Mistaken identity

A Central Zoo Authority report says confusion in animal identification might have led to selection of wrong deer species for conservation breeding

- VIVEK MISHRA

THERE HAS been a confusion in correctly distinguishing this species [the Alpine musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster)] from the Himalayan Musk Deer (Moschus leucogaster), which is distributed from the western to eastern Himalayas. Due to their sympatric distribution, it is possible that zoos have misidentified these species," states a Central Zoo Authority (cza) report released in December 2024.

The startling admission in CZA'S “Planned Breeding Programs in Indian Zoos: Assessment and Strategic Actions (2024)” refers to the misidentification of the Alpine musk deer—an endangered species found in the central to eastern Himalayas—for its conservation breeding programme being run at two locations, Uttarakhand and West Bengal. Instead of the Alpine musk deer, the zoos seemingly initiated a conservation breeding programme of the Himalayan musk deer. “The historic population at the Musk Deer Breeding Centre near Chopta, Uttrakhand, and individuals housed at Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park, Darjeeling, were probably M. chrysogaster. Currently, no recognized zoo reports holding captive stock of this species, suggesting that a breeding program was never initiated,” the report says.