A population of hard-ground swamp deer translocated from Kanha Tiger Reserve to Satpura Tiger Reserve, both in Madhya Pradesh, is growing steadily and breeding successfully, according to a new study. The subspecies, once widespread across central India, now survives in just one region, making efforts to establish a second population critical in reducing extinction risk.

The hard-ground swamp deer (Rucervus duvaucelii branderi) was once found widely across India, but today survives naturally only in the Kanha. According to the IUCN Red List, the hard-ground swamp deer is categorised as vulnerable and is listed under Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. The subspecies declined historically due to habitat alteration, fragmentation of grasslands and hunting. With a single population of roughly 1,100 animals, the species remains vulnerable to disease outbreaks or other threats.

“Confining the entire subspecies to Kanha effectively created a single point of failure,” says Neha Awasthi, the study’s corresponding author, and member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Species Survival Commission’s Deer Specialist Group. “Small isolated populations face intrinsic risks such as demographic stochasticity [fluctuations in mean growth rate], genetic drift and inbreeding, as well as external threats including disease outbreaks or large-scale environmental disturbances.” The study was conducted by...

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