Barbary stag

Barbary red deer in the Tierpark Berlin

The Barbary red deer (Cervus elaphus barbarus ), also known as Atlas deer is a subspecies of red deer. It represents the only member of the deer family in Africa.

Description

The head -body length is 190 cm, shoulder height of 130 to 140 cm in males. The females are smaller. It weighs up to 70 kg for females and up to 200 kg in the males. The antlers reach a length of 80 to 90 cm. The winter coat is dark gray-brown, with long and woolly hair. The summer coat is reddish-brown, thin, and the female has more or less visible, arranged in longitudinal lines, ivory-colored spots. The pups are highly blotched.

Dissemination

The Barbary red deer is widespread in the Atlas Mountains in northwestern Algeria and northern Tunisia. In Morocco, where he was eradicated in 1932, a re-introduction took place in 1994.

Endangering

Due to uncontrolled hunting were exterminated. 1961 was estimated only a few hundred individuals. Thanks to strict protection measures and the absence of predators, such as the Barbary Leopard, the Barbary lion and the Atlas Bear, the stock rebounded in 1983 to 1300 individuals. Today he is with a stock of 5,000 copies no more than immediate jeopardy. The Barbary deer share habitat with introduced red deer from Spain and the calves occasionally fall victim to feral pigs.