Social organization and mating behavior of white-lipped deer in the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, China

The overall range of Cervus albirostris is restricted to the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau and Qilian Shan Area, and it inhabits alpine grasslands and rhododendron or willow shrubs just above spruce forests, ranging in altitude from 4000-5000m. The deer is gregarious and retains a high degree of cohesiveness. The authors observed >40 groups with an average size of 39 ranging from 1-169. Stag groups were observed three times outside the rut; hind groups eight times outside the rut; mixed groups 28 times. Time of the rut was from early to late October in N Sichuan. Mating aggregations ranged in size from 8 to 169 with mixed composition. Stags wallowed and emitted roars, which were the loudest and most conspicuous call during the rut. The head-down posture and chasing were common in interactions between stags. Estrous hinds were defended by the dominant stags for at least three hours before and after copulation. The mating system of the deer was regarded as a harem. -from Authors