Horton Plains National Park Sambar deer (Rusa unicolor): grazing patana grasslands and antler growth?
What mineral foraging behaviors and nocturnal grazing habits sustain large herds of wild Sambar deer across the high-altitude Horton Plains plateau?
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3 Answers from travellers
The Sambar Deer (Rusa unicolor / Gona) is the largest cervid species in Sri Lanka, with mature stags weighing over 250kg. A thriving population inhabits the open patana grasslands and montane forests of Horton Plains National Park (2,100m elevation). Sambar are predominantly nocturnal and crepuscular grazers, feeding on coarse tussock grasses and aquatic macrophytes in stream hollows during night hours. During daytime, they rest inside cloud forest cover. Bucks shed and regrow massive multi-tined antlers annually, requiring high dietary calcium and mineral intake obtained by gnawing on fallen bones and mineral-rich stream clays.
Habituated Sambar deer frequently gather near the park visitor center and Pattipola entrance gate hoping for tourist handouts; feeding wild deer is strictly illegal.
Ingesting discarded polythene bags and plastic food wrappers left by irresponsible tourists causes fatal rumen impaction and starvation in park Sambar.
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