From Captivity to Conservation Success: A Review on the Mouse Deer Breeding Program and its Implications for Biodiversity Preservation

Abstract

Captive breeding has become an important tool for conserving threatened species. The success of these conservation programs depends on the survival of species through self-sustaining populations managed by scientific values. Mouse deer is a primitive deer that plays a crucial role in the forest ecosystem as a key seed disperser and forms significant prey for both small and large predators. Despite its significance, little is known about this species' mating behavior and reproductive physiology in both the wild and captivity. As part of the conservation breeding and species recovery program, a breeding program of mouse deer started with the aim of breeding them in captivity and release them into the wild to preserve the biodiversity. This program began with six founder individuals and we observed a remarkable increase of 400 individuals within 10 years. These captive-bred individuals have been successfully introduced into the wild. This paper presents a comprehensive review of potential factors required for the successful breeding program and also provides recommendations on future directions and perspectives of conservation breeding program of mouse deer and other species.