Pengze Sika Deer

Pengze Sika Deer

　　Pengze Sika Deer is a specialty of Pengze County, Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province. The Taohongling Sika Deer National Nature Reserve in Pengze County is China's largest protected area for wild southern subspecies of Sika Deer, and Pengze County is known as the "Hometown of Chinese Sika Deer."

　　The Taohongling Sika Deer National Nature Reserve in Pengze County is renowned as "China’s largest protected base for wild southern subspecies of Sika Deer." Currently, the reserve is home to a population of over 400 wild southern subspecies of Sika Deer, accounting for one-third of the world’s total wild Sika Deer. Although wild Sika Deer are a Class I protected animal in China, according to relevant national laws, once approved by the proper management authorities, captive-bred individuals of nationally protected animals can be utilized for economic development after three generations. It was for this reason that Yao Jian, who had previously worked in Guangdong, decided to return to his hometown to start a business. Yao Jian and his partners were drawn to the ecological environment of the Pengze Central Nursery and began preparations in September last year to establish the Pengze Wanlu Yuan Ecological Development Co., Ltd. The company plans to invest a total of 30 million yuan to develop leisure Sika Deer farming, aiming for a herd size of 1,000—making it the largest Sika Deer breeding base in Jiangxi Province. Currently, aside from the 100 captive-bred Sika Deer introduced at the Central Nursery, there is also a Sika Deer Breeding Center in Tianhong, Pengze, covering an area of 300 acres, with plans to reach a herd size of 500 by June. At the same time, the Tianhong Breeding Center plans to invest 7 to 8 million yuan in upgrading tourism facilities to develop leisure Sika Deer farming. The first step is to establish a solid breeding foundation; the second step is to develop leisure tourism centered around “agritainment”; and the third step is to vigorously promote the deep processing of Sika Deer products. Once the Sika Deer herd reaches 500, the development of deer wine can begin, creating even greater economic value.