Equus kiang
kiang

Equus kiang are wildly distributed in Tibet, Tsinghai and Szechwan regions of China, Nepal, and India. Three subspecies have been assigned to populations in different ranges, but this is still controversial.

E. kiang live in alpine grass lands of elevation range from 4000 m to 7000 m. They prefer dry open areas including desert, semidesert, or steppe. Annual precipitation is from 60 mm to 70 mm.

Equus kiang is the largest wild ass species in the world. Kiang lengths are about 210 cm, shoulder heights are about 140 cm, tail lengths are 50 cm, and body weights are 250 to 440 kg. Their pelage changes with season. They are usually reddish in summer and dark brown in winter. In summer the coat is shorter and thinner, while the winter coat is long and thick. Equus kiang look more like horses than asses because of their short ears and large tail tufts. They are very similar to Equus hemionus genetically and physically. The mitochondrial DNA divergence between the 2 species is only 1%, and the divergence probably arose less than 500,000 years ago. Their running speed is slightly slower than E. hemionus.

Male E. kiang mob females and guard them from rival males. Single males follow the female herds and fight for breeding rights.

The breeding season is from August to September. Gestation takes almost a year, and thus young are usually born in late July to August when food is plentiful. One young is born at each birth. The baby can walk a few hours after birth. Weaing takes place after about a year, and it takes another year to reach sexual maturity.

About 20 years.

E. kiang usually form family groups of 5-400 animals. The group is led by an old female, and is tightly cohesive. The group may travel long distances in search of food.

E. kiang are good swimmers. During summer they are often observed bathing in rivers. They are active nocturnally and they feed primarily at night.

They may gain 40-45 kg during the vegetation growth season in August to September.

E. kiang feed mainly on grasses and short plants. They especially feed on forbs (Stipa spp.), which are widely distributed and plentiful. Their feeding areas sometimes overlap with those of domestic sheep during summer, but they do not complete for food significantly.

Only wolves prey on wild asses in nature. However, going back to the early 1900s, they have been hunted for meat and skins. Since the hunting started, the geographic distribution of E. kiang has been reduced.

The wild asses are hunted for meat and for their skins, which are used for making leather.

Undetermined (IUCN, 1996).

Lower risk (IUCN, 2000).

However, habitat loss and competition for food sources with livestocks could put them at risk. In some areas, poaching pressure still exists.