# Marsh deer (*Blastocerus dichotomus*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/marsh-deer  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The marsh deer (Blastocerus dichotomus) is a mammal in the family Cervidae, order Artiodactyla, subfamily Capreolinae and tribe Odocoileini. It is a large, terrestrial herbivore with a nocturnal activity pattern, with an adult body mass of 86.67 kg and up to 102.5 kg. Gestation lasts 270.6 days, ranging from 255 to 271 days, and females have 1 young per litter and 1 litter per year. The IUCN Red List classifies the marsh deer as Vulnerable (VU), a threatened category, and its lifespan is given as 13.7 years.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 86.7 kg – 102.5 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 13.7 years |
| Diet | Herbivore |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Gestation | 255 days – 271 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 1 |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Conservation status | Vulnerable (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Artiodactyla
- family: Cervidae
- genus: Blastocerus
- species: *Blastocerus dichotomus* (Illiger, 1815)

Synonyms: *Cervus dichotomus*, *Cervus paludosus*, *Cervus palustris*, *Mazama furcata*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the marsh deer?

The marsh deer is a mammal in the family Cervidae, order Artiodactyla. It belongs to the subfamily Capreolinae and the genus Blastocerus.

### How heavy is the marsh deer?

The marsh deer has an adult body mass of 86.67 kg, with values up to 102.5 kg reported. It falls in the large size class.

### What does the marsh deer eat?

The marsh deer is a herbivore.

### Is the marsh deer endangered?

The marsh deer is listed as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List, which is a threatened category.

### How long does the marsh deer live?

The lifespan of the marsh deer is given as 13.7 years.

### How many young does the marsh deer have?

The marsh deer has 1 young per litter and 1 litter per year, after a gestation of 270.6 days.

### Is the marsh deer nocturnal?

Yes, the marsh deer has a nocturnal activity pattern and a terrestrial lifestyle.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Marsh deer (Blastocerus dichotomus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/marsh-deer