South Andean Deer – also known as “Huemul”
The Patagonian huemul (Hippocamelus bisulcus) is the most vulnerable hoofed animal in South America. Also known as the Patagonian huemul, Chilean guemal, South Andean deer, South Andean huemul, and Chilean huemul, is Chile’s national animal.
Huemuls have a stocky physique and short legs, which help them adapt to the uneven, challenging terrain they reside on. The long, curled hairs of their coat, which is brown to grayish-brown in color with white undersides and a white marked throat, protect them from cold and moisture. Huge ears on huemules have been compared to donkey ears in the past. Antlers are a feature exclusive to males and are shed annually at the end of the winter. Males also have a characteristic brown “facial mask” that is black and shaped like an elongated heart around the forehead.
What does a Huemul eat?
Huemuls are herbivores. They consume leaves, delicate shoots, and occasionally grass as food.
Where can I see a Huemul?
The Huemul is now terribly in danger of being extinct, as has happened to so many of Patagonia’s natural four-legged inhabitants.
Huemul area, which formerly extended from Santiago all the way down to the Straits of Magellan and was a common resident of both the Chilean and Argentinean sides of the Andean mountain range, is now fast disappearing.
The best chance to see a South American huemul is in Patagonia. In Chile, along the shores of Lago Cochrane and in Tamango National Reserve because Conservacion Patagonica has recently established protected habitats for this endangered species in these areas. In Argentina your best chances are near El Chaltén, where you will found out that plenty of things are named after this magnificient animal: “Huemul Route”, “Huemul Hotel”, “Huemul Mountain” and so on.
Huemul in El Chalten, by Luciano Cortez
How many Huemuls are left?
There are thought to be 2,000 left in the wild, with about 1,500 of them in Chile and the remaining 500 or so traversing the Argentinean mountains.
Huemul threats
Today, habitat fragmentation, poaching, competition with domestic livestock, and dog predation are the main problems facing huemuls. Huemuls’ native lands were reduced by logging, pipeline building, and land conversion for agriculture, and humans were introduced to the area where these deer live. Huemul populations have significantly declined as a result of domestic dog harassment and predation, domestic animal diseases and parasites, and competition from introduced species like red deer.
Patagonia Wildlife tours and other itineraries
We are an Argentina based tour operator, expert in custom tours in Argentina and Chile. We invite you to explore some of our tours:
- Patagonia Puma Tracking Tour and Orca Whale Watching.
- Tailor Made Holidays Peninsula Valdes
- Patagonia Penguin tour
- Other wildlife tour (out of Patagonia) you may like:Ibera Wetlands Tour
- Huemul Circuit (this is actually a trekking tour)
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