Comparative morphometrical studies on the skull bones of barking deer (Muntiacus muntjak) and sambar deer (Rusa unicolor) |
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Authors: | Keneisenuo Keneisenuo MVSc Om Prakash Choudhary PhD Pranab Chandra Kalita PhD Priyanka Choudhary PhD Arup Kalita PhD Probal Jyoti Doley MVSc Jitendra Kumar Chaudhary PhD |
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Institution: | 1. Department of Veterinary Anatomy and Histology, College of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry, Central Agricultural University (I), Aizawl, India;2. Department of Veterinary Microbiology, College of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry, Central Agricultural University (I), Peren, India;3. Department of Animal Genetics and Breeding, College of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry, Central Agricultural University (I), Aizawl, India |
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Abstract: | The present study reports data on the skull bone morphometry of barking and sambar deer. The skulls of adult barking deer (n = 6) and sambar deer (n = 6) of either sex (n = 3 males and n = 3 females) were collected from the Aizawl Zoological Park, Aizawl, Mizoram, India, with official permission from the Government of Mizoram. Anatomically, barking and sambar deer's skulls were elongated, pyramid-like, dolichocephalic and consisted of thirty-two cranial and facial bones. The cranial bones were eleven (three single and four paired), comprising of occipital, sphenoid, ethmoid, frontal, interparietal, parietal and temporal. The facial bones were twenty-one (one single and ten were paired), consisting of the maxilla, premaxilla (incisive), palatine, pterygoid, nasal, lacrimal, zygomatic (malar), vomer, turbinates, mandible and hyoid. In the present study, altogether 41 different measurements were taken morphologically and 6 different indices were applied. The obtained morphometrical parameters were significantly (p < .01, p < .05) higher in males than females of both species. Species wise, all obtained parameters were higher in sambar deer than barking deer. The obtained 41 different skull parameters and 6 indices showed statistically significant differences (p < .01 and p < .05) between both sexes of barking and sambar deer; however, practically these differences were meagre. The present morphometrical study on the skull of both species can help the wildlife professionals and zoo veterinarians determine the sex of these animals and differentiate it from other domestic and wild small ruminants for solving veterolegal cases. This study's findings will also motivate and assist other comparative studies with various domestic and wild small ruminants. |
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Keywords: | barking deer cranial facial morphometrical sambar deer skulls |
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