Japanese serow

The Japanese serow (氈鹿, kamoshika, lit. "coarse pelt deer") (Capricornis crispus) (羚羊) is a Japanese <a href="/facts/Caprinae/Bg660Alj">goat-antelope</a>, an <a href="/facts/Even-toed_ungulate/LS4ra9ET">even-toed ungulate</a>. It is found in dense <a href="/facts/Woodland/BcnoNfmp">woodland</a> in Japan, primarily in northern and central <a href="/facts/Honshu/Rp7Ew35d">Honshu</a>. The serow is seen as a national symbol of Japan, and is subject to protection in conservation areas.
Adult Japanese serow stand about 81 centimetres (32 in) tall and weigh 30–45 kilograms (66–99 lb). They are black to whitish, and colouring lightens in summer. The fur is very bushy, especially the tail. Both sexes have short, backwards-curving horns, and are difficult to distinguish by sight. Japanese serow are found in dense mountain forests where they eat leaves, shoots, and acorns. They are <a href="/facts/Diurnality/GgXnXvN7">diurnal</a> and feed in early mornings and late afternoons. Serows are solitary, or gather in couples or small family groups. The animal <a href="/facts/Territory_(animal)/T15S7XeD">marks its territory</a> with sweet-and-sour-smelling <a href="/facts/Preorbital_gland/wr8l2CsK">preorbital gland</a> secretions, and males and females have separate territories that may overlap.
In the mid-20th century, the Japanese serow was hunted to near-extinction. In 1955, the Japanese government passed a law designating it a "Special National Monument" to protect it from poachers. Populations have since grown so greatly that the <a href="/facts/IUCN_Red_List/8gemqCLu">IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals</a> ranks it "<a href="/facts/Least_concern/8u7koV5r">least concern</a>". Complaints from foresters and farmers led in 1979 to the 1955 law's repeal. Since then, the serow has had protected status in 13 designated protected areas over 23 <a href="/facts/Prefectures_of_Japan/qfbjCbfH">prefectures</a>, and has been subject to <a href="/facts/Culling/lAgVgnC5">culling</a> as a pest outside conservation areas. Conservationists have labelled it a "living national treasure of the forest".

Japanese serow open-in-new

Japanese serow