An investigation of somatic pairing in the muntjak (Muntiacus muntjak).

The Asiatic deer possesses the lowest diploid chromosome number known in mammals: 2N = 6 ♀; 2N = 7 ♂. Since all chromosomes of the idiogram are individually identifiable, pairs of homologs are seasily discernible. Distances between centromeres of all possible pairs of chromosomes were measured in a total of 169 cells (88 male and 81 female). Statistical analysis revealed no statistically significant somatic association between homologs.