Himalayan White Bellied Musk Deer (Moschus leucogaster) of Bhutan, China, India, and Nepal

The term moschid appears in more scientific, technical literature regarding Asia's moss-eating, mountain-dwelling musk deer. The mammals in question are familiar to the continent's ancient cultures and modern peoples as sources of:

• Delicious meat;

• Fragrant incenses, medicines, and perfumes;

• Trophy tusks;

• Warm coats and gloves.

They count among the wildlife benefitting from ancient and modern identification systems. For example, they emerge as one of the genera described in 1758 by Swedish nobleman Carl Linnaeus (May 23, 1707 – January 10, 1778), as:

• Admirer of rural wildlife in his native village of Råshult in southern Sweden's Småland Province;

• Author of Systema Naturae (“Nature's System”);

• Biologist, botanist, zoologist;

• Inventor of the modern scientific disciplines of ecology and taxonomy;

• Physician.

Greco-Latin, scientific, taxonomic names accommodate binomial (“two-name”) and trinomial (“three-name”) nomenclatures. Binomial taxonomies articulate the organism in question's genus and species membership whereas trinomial systems identify:

• Genus;

• Species;

• Subspecies.

Not all species divide into subspecies. For example, the taxonomy of the Himalayan white-bellied musk deer currently goes no further than the binomial level. The Himalayan white-bellied moschid's scientific classification therefore is Moschus leucogaster in recognition of the day-resting, evening- and night-tripping mammal's light-colored undersides. It results from the examination of specimens in 1839 by Lower Beech-born British scientist Brian Houghton Hodgson (February 1, 1800 – May 23, 1894), as:

• Civil servant in India and Nepal;

• Linguist in Nepali, Newari, Persian, Sanskrit;

• Mammalogist;

• Ornithologist;

• Pioneer ethnologist and naturalist.

The specimens which inspire the Himalayan white-bellied musk deer's official presentation to wildlife-loving amateurs and specialists outside Asia are from Tibetan language-speakers in:

• Digurchee;

• Lhasa.

But the above-mentioned ruminants (mammals with four-part stomachs) also claim bio-geographies in:

• Bhutan;

• China;

• India (especially Sikkim and Uttarakand);

• Nepal.

The realization of life cycles and natural histories demands altitudes 8,202.1+ feet (2,500+ meters) above sea level. Appropriate niches within high-elevation habitats express such alpine configurations as:

• Fell-fields;

• Fir forests;

• Meadows;

• Plateaus;

• Shrublands.

The Himalayan white-bellied musk deer finds no problems:

• Bounding 656.17 – 984.25 feet (200 – 300 meters) in circles;

• Climbing trees;

• Foraging 1.86 – 4.35 miles (3 – 7 kilometers);

• Jumping 19.69 feet (6 meters);

• Scaling 20°+ slopes.

Musk deer physiques lack:

• Antlers;

• Facial glands.

They possess as hallmark morphologies (external, internal structural features):

• Gall bladder;

• Longer rear-limbs stronger than shorter, thinner fore-legs;

• Rabbit-like ears;

• Rounded backs;

• 2 canines, 6 premolars, 6 molars in the upper jaw;

• 6 incisors, 2 canines, 6 premolars, 6 molars in the lower jaw;

• Two sets of two-toed hooves per foot, with the higher-placed dewclaws contributing to the moschid's distinct tracks.

They reveal:

• Grey-white under-sides;

• Sandy-brown upper-parts.

The absence of strongly white throat patches and stripes as well as the size of the skull serve to distinguish the Himalayan white-bellied musk deer from the almost identical alpine musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster).

Himalayan white-bellied musk deer sustainability demands:

• Consuming forbs, grasses, leaves, lichens, mosses, seeds, twigs;

• Eluding predatory grey wolves (Canis lupus), leopards (Panthera pardus), lynxes (Lynx lynx), red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), yellow-throated martens (Martes flavigula);

• Excrement- and scent-marking home ranges of 0.09+ square miles (0.22+ square kilometers).

It necessitates:

• Breeding between November and January;

• Delivering 1 – 2 newborns after gestating 185 – 195 days;

• Nursing 2 months;

• Weaning at 6 months.

Adulthood requires:

• Male tusks 2.76 - 3.94 inches (7 – 10 centimeters) long;

• Physiques 33.86 – 39.37 inches (86 – 100 centimeters) long;

• Sexual maturity at 16 – 24 months;

• Weights of 24.23 – 39.65 pounds (11 – 18 kilograms).

Impacted habitats and populations are side-effects of:

• Modern-minded agro-industrialists;

• Tradition-bound hunters of moschid meat, musk, and tusks.

Expanding urban and shrinking wildland interfaces betray wildlife-unfriendly agendas and interactions of modernists and traditionalists. Commitments to customer bases and living standards ironically contribute to the above-mentioned environmental stress and habitat fragmentation. And yet the ecological impacts do not have to be negative. For example, the People's Republic of China encourages musk deer farming for:

• Extracting musk legally and non-fatally;

• Protecting deer populations;

• Supporting traditional revenue bases.

The north Indian state of Uttarakand likewise gets kudos for:

• Conferring state animal status upon the Himalayan white-bellied musk deer;

• Establishing the Askot and Kedarnath Musk Deer Sanctuaries.

Scientific advances and technological breakthroughs theoretically help all of Planet Earth's faunal, floral, and human populations to:

• Experience biological well-being;

• Realize life expectancies.

But it is not always easy to reconcile priorities when decisions and policies impact different interests and populations. For example, commitments to political stability and socio-economic development may be contrary to the well-being of wildlife. Communication systems, cultivated lands, and custom-built residences understandably please a nation's human inhabitants even though their realization may disrupt wild populations and fragment wild habitats. The needs of people and wildlife nevertheless stand chances of being met without harm to either when citizens and officials commit to:

• Environmental education;

• Scientific research;

• Wildlife-friendly parks, preserves, reserves, and sanctuaries.

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Male and female musk deer (Moschus): Moschids enjoy mountains and mosses.
illustration by Pierre Jacques Smit (October 17, 1863–1960)
Richard Lydekker, The Royal Natural History, Vol. II section IV (1894), p. 396: Public Domain, via Biodivesity Heritage Library @ https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/28360432

Pioneer ethnologist and naturalist Brian Houghton Hodgson's examination of a Himalayan White-Bellied Musk Deer led to the species' official description in 1839.
oil on canvas (exhibited 1872) by Louisa Starr-Canziani (1845-May 25, 1909)
National Portrait Gallery, London; NPG 1707: Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Brian_Houghton_Hodgson_by_Louisa_Starr-Canziani.jpg

Specimens from which Brian Houghton Hodgson derived his official description were collected in Tibet, at Lhasa in the east, and Digurchee (Shigatse) in the west.
Tashilhunpo Monastery(Tibetan: བཀྲ་ཤིས་ལྷུན་པོ་), founded in Shigatse, Tibet's second largest city, in 1447 by 1st Dalai Lama, Gendun Drup (Tibetan: དགེ་འདུན་གྲུབ།, dge-'dun grub, 1391–1474); monastery's vastness housed 4,000 monks.
Shigatse (official name: Xigazê), Tsang Province, western Tibet Autonomous Region: Antoine Taveneaux (Antoinetav), CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tashilhunpo11.jpg

"The Thibetian Musk: Native of Asia"
illustration by James Stewart (ca. October/November 1791 - May 1863); engraving by William Lizars (1788 - March 30, 1859)
Sir William Jardine, The Naturalist's Library, Vol. XXI, Plate III, opp. p. 116: Not in copyright, via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/18735818

Yellow-throated martens (Martes flavigula) are fearless omnivores that include Himalayan White-Bellied Musk Deer among their prey.
"Kharza. Martes (Charronia) flavigula aterrima Pall. attacking a musk deer": illustration by A.N. (Alexey Nikanorovich) Komarov (October 1, 1879-March 31, 1977)
VG Heptner et al., Mammals of the Soviet Union, Vol. II Part 1b (1967), Plate 6, opp. p. 912: CC BY NC SA 4.0, via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/mammalsofsov212001gept/page/n194/mode/1up

Scottish naturalist Sir William Jardine (1800-1874) noted Tibetan Musk Deer liking for Rhododendron dauricom, shrub with nodding purple flowers, common in pine forests, and ranging from Siberia south through Central Asia's deserts into China and Tibet.
Siberian rhododendron (Rhododendron dauricom): illustration by Syd. Edwards (Sydenham Teast Edwards; August 5, 1768-February 8, 1819); published May 1, 1817, by J. Ridgway & Sons, 170 Piccadilly
The Botanical Register, Vol. III (1817), Plate 194: Biodiversity Heritage Library (BioDivLib), Public Domain, via Flickr @ https://www.flickr.com/photos/biodivlibrary/49863265286/

Northern India's Kedarnath Wild Life Sanctuary includes a breeding station for Himalayan White-Bellied Musk Deer at Kharchula Kharak, about 6.2 miles (10 km) from Chopta.
Picturesque hill station of Chopta is one of entry points for sanctuary.
north central Uttarakhand, northern India: dirk.hartung, CC BY SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chopta,_Uttarakhand.jpg

Densely forested Manali Wildlife Sanctuary, located in Western Himalayas in North India, welcomes musk deer populations, including Himalayan White-Bellied Musk Deer.
Old Himalayan cedar (Cedrus deodara) at 8,202 feet (2,500 meters) in Manali Wildlife Sanctuary
Manali Wildlife Sanctuary, north central Himachal Pradesh, northern India: Paul Evans from London, United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cedrus_deodara_Manali_2.jpg

Himalayan White-Bellied Musk Deer claim landlocked northeast Indian state of Sikkim as one of their Himalayan homelands.
early morning view of Kanchenjunga, world's third largest peak, situated on Sikkim-Nepal border; northwest Sikkim, northeast India: Indrajit Das, CC BY SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kangchenjunga_-_Early_Morning_View.jpg

Himalayan White Bellied Musk Deer (Moschus leucogaster)
Hind limbs that are longer than forelimbs account for hindquarters that are higher than shoulders.
illustration by Eyal Musk Anhuvi (איור של אייל מושק ההימלאיה): מנחם.אל (menachem.el), CC BY SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons @
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:אייל_מושק_ההימלאיה_-_איור_של_משתמש-מנחם.אל.png

Himalayan White-Bellied Musk Deer homelands: Kedarnath Wild Life Sanctuary in northern India in Himalaya Highlands, with elevations ranging from 3,810 feet (1,160 meters) to 23,189 feet (7,068 meters)
National sanctuary is alternatively known as Kedarnath Musk Deer Sanctuary in recognition of primary purpose of protecting endangered Himalayan Musk Deer.
Garhwal Himalaya, north central Uttarakhand, northern India: Gaurav Agrawal (Gaurav), CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chaukhamba_peak,_Garhwal_Himalayas,_Uttarakhand.jpg

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