
You can find our Java mouse deer upstairs in our Tropical House, along with other species like our Hoffmann’s sloths and Amazon milk frogs.
Java mouse deer are native to Java, Indonesia. They can be found throughout the island, particularly near riverbanks and in areas of thick vegetation.
Java mouse deer are primarily herbivores – eating a range of leaves, shrubs, shoots, buds and fungi – in addition to fruit that has fallen from trees.
Interesting facts!
- Mouse-deer are also known as chevrotains, which means ‘little goat’ in French. Unlike goats, they lack horns, although males have tusks that they use to fight rivals.
- Male Java mouse deer are territorial, and mark both their territory and their mates with secretions from a special gland under their chin.
- When threatened, Java mouse deer will beat their hooves against the ground quickly, as fast as seven beats a second, to create a ‘drum roll’.
Conservation
There is not currently enough data on Java mouse deer to classify their status in the wild. However, Java mouse deer are regularly traded as part of the pet trade and for bush meat. They are under threat from habitat degradation and human infrastructure too.