Pudella carlae

Last updated

Pudella carlae
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Artiodactyla
Family: Cervidae
Subfamily: Capreolinae
Genus: Pudella
Species:
P. carlae
Binomial name
Pudella carlae
Barrio, Gutiérrez & D'Elía, 2024

Pudella carlae, the Peruvian Yungas pudu, is a species of cervid from Peru. It was found in 2024 to be a distinct species from the northern pudu, from which it is separated geographically by the Huancabamba Depression. It is the first living deer species to be described in the 21st century. [1] [2]

Contents

Etymology

The specific epithet carlae honors fellow biologist Carla Gazzolo, who saved co-author Javier Barrio's life after a vascular problem. [3]

Taxonomy

Pudu mephistophiles was historically divided into two subspecies, the type subspecies P. m. mephistophiles with its type locality near Papallacta, Ecuador, and P. m. wetmorei with its type locality in Puracé National Natural Park, Colombia. Both were later found to be individual variations inside one of two distinct populations, spanning through Colombia, Ecuador, and the northernmost part of Peru. The second population was identified in central Peru, separated from the first by the Huancabamba Depression. [4]

The southern population was found to be a distinct species from P. mephistophiles in 2024. At first believed by the researchers to be a subspecies of the latter, it was finally described as the new species P. carlae, distinguished by both morphological differences and genetic variation. It has been reported to be the first extant deer species discovered in the 21st century, and the first in the New World in more than 60 years. [2] [5]

The study describing P. carlae found that it and the northern pudu, P. mephistophiles, were not directly related to the southern pudu, P. puda . As the latter is the type species of the genus Pudu , the former two were placed in the resurrected genus Pudella to account for this distinction. [1] That genus was originally erected in 1913 to account for major differences between the northern and southern pudu. [6]

Both genera Pudu and Pudella belong to the tribe Odocoileini, which includes the neotropical deer, although they are not immediate parents. [2]

Description

Pudella carlae is a stocky, short-legged cervid. It is 38 centimetres (15 in) tall and weighs 7 to 9 kilograms (15 to 20 lb), making it larger than P. mephistophiles, the smallest known cervid species, but still smaller than Pudu puda. [2] [3] [5] [7]

The body fur is coarse, long, and orange-brown, distinguishing it from the darker coloration of the other two species. The head is mostly black, although not as fully as in P. mephistophiles, as the body's coloration extends to the forehead. Ears are oval, contrasting with the rounded ears of P. mephistophiles and the pointed ears of P. puda. The shape of the incisors also differs from those of other pudus, [3] [5] being more spatulated than in P. mephistophiles. The skull is also different, being more elongated, with larger premaxilla and nasal bones, wider braincase and zygomatic breadth. [2]

Ecology and behavior

Pudella carlae feeds on ferns, as well as on leaves and berries, mostly from bushes and small trees, although it has been reported to climb inclined tree trunks to eat their leaves. [3] [8]

Range and habitat

Pudella carlae is found to the southeast of the Huancabamba Depression in the Peruvian Yungas, in cloud forests along the eastern side of the Peruvian Andes. It is found in such areas as the Rio Abiseo National Park, the Yanachaga–Chemillén National Park, the Pampa Hermosa National Sanctuary, the Pui Pui Protection Forest, and the Alto Mayo Protection Forest. [9]

It lives at altitudes ranging from 1,800 to 3,300 metres (5,900 to 10,800 ft). [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deer</span> Family of mammals

A deer or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae. It is divided into subfamilies Cervinae and Capreolinae. Male deer of almost all species, as well as female reindeer, grow and shed new antlers each year. These antlers are bony extensions of the skull and are often used for combat between males.

<i>Pudu</i> Genus of mammals belonging to the deer, muntjac, roe deer, reindeer, and moose family of ruminants

The pudus are two species of South American deer from the genus Pudu, and are the world's smallest deer. The chevrotains are smaller, but they are not true deer. The name is a loanword from Mapudungun, the language of the indigenous Mapuche people of central Chile and south-western Argentina. The two species of pudus are the northern pudu from Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, and the southern pudu from southern Chile and south-western Argentina. Pudus range in size from 32 to 44 centimeters tall, and up to 85 centimeters (33 in) long. The southern pudu is classified as near threatened, while the northern pudu is classified as Data Deficient in the IUCN Red List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brown tinamou</span> Species of bird

The brown tinamou is a brownish ground bird found in humid lowland and montane forest in tropical and subtropical South America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brocket deer</span> Species of deer in the genus Mazama

Brockets or brocket deer are the species of deer in the genus Mazama. They are medium to small in size, and are found in the Yucatán Peninsula, Central and South America, and the island of Trinidad. Most species are primarily found in forests. They are superficially similar to the African duikers and the Asian muntjacs, but only distantly related. About 10 species of brocket deer are described.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little red brocket</span> Species of deer

The little red brocket or swamp brocket, also known as the Ecuador red brocket, is a small, little-studied deer native to the Andes of Colombia, Ecuador and northern Peru, where found in forest and páramo at altitudes between 1,400 and 3,600 metres. It is one of the smallest brocket deer. The coat is reddish, and the legs and crown are blackish. As recently as 1999, some authorities included both the pygmy brocket and Merida brocket as subspecies of the little red brocket.

Oligoryzomys destructor, also known as Tschudi's colilargo or the destructive pygmy rice rat, is a species of rodent in the genus Oligoryzomys of family Cricetidae. It is found along the eastern Andes from southern Colombia, through Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia into northern Argentina. Its karyotype has 2n = 60 and FNa = 76.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hooded mountain tanager</span> Species of bird

The hooded mountain tanager is a species of bird in the tanager family Thraupidae. It is the only member of the genus Buthraupis. This yellow, blue and black tanager is found in forest, woodland and shrub in the Andean highlands of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. At 23 centimetres (9.1 in) and 85 grams (3.0 oz), it is one of the largest tanagers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Capped conebill</span> Species of bird

The capped conebill is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smoke-colored pewee</span> Species of bird

The smoke-colored pewee is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae. The species is characterized by a uniform dusky-grey plumage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bicolored antvireo</span> Species of bird

The bicolored antvireo is a Near Threatened insectivorous bird in subfamily Thamnophilinae of family Thamnophilidae, the "typical antbirds". It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern caenolestid</span> Species of marsupial

The northern caenolestid, also known as the blackish shrew opossum, is a shrew opossum found in Colombia and Ecuador. It is listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern pudu</span> Species of small South American deer

The northern pudu is a species of South American deer native to the Andes of Colombia, Venezuela, Peru and Ecuador. It is the world's smallest deer and is classified as Data Deficient in the IUCN Red List. Originally classified under genus Pudu, some authorities consider it to belong to a separate genus (Pudella) from the southern pudu, along with Pudella carlae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Capreolinae</span> Subfamily of mammals

The Capreolinae, Odocoileinae, or the New World deer are a subfamily of deer. Alternatively, they are known as the telemetacarpal deer, due to their bone structure being different from the plesiometacarpal deer subfamily Cervinae. The telemetacarpal deer maintain their distal lateral metacarpals, while the plesiometacarpal deer maintain only their proximal lateral metacarpals. The Capreolinae are believed to have originated in the Middle Miocene, between 7.7 and 11.5 million years ago, in Central Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American mountain deer</span> Extinct species of deer

Odocoileus lucasi, known commonly as the American mountain deer, is an extinct species of North American deer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern pudu</span> Species of small South American deer

The southern pudu is a species of South American deer native to the Valdivian temperate forests of south-central Chile and adjacent Argentina. It is classified as Near Threatened in the IUCN Red List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peruvian Yungas</span> Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in the Yungas of Peru

The Peruvian Yungas comprise a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in Peru.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cordillera Central páramo</span> Ecoregion in the Andes Mountains

The Cordillera Central páramo (NT1004) is an ecoregion containing páramo vegetation above the treeline in the Andes mountain range of northern Peru and southern Ecuador. Due to its isolation there are high levels of endemism. Despite many human settlements and some destruction of habitat by agriculture and mining, the ecoregion is relatively intact.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern Cordillera Real montane forests</span>

The Eastern Cordillera Real montane forests (NT0121) is an ecoregion in the eastern range of the Andes of southern Colombia, Ecuador and northern Peru. The ecoregion covers the eastern slopes of the Andes, and includes montane forest that rises from the Amazonian rain forest, with cloud forest and elfin forest at higher elevations. It is rich in species, including many endemics. It is threatened by logging and conversion for pasturage and subsistence agriculture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Equatorial antpitta</span> Species of bird

The Equatorial antpitta is a species of bird in the family, Grallariidae. It is a member of the rufous antpitta species complex and in 2020, was found to be a species and not just a subspecies. It is found is southern Colombia, Ecuador, and northern Peru.

References

  1. 1 2 Anderson, Natali (2024-03-11). "New Species of Dwarf Deer Discovered in Peru". Sci.News. Retrieved 2024-03-15.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Barrio, Javier; Gutiérrez, Eliécer E; D’Elía, Guillermo (2024-03-01). Moratelli, Ricardo (ed.). "The first living cervid species described in the 21st century and revalidation of Pudella (Artiodactyla)" . Journal of Mammalogy. doi:10.1093/jmammal/gyae012. ISSN   0022-2372.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Pflughoeft, Aspen (2024-03-19). "'Dwarf'-like mountain creature seen snacking on plants in Peru. It's a new species". Miami Herald . Archived from the original on 2024-03-24. Retrieved 2024-03-24.
  4. Rivera-Portilla, María del Mar; Bravo-Vega, Carlos Andrés; Gómez-Bernal, Luis Germán; Tirira, Diego G. (2022-12-30). "Distribution of Pudu mephistophiles (sensu stricto) in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru: A maximum entropy model approach". Mammalia Aequatorialis. 4: 53–66. doi: 10.59763/mam.aeq.v4i.37 . ISSN   2697-3286.
  5. 1 2 3 González, C. (2024-03-05). "Identifican una nueva especie de pudú en América tras más de 60 años" [A new pudu species identified in the Americas after more than 60 years]. El Mercurio (in Spanish). p. 8. Retrieved 2024-03-16.
  6. Thomas, Oldfield (1913). "On certain of the smaller South American Cervidae". The Annals and Magazine of Natural History. 8. 11: 585–589. doi:10.1080/00222931308693360 via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  7. Barnett, Adrian. "Tiny deer from the dry valleys of Peru recognised as new species". New Scientist. Retrieved 2024-04-06.
  8. Vera, Enrique (2024-03-15). "El descubrimiento del misterioso pudú de la yunga peruana: una nueva especie que habita los bosques nubosos" [The Discovery of the Mysterious Peruvian Yunga Pudú: A New Species Inhabiting Cloud Forests]. Mongabay (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-03-21.
  9. "A New Deer Species Discovered in Peru's Forests". LatinAmerican Post. 2024-03-08. Retrieved 2024-03-15.
  10. Quiroz, Paulina (2024-03-12). "«Pudella carlae» la nueva especie de ciervo sudamericano" ["Pudella carlae" the new species of South American deer]. Escuela de Graduados Facultad de Ciencias – UACh (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-03-17.