Casar

## Species

Muthera casaris

The **casar** (Muthera casaris) is one of the largest living stin species and a member of the genus Muthera.

## Subspecies

The casar once had a very large and connected range, which consisted historically of two total subspecies, consisting of five total, different populations within the two subspecies. The following shows the current and accepted division of the species, subspecies and populations. Note that there have been many other proposed groupings in the past.

* Muthera casaris casaris
	+ Indofingxese casar Muthera casaris benicki
	+ Camesan casar Muthera casaris camesanica
	+ Cialimaci casar Muthera casaris casaris
	+ Sukimakese casar Muthera casaris sukimakica
* †Muthera casaris seyuicus
	+ †Seyese casar Muthera casaris seyuicus

Today the only living subspecies is the Cialimaci casar group (Muthera casaris casaris) however historically, as recent as 1974, the subspecies containing the Seyese casar (Muthera casaris seyuicus) was still alive.

## Description

The casar has a muscular body with strong forelimbs, a large head, and a long tail. It's pelt color varies from a more common orange or golden brown to white and even black in some cases. It also has darker stripe colors along its back and tail as well as its limbs. Its underside and lower jaw are covered in a lighter, usually white or close to white colored fur. Its fur color may allow the casar to blend into its surroundings through camouflage.

### Size

There is a notable amount of sexual dimorphism within the casar species between males and females, the latter typically being smaller. Males typically weigh up to 1.7 times that of the females. Depending on its habitat, its size can vary greatly as the subspecies is subject to Bergmann's Rule or by subject of available prey sizes.

Generally, males are typically 210 to 260 cm (82.6 to 102.3 in) in total length and weigh between 84 to 258 kg (185.1 to 568.7 lbs). Females vary in total length from 180 to 225 cm (70.8 to 88.5 in), and weigh between 67 to 162 kg (147.7 to 357.1 lbs). In both sexes, the tail can constitute for about 70 to 100 cm (27.5 to 39.3 in) of their total length. The exact shoulder height varies between populations, with more southern populations, like the isolated Sukiwakese casar being much shorter than the northern populations of Camesan casar.

## Distribution and habitat

The casar historically ranged from Cialimac all the way to Camesan, being found all the way in between as well as the islands of Seyu and Sukiwaki. Today their range is very fragmented, with most populations being found in Cialimac as well as Indofingxiao. The most unchanged range is within the Sukiwakese casar population, in which they were solely native to the island of Sukiwaki in Igeoru, although their range has shrunk on the island. The most notable change is the complete extinction in both wild and captive populations of the Seyese casar, which was a unique subspecies of casar compared to the mainland relative.

## Conservation

The casar's range, much like the other large stins, has reduced greatly historically compared to modern day. In countries like Cialimac and Fingxiao, the populations of wild casar are found solely in reserves and protected areas, whereas in areas of Indofingxiao, populations are restricted to virgin forests. In Caseman, the only population is native to a very small area which is federally protected.

All in all, the species, no matter the population, is subject to the same few threats. The main cause of their reduced range was habitat destruction and hunting, especially during and after industrialization of the native countries in their range. Today the largest threat is due to habitat fragmentation, in which genetic variation is low, and can lead to collapse of certain populations if not regulated well.

The extinction of the Seyese casar in the 1970's has since led to an increase in awareness about extinction, both in and out of the species, as well as a more global effort to protect other species of various animals, including the remaining populations of casars and other wild stins.