Swamp Deer, Nepal
Swamp Deer in Central Zoo, Kathmandu
During my visit to Nepal I spent a few days in the Royal Chitwan National Park. This is in the Terai area of southern Nepal. As a part of that visit I went on several elephant rides through the park. The main purpose of these rides was to see tigers and rhinoceros. We weren’t lucky enough to see any tigers – most people don’t – but we did see several of the local rhinos.
On these rides we also came across a family group of Swamp Deer, or more correctly, Barasingha. These beautiful deer are native to India and Nepal. The group we saw from the elephant’s back was quite a distance away and it was rather gloomy, so I didn’t get a good photo. The photo above was taken in the Central Zoo in Kathmandu later in the week.
The Barasingha (sometimes spelt Barasinga) is a type of deer, native to India and Nepal. In Assam in the North-East India, Barasingha is traditionally known as Dolhorina similar to its English name as dol in Assamese means swamp. In Central India it is called goinjak (male) or gaoni (female). The most striking feature of a barasingha is its antlers, with 10-14 tines on a mature stag, though some have been known to have up to 20. The name is derived from this and means 12 tined or horned in Hindi. (From Wikipedia article)
Links:
- Barasingha – article in Wikipedia about the Swamp Deer.
- Travels in Nepal #55 Elephant ride
- Travels in Nepal #56 Rhinoceros
- Travels in Nepal #57 Tigers in Nepal
- Travels in Nepal #58 Another Rhinoceros