Vishayan spotted deer-world rarest animal

The Visayan spotted deer is one of the world's rarest mammals.

The Visayan spotted deer was not recognized as a separate species until 1983.

The range of the Visayan spotted deer is essentially the same as that of the endangered Visayan warty pig, which is subjected to the same threats.

Much of the destruction of the forests of the Visayan Islands, which are home to this deer, may be attributed to landless peasants and indigenous tribal groups who moved into these areas to clear temporary agricultural plots, especially after lumber concessions were terminated and the sugar industry became depressed. These plots are known as kaingin, and their soil is rapidly exhausted and new plots must be cleared every few years. Tropical storms wash the sparse topsoil off of the bare hillsides into the sea