SINGAPORE: Once thought to be nearly gone from Singapore, the sambar deer is making a quiet comeback, with its population surging from 15 to 120 in five years.
The herd's growth is raising new questions about how to manage a species that has no natural predators here and whose numbers show no signs of slowing.
Most people in Singapore would likely not have encountered one before. The timid creatures – outsized only by the moose and the elk, making them the world's third-largest deer – typically emerge from their forest habitats under the cover of darkness to graze, taking off at the first sign of alarm.
The species was thought to be extinct here after World War II due to hunting and deforestation, and was not seen again until the 1970s in Mandai, said Dr Marcus Chua, research fellow at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum.
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In the late 1990s, the Nature Society estimated there were as few as three individuals here, before the National Parks Board (NParks) reported around 15 in 2021.
Today, five main herds are spread across Mandai, Gali Batu, Chestnut Nature Park, Nee Soon Swamp Forest and the vicinity of Singapore Island Country Club, said Mr Jay Lim, founder of the Save Sambar Deer initiative.
His team tracks them through camera traps, nightly observations and headcounts, profiling each deer through unique identifiers such as scars, antlers, coloration and body size.
“Our latest estimates suggest the population is approaching 120 individuals, with numbers continuing to grow,” said Ms Emma Robertson Chia, the initiative's head of outreach and education.
NParks has similarly observed an increase in population density through camera trap monitoring, said Mr How Choon Beng, the agency's group director for wildlife management.
A sambar deer spotted at Gali Batu on Apr 20, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Ili Mansor)
With no natural predators and numbers climbing steadily, the herd's expansion is beginning to raise practical concerns.
Deer have been spotted roaming from Gali Batu into nearby Choa Chu Kang, grazing on the edges of housing estates before returning to their habitat, said Mr Lim. Human-deer encounters along roads near forested areas are becoming more frequent.
"We believe that this number will still continue to grow. So there's a need for us to better manage the deer population," he said, suggesting that a formal deer management programme be implemented.
Options that could be considered include contraceptives, sterilisation and potentially relocating some of the animals abroad.
“Nevertheless, all these have to be carefully thought through. We try not to play god,” Mr Lim added.
Save Sambar Deer founder and head of the field team Jay Lim, and head of outreach and education Emma Robertson Chia at Gali Batu on Apr 20, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Ili Mansor)
Ms Chia said the thriving population brings its own complications.
“If the population keeps growing without space to support it, the risks just shift from extinction to conflict, disease and imbalance,” she said.
Field observations by the Save Sambar Deer team have found signs of mineral deficiency in some deer. The group has deployed mineral salt lick blocks at three locations in Mandai and Gali Batu to address nutritional gaps that certain forest environments may not provide.
A salt lick set up in the Gali Batu area. (Photo: Save Sambar Deer)
The sambar deer is currently listed as a vulnerable species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species.
Despite their growing numbers, sambar deer remain poorly understood by the public – and living alongside them requires adjustment on both sides.
“With the huge antlers and their size, I think there may be the idea that they're very dangerous. But they are generally incredibly shy creatures, and this is why we call them the ‘ghosts of the forest’,” said Ms Chia.
The animals can weigh as much as a double-door fridge and grow antlers up to about 1m, but will typically scatter and flee when they spot people.
Two male sambar deer locking horns. (Photo: Nicholas Lee)
Males can be more aggressive during mating season, from October to December, as they become protective of their mates – but members of the public are safe as long as they keep their distance, especially around male-female pairs, said Mr Lim.
Still, he cautioned that the absence of past attacks does not rule out future incidents.
Mr Chua noted that sambar deer do not have a conservation status in Singapore's Red Data Book, meaning there is no deliberate population target. The main threats to the deer are habitat loss and road traffic accidents, with no signs that poaching for antlers is an issue here, he added.
A pair of sambar deer seen at Gali Batu on Apr 20, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Ili Mansor)
Mr How said NParks has introduced various measures to strengthen ecological connectivity over the years, including wildlife crossings such as Eco-Link@BKE and underground culverts. Speed-regulating strips and exclusion fencing have been installed along roads with higher animal sightings.
“We will continue to explore solutions to reduce vehicular-wildlife collisions, such as leveraging technology, including artificial intelligence, to improve our monitoring of wildlife movements near roads to mitigate roadkill incidents,” he said.
He also urged the public not to feed sambar deer, noting there are sufficient food sources in the wild.
Mr Lim's group takes a direct approach to building public awareness – sharing deer sighting locations with those who ask, but with strict conditions: stay in the car, keep headlights off, stay quiet and do not get out.
“Coexistence is really not just about the animals adapting to us. It's us having to make space for them as well,” said Ms Chia.
The Save Sambar Deer initiative was founded in 2020 after Mr Lim, then working in real estate, stumbled upon a group of deer while hiking the Mandai T15 trail. Realising no one was actively advocating for the animals, he began spending extensive time in the forest documenting them.
He now contributes about S$35,000 to S$50,000 annually to support the group's work, which spans public outreach, field trips for tertiary students and a research centre in Indonesia under its parent organisation EcoWild Asia.
A male sambar deer with its distinctive antlers. (Photo: Nicholas Lee)
Today, the all-volunteer team of 12 covers population tracking, camera trapping and photographic identification.
Among them is engineer Nicholas Lee, 34, who stakes out the deer up to three nights a week – often returning empty-handed.
“After getting into wildlife photography I started thinking about how I can start contributing to the conservation of our local fauna beyond just taking photos of them,” he said.
Fellow photographer Prashanta Kumar Mohanty, a 47-year-old software engineer, shoots a few hours each week around his work schedule. Documenting the deer at night was "a completely new learning curve", he said.
“There’s something truly special about seeing them in their natural environment, especially knowing how elusive they are.”
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The herd's growth is raising new questions about how to manage a species that has no natural predators here and whose numbers show no signs of slowing.
Most people in Singapore would likely not have encountered one before. The timid creatures – outsized only by the moose and the elk, making them the world's third-largest deer – typically emerge from their forest habitats under the cover of darkness to graze, taking off at the first sign of alarm.
The species was thought to be extinct here after World War II due to hunting and deforestation, and was not seen again until the 1970s in Mandai, said Dr Marcus Chua, research fellow at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum.
CNA Games
Show More Show Less
In the late 1990s, the Nature Society estimated there were as few as three individuals here, before the National Parks Board (NParks) reported around 15 in 2021.
Today, five main herds are spread across Mandai, Gali Batu, Chestnut Nature Park, Nee Soon Swamp Forest and the vicinity of Singapore Island Country Club, said Mr Jay Lim, founder of the Save Sambar Deer initiative.
His team tracks them through camera traps, nightly observations and headcounts, profiling each deer through unique identifiers such as scars, antlers, coloration and body size.
“Our latest estimates suggest the population is approaching 120 individuals, with numbers continuing to grow,” said Ms Emma Robertson Chia, the initiative's head of outreach and education.
NParks has similarly observed an increase in population density through camera trap monitoring, said Mr How Choon Beng, the agency's group director for wildlife management.
A sambar deer spotted at Gali Batu on Apr 20, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Ili Mansor)
A NUMBERS PROBLEM
With no natural predators and numbers climbing steadily, the herd's expansion is beginning to raise practical concerns.
Deer have been spotted roaming from Gali Batu into nearby Choa Chu Kang, grazing on the edges of housing estates before returning to their habitat, said Mr Lim. Human-deer encounters along roads near forested areas are becoming more frequent.
"We believe that this number will still continue to grow. So there's a need for us to better manage the deer population," he said, suggesting that a formal deer management programme be implemented.
Options that could be considered include contraceptives, sterilisation and potentially relocating some of the animals abroad.
“Nevertheless, all these have to be carefully thought through. We try not to play god,” Mr Lim added.
Save Sambar Deer founder and head of the field team Jay Lim, and head of outreach and education Emma Robertson Chia at Gali Batu on Apr 20, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Ili Mansor)
Ms Chia said the thriving population brings its own complications.
“If the population keeps growing without space to support it, the risks just shift from extinction to conflict, disease and imbalance,” she said.
Field observations by the Save Sambar Deer team have found signs of mineral deficiency in some deer. The group has deployed mineral salt lick blocks at three locations in Mandai and Gali Batu to address nutritional gaps that certain forest environments may not provide.
A salt lick set up in the Gali Batu area. (Photo: Save Sambar Deer)
The sambar deer is currently listed as a vulnerable species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species.
GHOSTS OF THE FOREST
Despite their growing numbers, sambar deer remain poorly understood by the public – and living alongside them requires adjustment on both sides.
“With the huge antlers and their size, I think there may be the idea that they're very dangerous. But they are generally incredibly shy creatures, and this is why we call them the ‘ghosts of the forest’,” said Ms Chia.
The animals can weigh as much as a double-door fridge and grow antlers up to about 1m, but will typically scatter and flee when they spot people.
Two male sambar deer locking horns. (Photo: Nicholas Lee)
Males can be more aggressive during mating season, from October to December, as they become protective of their mates – but members of the public are safe as long as they keep their distance, especially around male-female pairs, said Mr Lim.
Still, he cautioned that the absence of past attacks does not rule out future incidents.
Mr Chua noted that sambar deer do not have a conservation status in Singapore's Red Data Book, meaning there is no deliberate population target. The main threats to the deer are habitat loss and road traffic accidents, with no signs that poaching for antlers is an issue here, he added.
A pair of sambar deer seen at Gali Batu on Apr 20, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Ili Mansor)
Mr How said NParks has introduced various measures to strengthen ecological connectivity over the years, including wildlife crossings such as Eco-Link@BKE and underground culverts. Speed-regulating strips and exclusion fencing have been installed along roads with higher animal sightings.
“We will continue to explore solutions to reduce vehicular-wildlife collisions, such as leveraging technology, including artificial intelligence, to improve our monitoring of wildlife movements near roads to mitigate roadkill incidents,” he said.
He also urged the public not to feed sambar deer, noting there are sufficient food sources in the wild.
Mr Lim's group takes a direct approach to building public awareness – sharing deer sighting locations with those who ask, but with strict conditions: stay in the car, keep headlights off, stay quiet and do not get out.
“Coexistence is really not just about the animals adapting to us. It's us having to make space for them as well,” said Ms Chia.
ON THE TRAIL
The Save Sambar Deer initiative was founded in 2020 after Mr Lim, then working in real estate, stumbled upon a group of deer while hiking the Mandai T15 trail. Realising no one was actively advocating for the animals, he began spending extensive time in the forest documenting them.
He now contributes about S$35,000 to S$50,000 annually to support the group's work, which spans public outreach, field trips for tertiary students and a research centre in Indonesia under its parent organisation EcoWild Asia.
A male sambar deer with its distinctive antlers. (Photo: Nicholas Lee)
Today, the all-volunteer team of 12 covers population tracking, camera trapping and photographic identification.
Among them is engineer Nicholas Lee, 34, who stakes out the deer up to three nights a week – often returning empty-handed.
“After getting into wildlife photography I started thinking about how I can start contributing to the conservation of our local fauna beyond just taking photos of them,” he said.
Fellow photographer Prashanta Kumar Mohanty, a 47-year-old software engineer, shoots a few hours each week around his work schedule. Documenting the deer at night was "a completely new learning curve", he said.
“There’s something truly special about seeing them in their natural environment, especially knowing how elusive they are.”
Continue reading...