Bactrian deer

The Bactrian deer, also referred to as the Bukhara deer, Bokhara deer, or Bactrian wapiti, is a distinct subspecies of red deer native to Central Asia. This deer frequently inhabits riparian corridors within desert landscapes, akin to the Yarkand deer. The Bactrian deer is characterized by its ashy-gray coat with a yellowish sheen, a unique white rump patch, and light-colored antlers typically featuring four tines. Males present a grayish-brown coat with darker legs, head, and neck, reminiscent of the American elk or wapiti. Females are slightly smaller and do not exhibit the pronounced size disparity seen in some other deer species. They have short tails, and the young may display spots that fade as they mature.

These deer can be found in central Khorasan, Russian Turkestan, and surrounding regions in northern Afghanistan, west of the Tian Shan Mountains. They favor lowland riparian corridors with mixed deciduous vegetation and generally do not migrate, though they might move into adjoining desert areas when temperatures fall. By 1999, the Bactrian deer population had dwindled to fewer than 400 individuals, with dramatic declines in Tajikistan due to military conflicts. However, conservation efforts, spearheaded by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), have been successful. Reintroduction initiatives, such as the one in the Zarafshan reserve in Uzbekistan, contributed to the population's resurgence to around 1,000 deer in Central Asia by 2006.

Conservation measures for the Bactrian deer are supported by the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals. In 2002, a Memorandum of Understanding was established to coordinate conservation and restoration endeavors. The Bactrian deer faces predation from wolves, brown bears, dholes, snow leopards, Eurasian lynx, and wild boars, as well as from the historically present, now-extinct Caspian tiger. Despite these threats, the Bactrian deer population is on the mend. The most substantial wild populations now reside in nature reserves in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, with numbers rising to approximately 1,430 individuals and continuing to increase.