First photographic record of Spotted Deer Axis axis (Erxleben, 1777) (Artiodactyla: Cervidae) in Great Indian Bustard Sanctuary, Maharashtra, India

Abstract

Axis axis also known as Chital, Spotted Deer or Axis Deer, is native to Asia. The Chital ranges over 8–30 0N in India and through Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. Chital is listed as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species because it possesses a very wide range, however, the population is declining outside protected areas. Although widely distributed, there is no record of Chital from the Great Indian Bustard (GIB) Sanctuary, Maharashtra. Here we report the first photographic record of Chital from the sanctuary, in the Gangewadi region of Solapur District. During a field work exercise for radio collaring of Indian Grey Wolves to monitor movement in the human-dominated landscape of Maharashtra, camera traps were placed in the Gangewadi area of the GIB sanctuary. Over the survey period, the species that were photo-captured included the Indian Grey Wolves, Indian Fox, Jungle Cat, Black Buck, Wild Boar, porcupine, and Black-naped Hare on multiple occasions. The male Spotted Deer was captured at one event in a single camera trap (17.83240N, 76.00430E) on 30 December 2020 at 0517 h. This is the first record of Spotted Deer in the grassland ecosystem of Solapur region in Maharashtra.