Philippine mouse-deer
Tragulus nigricans Thomas, 1892
The philippine mouse-deer (Tragulus nigricans) is a species in the family Tragulidae, order Artiodactyla. Recorded adults weigh about 3.85 kg and live up to 14 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Endangered.
Quick facts about the philippine mouse-deer
- Weight
- 3.85 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 14 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Herbivoresrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 16.7 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- Not recorded
- Gestation
- 154 dayssrc for Gestation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 1src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 4.96 months – 5.15 monthssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1src for Litters or clutches a year
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Endangered (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the philippine mouse-deer live?
Not recorded
What is the philippine mouse-deer?
The Philippine mouse-deer (Tragulus nigricans), also known as the Balabac chevrotain or pilandok (in Filipino), is a small, nocturnal ruminant, which is endemic to Balabac and nearby smaller islands (Bugsuk and Ramos) southwest of Palawan in the Philippines. The genus Tragulus means 'little goat' and the Philippine mouse-deer has been named so due to the horizontal pupils of the eyes. This position of the pupil allows for an increase in peripheral depth perception. It has traditionally been considered a subspecies of the greater mouse-deer (T. napu). In 2004, though, T. nigricans was separated from T. napu as its own species due to differences in skull morphology (skull measurements). Contrary to its common name, the Philippine mouse-deer does not belong to the true deer family (Cervidae); it is a member of the chevrotain family, a grouping of some of the world's smallest hoofed mammals.
From the Wikipedia article “Philippine mouse-deer” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Philippine_mouse-deer&oldid=1382844122), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the philippine mouse-deer endangered?
The philippine mouse-deer is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List: it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Endangered species. What the categories mean.
How is the philippine mouse-deer classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderArtiodactyla
- familyTragulidae
- genusTragulus
- SpeciesTragulus nigricans Thomas, 1892
Synonyms Tragulus napu nigricans
Other names and names in other languages (23)
- Balabac chevrotainEnglish
- Balabac chevrotainEnglish
- Balabac mouse deerEnglish
- Balabac mouse deerEnglish
- Balabac mouse deerEnglish
- شفرتين بالاباكArabic
- غزال فاري بالاباكArabic
- غزال فاري فلبينيArabic
- Kančil černavýCzech
- kančil balabackýCzech
- BalabackantschilGerman
- Balabac-KantschilGerman
- Ciervo ratón filipino o pilandokSpanish
- Ciervo Ratón del Archipiélago de BalabacSpanish
- Chevrotain de BalbacFrench
- Fülöp-szigeteki kancsilHungarian
- フィリピンマメジカJapanese
- 필리핀쥐사슴Korean
- FilippinerdverghjortNorwegian Bokmål
- BalabackantjilDutch
- kanczyl ciemnyPolish
- กระจงฟิลิปปินส์Thai
- Filipin ŞevroteniTurkish
Relatives of the philippine mouse-deer
Other species in the same genus Tragulus.
Java mouse-deer
Tragulus javanicus
Lesser mouse-deer
Tragulus kanchil
Greater mouse-deer
Tragulus napu
Vietnam mouse-deer
Tragulus versicolor
Williamson's mouse-deer
Tragulus williamsoni
ComparePhilippine mouse-deer vs Java mouse-deerPhilippine mouse-deer vs Lesser mouse-deerPhilippine mouse-deer vs Greater mouse-deerPhilippine mouse-deer vs Vietnam mouse-deer
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the philippine mouse-deer?
An adult philippine mouse-deer weighs 3.85 kg, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the philippine mouse-deer endangered?
The philippine mouse-deer is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild.
How long does the philippine mouse-deer live?
The philippine mouse-deer has a recorded lifespan of 14 years.
How long is the philippine mouse-deer pregnant?
The recorded gestation period is 154 days.
What kind of animal is the philippine mouse-deer?
The philippine mouse-deer (Tragulus nigricans) belongs to the family Tragulidae in the order Artiodactyla.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · 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 · 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 · 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 · 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 · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · 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).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Philippine mouse-deer (Tragulus nigricans). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/philippine-mouse-deer
“Philippine mouse-deer (Tragulus nigricans).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/philippine-mouse-deer.
@misc{philippine_mouse_deer_2026,
title = {Philippine mouse-deer (Tragulus nigricans)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/philippine-mouse-deer},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}