Isolation

                                In honor of Halloween weekend, we will talk about vampires, deer vampires, with fangs. The musk deer is an odd species; it’s a deer with fangs that look like Dracula. Although they have giant fangs, they are still herbivores and only eat plants and leaves. These creatures are mostly found in eastern Asia but some more endangered species are found in Pakistan and Afghanistan, located in the foresty highlands of the Himalayas.  Most species of these fanged deer have been hunted to extinction for the musk gland they possess. It is one of the rarest and expensive animal parts in the world. The gland is used to make perfumes and to give things that “musky” smell. They can be sold in some places for 20,000 USD per pound. Read more here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musk_deer).

                Humans are spread all over the world, we can be found everywhere. We think we know everything about nature and what’s going on around us. Some places in the world are completely unknown to us. Thick jungles, deep ravines and caves, and deserts are isolated from humans; the conditions are usually too rough for us.  A lot of undiscovered species can be found in these areas, especially jungles where the diversity is gigantic. We are spread all over the world and a lot of it we have discovered and learn about, but we aren’t everywhere and we as humans still have a lot to learn.

                This week, after thought to be extinct, the musk deer makes an appearance in Kashmir after sixty years of being lost. It’s odd that a species, with such a distinct feature of giant fangs hasn’t been seen in 60 years. This is also weird because Kashmir, the area where these musk deer were found after 60 years is not a desolate area. Although it is at a high elevator, it is not completely barren and it is striking to me that 60 years go by without a human sighting of an animal. It’s not like they decided to disappear from earth for a while then come back. There must be some secret society of these deer were no humans can find them. They are hiding, making sure we don’t take their beautiful and musty smelling glands.