013 |title=Activity pattern and diurnal time budget of swamp deer (''Rucervus duvaucelii duvaucelii'') in Jhilmil Jheel Conservation Reserve, Haridwar, Uttarakhand, India |journal=NeBIO |volume=4 |issue=3 |pages=36–40 |url=https://www.nieindia.org/Journal/index.php/ijees/article/download/118/71}}</ref>
=== Distribution of subspecies === Three subspecies are currently recognized:<ref>{{cite journal |author=Groves, C. |year=1982 |title=Geographic variation in the Barasingha or Swamp Deer (''Cervus duvauceli'') |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society |volume=79 | pages=620–629}}</ref>
[[File:Rucervus duvaucelii (swamp deer).jpg|thumb|Swamp deer in Dudhwa National Park, Uttar Pradesh]] * Western swamp deer ''R. d. duvauceli'' (Cuvier, 1823) – the nominate subspecies, and most abundant, this water-loving deer has splayed hooves and is adapted to the flooded grassland habitat of the Indo-Gangetic Plain;<ref name=Pocock1943>Pocock R. (1943). ''The larger deer of British India''. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 43: 553–572.</ref> in the early 1990s, populations in India were estimated at 1,500–2,000 individuals, and 1,500–1,900 individuals in the Shuklaphanta Wildlife Reserve of Nepal;<ref name=Qureshi2004/> the latter population reached 2,170 individuals, including 385 fawns, in spring 2013.<ref>{{cite news |title=Shuklaphanta sees increase swamp deer number |url=http://www.thehimalayantimes.com/fullNews.php?headline=Shuklaphanta+sees+increase+swamp+deer+number&NewsID=373359 |work=The Himalayan Times |date=19 April 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130615215349/http://www.thehimalayantimes.com/fullNews.php?headline=Shuklaphanta+sees+increase+swamp+deer+number&NewsID=373359 |archive-date=15 June 2013}}. Kanchanpur, 19 April 2013.</ref>
thumb|Swamp deer at Kanha National Park thumb|Swamp deer in Satpura Tiger Reserve * Southern swamp deer (or hard ground swamp deer) ''R. d. branderi'' (Pocock 1943) – has hard hooves and is adapted to hard ground in open sal forest with a grass understorey;<ref name=Pocock1943/> survives only in Kanha National Park, to the west of Chhattisgarh and east of Madhya Pradesh. The population numbered about 500 individuals in 1988; 300–350 individuals were estimated at the turn of the century;<ref name=Qureshi2004/> and 750 in 2016. It was reintroduced into Satpura Tiger Reserve.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Shukla |first=R. |date=2017 |title=Barasingha breaks new ground |magazine=Frontline |url=https://frontline.thehindu.com/environment/conservation/barasingha-breaks-new-ground/article9559741.ece |access-date=3 September 2017}}</ref>
thumb|Swamp deer stag in Kaziranga National Park * Eastern swamp deer ''R. d. ranjitsinhi'' (Grooves 1982) – occurs only in Assam, where the population numbered about 700 individuals in 1978; 400–500 individuals were estimated in Kaziranga National Park at the turn of the century.<ref name=Qureshi2004/> After a census conducted in 2021, 868 individuals were estimated in the park, with a further 121 in Manas National Park.<ref>{{cite news |last=Goswami |first=R. |date=2022 |title=Can a big flood push Kaziranga's Eastern Swamp Deer to extinction? |url=https://www.eastmojo.com/assam/2022/01/20/can-a-big-flood-push-kazirangas-eastern-swamp-deer-to-extinction/ |work=EastMojo |location=Assam |access-date=12 November 2022}}</ref>
== Ecology and behaviour == thumb|Herd of swamp deer grazing in Kanha National Park thumb|Barasingha stags rutting in Kanha National Park thumb|A barasingha mother and fawn in Assam Swamp deer are mainly grazers.<ref name=Lydekker1888/> They largely feed on grasses and aquatic plants, foremost on ''Saccharum'', ''Imperata cylindrica'', ''Narenga porphyrocoma'', ''Phragmites karka'', ''Oryza rufipogon'', ''Hygroryza'' and ''Hydrilla''. They feed throughout the day with peaks during the mornings and late afternoons to evenings. In winter and monsoon, they drink water twice, and thrice or more in summer. In the hot season, they rest in the shade of trees during the day.<ref name=Qureshi2004/>
In central India, the herds comprise on average about 8–20 individuals, with large herds of up to 60. There are twice as many females than males. During the rut they form large herds of adults. The breeding season lasts from September to April, and births occur after a gestation of 240–250 days in August to November. The peak is in September and October in Kanha National Park.<ref name="Schaller">{{cite book |last=Schaller |first=G. B. |author-link=George Schaller |date=1967 |title=The Deer and the Tiger – A Study of Wildlife in India |url= https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.553304|location=Chicago, IL, USA |publisher=University Chicago Press |pages=93–133 |isbn=0-226-73633-4}}</ref> They give birth to single calves.<ref name="Schaller"/>
When alarmed, they give out shrill, baying alarm calls.<ref name=Prater1948/> Compared to other deer species, barasingha are more relaxed when it comes to guarding. They have fewer sentries and they spend most of their time grazing, unlike deer species like spotted deer or sambar deer.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Menon |first=Vivek |title=Indian Mammals: A Field Guide |language=English}}</ref>
== Threats == The swamp deer populations outside protected areas and seasonally migrating populations are threatened by poaching for antlers and meat, which are sold in local markets. Swamp deer lost most of its former range because wetlands were converted and used for agriculture so that suitable habitat was reduced to small and isolated fragments.<ref name=Qureshi2004/> The remaining habitat in protected areas is threatened by the change in river dynamics, reduced water flow during summer, increasing siltation, and is further degraded by local people who cut grass, timber and fuelwood,<ref name=iucn/> and by illegal farming on government land.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dabas |first=H. |date=2016 |title=As Ganga water level dips, farmers encroach land for farming |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/meerut/As-Ganga-water-level-dips-farmers-encroach-land-for-farming/articleshow/55929059.cms |work=The Times of India |location=Bijnor |access-date= 22 December 2016}}</ref>
George Schaller wrote: "Most of these remnants have or soon will have reached the point of no return."<ref name=Schaller/>
== Conservation == ''Rucervus duvaucelii'' is listed on CITES Appendix I.<ref name=iucn/> In India, it is included under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.<ref name=Qureshi2004/>
The barasingha underwent one of India’s most significant wildlife recoveries during the late 20th and early 21st centuries. By the late 1960s, the species had become critically endangered in central India due to habitat loss, poaching, disease transmission from livestock, and degradation of grassland ecosystems. Kanha Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh remained the last stronghold of the hard-ground subspecies, where its population declined to an estimated 66 individuals in 1970.<ref>{{cite news |last=Gururani |first=R. |title=The 50-year battle to save the magnificent barasingha |work=The Times of India |date=2021 |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/the-50-year-battle-to-save-the-magnificent-barasingha/articleshow/82006389.cms |access-date=6 December 2025}}</ref>
A long-term conservation programme was initiated in Kanha to prevent the extinction of the species. Management measures included grassland and swamp restoration, restrictions on livestock grazing to reduce disease transmission etc.<ref>{{cite news |title=Near-extinct hard ground swamp deer see revival in Kanha |work=Down To Earth |date=2020 |url=https://www.downtoearth.org.in/wildlife-biodiversity/near-extinct-hard-ground-swamp-deer-see-revival-in-kanha-69603 |access-date=6 December 2025}}</ref> These interventions resulted in steady population growth over subsequent decades. By the early 2000s, the Kanha population had increased to several hundred individuals, and by the 2020s it approached 1,000 individuals.<ref>{{cite news |title=Madhya Pradesh’s barasingha and gaur populations soar thanks to conservation efforts |work=The New Indian Express |date=2024 |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/good-news/2024/Feb/25/madhya-pradeshs-barasingha-and-gaur-populations-soar-thanks-to-conservation-efforts |access-date=6 December 2025}}</ref>
As the Kanha population stabilised, the Barasingha were reintroduced to reserves including Satpura, Van Vihar, and Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve; in 2023, nineteen barasingha were released into Bandhavgarh to re-establish the species in parts of its former range.<ref>{{cite news |title=19 barasingha from Kanha released into Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve |work=India Today |date=2023 |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/environment/story/19-barasingha-from-kanha-released-into-bandhavgarh-tiger-reserve-2352001-2023-03-27 |access-date=6 December 2025}}</ref>
== In culture == * The barasingha is the state animal of the Indian states of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pannatigerreserve.in/kids/state.htm |title=State Animals, Birds, Trees and Flower |work=Panna TigerReserve |access-date=4 April 2018}}</ref> * A ''barasingha'' is mentioned ten times in ''The Miracle of Purun Bhagat'', the second story in ''The Second Jungle Book''. As that part of the story is set in the Himalayas, it is probably meant to be a member of the relict ''Rucervus duvaucelii duvaucelii'' population living on both sides of the India – Nepal border.<ref><span style="font-variant:small-caps">Kipling</span>, Rudyard, ''The Miracle of Purun Bhagat'', in ''The Second Jungle Book'' (read online) (accessed 3 May 2024)</ref>
==See also== *Chital *Sambar deer
==References== {{Reflist}}
== Further reading == * M. Acharya, M. Barad, S. Bhalani, P. Bilgi, M. Panchal, V. Shrimali, W. Solanki, D.M. Thumber. ''Kanha Chronicle''. Centre for Environment Education, Ahmedabad in collaboration with the United States National Park Service.
==External links== {{NIE Poster|Swamp Deer|year=1905}} * [http://www.animalinfo.org/species/artiperi/cervduva.htm Animal Info: ''Barasingha''] * [http://www.waza.org/en/zoo/visit-the-zoo/deer-1254385523/cervus-duvaucelii World Association of Zoos and Aquariums: ''Barasingha – Cervus duvaucelii'']
{{Artiodactyla|R.1}} {{Taxonbar|from=Q506308}}
Category:Cervines Category:Fauna of South Asia Category:Mammals of Nepal Category:Mammals of India Category:Mammals described in 1823 Category:Taxa named by Georges Cuvier Category:Symbols of Madhya Pradesh Category:Symbols of Uttar Pradesh Category:Fauna of Uttar Pradesh