XXX. BARKING, OR RIB-FACED DEER

(Cervulus Aureus, vel Muntjac)

‘Kakur,’ generally throughout the Himalayas; ‘Ratwa,’ in Nepal and neighbouring states; ‘Jungli Bukra,’ in Central Provinces; ‘Muntjac,’ Sundanese

This deerlet is found pretty generally throughout India, Burmah, Ceylon and the Malay Peninsula, wherever there are fairly high hills covered with forest. Thick cover and plenty of water seem essential to it.

Kakur are not gregarious; they are generally found in pairs, each pair seeming to keep pretty much to its own particular ravine or patch of jungle. They will often live close to villages, and feed on the crops at the edge of the jungle; they rarely venture far into the open, and invariably live close to water. Their general colour is a bright golden bay, with the lower parts white; the tail is rather long, and as the deer when galloping carries his head low and cocks his tail up, he forcibly reminds one of an old buck rabbit. The buck has horns about five inches long, set on bony pedicles about three inches high, which are covered with longish hair. In good specimens there is a small brow antler of about one inch in length, and the tips of the horns should be curved back enough to permit of the head being suspended from a cord by the hooks. The V-shaped creases on the face, from which it derives its name of rib-faced, are dark brown, and there is a dark line up the front of each pedicle. The horns appear to be shed annually. The buck has a pair of sharp stout tushes in the upper jaw, of which he can make very good use. Ward laments the loss of a valuable terrier which was killed by a wounded buck, so that it is advisable to be careful in handling one. The kakur has a peculiar resonant call, like the hoarse bark of a dog, which can be heard for a long distance; and as the buck frequently keeps on barking for some time, it will often betray its locality to the sportsman—its locality certainly, but not much else. The stalk is enlivened with song till just the critical moment, when a glimpse of the performer would be so desirable; then usually comes a dead silence—possibly the buck is waiting for the applause you so ungraciously withhold—no sign of the songster, look as you will there is nothing to be seen but bushes and stems of trees! Suddenly out of emptiness appears a flash of red surmounted with a brilliant white scut, and a derisive bark, in answer to your snap-shot, proclaims your defeat. Moreover, it behoves one to be wary when stalking a barking kakur; he may very possibly be barking at a panther, or even in some localities at a tiger, and it is as well to be careful that you do not entertain—not quite an angel unawares. Jungle warnings, such as monkeys swearing and the alarm notes of peafowl and deer, should never be lightly disregarded.

Occasionally kakur make a curious clicking noise, probably, as Kinloch suggests, with the tongue, which is very long. The writer has watched a kakur walking quietly down a sandy river-bed, clicking all the way at intervals; here certainly the hoofs could not have made the noise in sand. That buck was shot, and as the writer saw another single kakur several times afterwards not far from the same spot, it has struck him that the clicking noise might possibly be a low call from one of a pair to its mate.

In Garwhal the natives occasionally call kakur, using a split ringal cane, and making a call very similar to that used in the Tyrol for roe deer; but the writer’s experience of this class of sport is that one may sit and pipe for a long time before anything comes. Having the covers driven is also poor fun if there is only one gun, as the deer will rarely come right, almost always breaking back; and by far the pleasantest and best way of getting kakur is by strolling through the forest in the early morning and evening when, if there are any about, the sportsman is pretty sure to see or hear them.

AuthorityHeight at shoulderLength, head and bodyTailWeight as shotLength of hornsGirth of hornsLength of brow antlerRemarks
Cervulus aureus
ins.ins.ins.lbs.ins.ins.ins.
Major Ward..........8..‘Sportsman’s Guide to Ladak, &c.’
”27....407½....”
”26....377½....”
Capt. H. Brooke........6½3..
Mr. B. H. Hodgson, British Museum........6½2⅝..Rowland Ward, ‘Horn Measurements’
Mr. A. O. Hume........6½3..”
British Museum........6⅛..1½
The Writer........6..1
Major Ward27....446....‘Sportsman’s Guide to Ladak, &c.’
”26....425½....”
”26....375½....”
”23....32......A doe ”
Major FitzHerbert20344½32......
Col. Kinlochabout 18......about 5....‘Large Game Shooting’
Sterndale’s ‘Mammalia’26 to 28about 407..2 to 5....
Average of good head........5..1