Alpine Musk-deer

The alpine musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster) is a musk deer species native to the eastern Himalayas in Nepal, Bhutan and India to the highlands of Tibet. The alpine musk deer recorded in the Himalayan foothills is now considered a separate species, the Himalayan musk deer. It is the state animal of Uttarakhand. == Taxonomy == The alpine musk deer belongs to the family Moschidae. This family is part of a clade that includes Bovidae, and Cervidae, which is a sister group to Giraffidae, who are all clustered together with Ruminatia under the order Artiodactyla. Recent studies have shown a relation between Artiodactyls and Cetaceans, combining them into the order Certiodactyla. Two subspecies are recognized: M. c. chrysogaster – Southern Tibet, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Nepal and Bhutan M. c. sifanicus – Qinghai, Gansu, Ningxia, western Sichuan, and northwestern Yunnan == Characteristics == The alpine musk deer is a small deer (40–60 cm tall) with long upper canines that do not hide within the mouth. It is named for having an externally visible musk sac between male testes. Its fangs grow during mating season and are used for sparring with other males. Alpine musk deer have a larger body size compared…