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Grasses Made Up 97.4% of Northern Barasingha Winter Diet in Dudhwa

Wild northern swamp deer in Dudhwa National Park, India
Research · Ecology

Grasses made up 97.4% of the winter diet of the northern subspecies of barasingha (Rucervus duvaucelii duvaucelii) in Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, India, according to a study published online on 17 April 2026. Researchers identified 28 food-plant species in faecal samples collected during January–March 2024, showing that the deer relied overwhelmingly on grasses during the winter study period.

The team combined vegetation surveys at eight locations with microhistological analysis of pellet samples. In this method, plant fragments that survive digestion are identified by comparing their microscopic features with reference material from known plants. This allowed the researchers to compare what plants were available in the habitat with what the deer had eaten.

The winter diet was grass-dominated but selective

The analysis showed that the animals did not use all plants in proportion to their availability. Five plant species were consumed roughly according to their availability, ten were used less than expected, and eight were classified as preferred food plants. The authors therefore describe the winter diet as strongly grass-dominated but selective within the available vegetation. In other words, abundant grasses were not automatically the most valuable forage: palatability and digestibility could help explain why some plants were eaten less than their availability would suggest.

The study was limited to the winter season. Based on these observations, the authors emphasise the importance of conserving the wetland and grassland habitats that provide feeding areas for northern barasingha in the Terai landscape.

Sources and image credit

  1. Jaseem, A., Ilyas, O., & Sainy, V. K. (2026). Winter dietary habits of Northern Swamp deer (Rucervus duvaucelii duvaucelii) in Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, Uttar Pradesh, India. Ethology Ecology & Evolution, 38(3), 389–406. https://doi.org/10.1080/03949370.2026.2641225Primary research article published online 17 April 2026. Vegetation surveys and microhistological analysis of pellet samples from Dudhwa Tiger Reserve detected 28 food-plant species; 97.4% of the winter diet consisted of grasses, with five plants consumed in proportion to availability, ten less preferred and eight preferred.

Image: Abhishek Shastri / Wikimedia Commons / Flickr — wild northern swamp deer photographed in Dudhwa National Park, Uttar Pradesh, India, on 27 July 2012; directly relevant to the study area; cropped to 16:9. · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Source

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