Mammals · Artiodactyla · Cervidae

Southern Pudu

Pudu puda

Near Threatened

It could become endangered in the near future if current threats go unchecked. See full glossary

The southern pudu is the second smallest deer in the world, after the northern pudu, and lives in the temperate rainforests of southern Chile and a strip of Argentina. It stands barely 40 centimetres at the shoulder and moves along tunnels it opens through the tangle of quila bamboo and understorey. It is solitary, unobtrusive and mainly crepuscular. Its greatest threats are the loss of native forest, feral dogs and road deaths on the highways of southern Chile.

Weight

6.4 kg – 13.4 kg

Size

70 cm – 90 cm

Lifespan

12 years

Diet

Herbivore

Feeds mainly on plants.

Activity

Crepuscular

Active above all at dawn and dusk.

Social structure

Solitary

Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.

Sighting difficulty

Moderate

Temperate forestHerbivore Crepuscular Solitary Near Threatened Temperate forest Mammal

7countries 10parks23same family

Fun facts

It climbs: it gets up onto fallen trunks and rocks to reach high leaves, and animals have been documented walking up sloping branches, which is unheard of in a deer.
When chased it does not flee in a straight line: it zigzags along the tunnels of the understorey, where a dog or a puma cannot follow at the same speed.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (mammal)
Habitat & environment: Dense understorey of Valdivian temperate rainforest and bamboo thicket in Chile and Argentina
Sexual maturity: 9 months
Gestation / incubation: 6.6 months
Litter / clutch size: 1

Sources consulted: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_pudu