Sightings of spotted deer (chital) in new places outside forests in Coimbatore district, as far as Selakkarichal in Sultanpet union, could be a sign of the herbivore population slowly extending their ranges to suitable habitats in semi-urban and rural pockets, according to the Forest Department and experts.
People of Selakkarichal, around 10 km from Sulur, have been seeing a few spotted deer in bushes in deserted lands for the past two months. “I have seen two spotted deer in the locality which, according to residents, are here for the past two months. We have heard about deer populations in other places around Karumathampatti and Somanur. But the deer spotted in Selakkarichal are new,” said A. Thirunavukkarasu, a social worker from Selakkarichal.
A senior official from the Forest Department said that the spotted deer population moved from the forest to semi-urban and rural pockets of Coimbatore district, mainly through the course of the River Kousika over the past several years. “Even the spotted deer population in Tiruppur was a result of the herbivore moving to new habitats through the course of River Kousika,” the official said.
The 52-km-long Kousika river, with its origin at Kurudi Malai near Narasimhanaickenpalayam in the Periyanaickenpalayam forest range in Coimbatore district, used to flow through 20 Panchayats and town panchayats including Idigarai, Kovilpalayam, Vagarayampalayam and Thekkalur before converging with River Noyyal near Vanjipalayam in Tiruppur district. The deer population is believed to have further expanded to places around Sulur through the banks of Noyyal from the place of confluence.
While struggling to get accustomed to new terrains and other challenges, several deer have lost their lives. In February 2022, a spotted deer was run over by a truck near Kaniyur toll plaza on Salem-Kochi highway (NH 544). Recently, on April 30, a spotted deer was killed after being knocked down by a train near Ravathur, between Irugur and Sulur stations.
According to a resident of Ravathur, spotted deer are frequently sighted in deserted places in Ravathur, Muthugoundenpudur and Kulathur, which was unheard of some five years ago. Farmers are also apprehensive that deer would cause crop damages in future if their population increases.
Biologist G. Sivasubramanian said that spotted deer further expanding their range to new places was possible as they do not have predators.
“If the herbivore population increases beyond the carrying capacity of a particular place, they will naturally expand the range. Factors such as habitat suitability, population rise, threats including poaching and possibilities of translocation to places with predator base should be studied,” he said.
