Originally from Asia, the species is rarely seen in zoos and is considered elusive and highly endangered in the wild. The hog deer derives its name from the unusual way they move through the forest. Unlike other deer species that leap over obstacles and run with their heads held high, hog deer move through the undergrowth with their heads hung low, much like a wild boar. This behaviour also gives them a survival advantage: When threatened, they duck their heads and disappear almost invisibly into the dense vegetation.
Hog deer are about the same size as our native roe deer, but have a much stockier build. They are found in South and Southeast Asia, including Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand, where they prefer dense forests, but also roam open grasslands.
Typically solitary, hog deer are primarily active in the early morning and late afternoon. The new arrivals, a breeding pair, now occupy the former Reeves' muntjac enclosure, so there is a good chance of offspring at Hellabrunn in the near future. "Hellabrunn is participating in the EAZA Ex-situ Programme (EEP) for hog deer – as one of only five zoos in Germany. This species is very rare because it is quite elusive," said Lena Bockreiß, biologist and curator of ungulates at Hellabrunn Zoo. "We are all the more pleased about this new addition – because even in their native habitat, hog deer are endangered according to the IUCN Red List."
Due to their rather nervous nature, the two animals were accompanied on their journey from Tierpark Berlin and Dresden Zoo by Lukas Schenk, keeper and team leader of Team Nilgau. "It's always a tense moment when new animals exit their transport crate and spend their first few hours in a new enclosure or stable," said Schenk. “We therefore initially place barrier tape along the enclosure boundaries so they can see where the outdoor enclosure ends and the moat begins." In recent decades, the population has declined dramatically – primarily due to hunting and habitat loss. Today, they are mostly found only in protected areas such as national parks. The two new arrivals therefore offer visitors to Hellabrunn a rare opportunity to observe this little-known deer species up close.