Hyemin Lee (Illustration by Hyemin Lee/Stripes Korea)

Water deer is one of Korea’s strangest wildlife stories. Internationally, water deer are listed as a vulnerable species but in South Korea, they are common enough to be designated as harmful wildlife because they damage crops and stray onto roads and farms. Unlike most deer, water deer have no antlers. Instead, males have long canine teeth, which is why some people call them vampire deer. You can see them near open fields or roadsides in rural areas, and for many Korean farmers, gorani are a serious yearly problem. Korea’s water deer demonstrate how the same animal can be protected globally, but controlled locally when its population grows too large.

(Illustration by Stripes Korea)