Order : ARTIODACTYLA
Family : Cervidae
Species : Cervus unicolor

Head-Body Length : Males up to 2 metres
Tail Length : Males up to 28 cm 
Weight : Males up to 260 kg
Females are considerably smaller.

References : M1, M2, M3

 

These photos were taken from a hide in Taman Negara at around 10 p.m. A herd of  four Sambar had congregated on the far side of a grassy clearing about 50 metres away. I had to set my digital camera at 6400 ASA equivalent to achieve these somewhat grainy images.

The Sambar or Rusa deer were once occurred in a variety of habitats but are now mainly confined to primary and mature secondary forests due to hunting pressure. Crepuscular (i.e. active at morning and dusk) and nocturnal in habit, they are most easily spotted at the forest margins where they feed on young grass shoots. They frequent natural salt licks, particularly adult males who need minerals to promote growth of their antlers.

Male Sambar are among the largest of Southeast Asia's deer, with a head-body length of up to 2 metres and weighing up to 260 kg. The fur is brown to grey-brown, the tail dark and the underside of the tail and rump area whitish. The antlers of the male usually have three tines (points). In addition to grass shoots they feed on vines and fallen fruits. Herds are small with up to 4 individuals and a single fawn is born after a gestation period of 8 months.

The species ranges from India, Sri Lanka and Nepal through Burma, southern China and Indochina, to Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines. They are extinct in Singapore.

Two adult females grooming.