An endering Java Mouse Deer was born at the Natura Artis Magistra zoo in Amsterdam, Netherlands. This even-toed deer is the smallest ungulate on earth, and it will be the size of a rabbit when it reaches maturity.


The Java Mouse Deer may be called a deer, but it doesn't grow antlers and they have elongated canine teeth. They are also timid and solitary and would live with a pair most of the time. At about three months, the baby deer will be weaned, and it would reach sexual maturity between five and ten months.

These herbivores are native to the forests of South and Southeast Asia, with a single species in the rainforests of Central and West Africa. Despite its similarities to other Southeast Asian deer, the Java Mouse Deer is a completely different animal.

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species classified the Java Mouse Deer as "Data Deficient" due to inconclusiveness regarding the distinct separation of the Tragulus species, as well as the lack of information on Tragulus javanicus.

But despite that status, there is a probability that the population of the Java Mouse Deer will decline, Zoo Borns reported.