Overview
Said to be much smaller than other Asian wapiti. Overall color is a very uniform grayish-brown, with no darkening on head and legs, but gradually lightening toward the belly. There is a wide, dark brown belly stripe. The rump patch is very large, brownish-white in color with no dark border, and is split by a broad but indistinct stripe that extends almost to the root of the tail. The tail is the same color as the rump patch. According to Flerov, the antlers are slender, with massive fourth tines, and are typical in form for a wapiti.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammal
- Order
- Artiodactyla
- Family
- Cervidae
- Genus
- Cervus
- Species
- Cervus canadensis
Habitat
Distribution- Found only in China, in the Alashan range of southeastern Inner Mongolia.
Diet
This animal both grazes and browses based on seasonal availability.
Behavior
This is the least understood wapiti subspecies.
Conservation Status
Listed as Least Concern by IUCN. However this classification refers to the species as a whole, not the Alashan Wapiti specifically. Population estimates for this subspecies are not well-defined.