Some information and records about musk (She, ) and river deer (Zhang, /) can be found in local chronicles or documents in Guizhou. They were taken as the same species in terms of a medicinal animal. The records for their living areas in Guizhou were neither clear nor in detail in the Ming Dynasty, but were specific in the Qing Dynasty and more concise in the period of the Republic of China. The living areas for musk and river deer reduced from the Ming Dynasty to the Republic of China. Such change was believed to be the result of the natural environment and the social factors as well, such as the reclamation of mountain areas in Guizhou, the reduction of forests, and the demand and resulting exorbitant prices that led to excessive hunting.
贵州方志载有不少麝与麞（獐）的资料。方志中关于麞（獐）的资料即是麝的信息。贵州麝产地在明代既不详实也不明晰，清代相对详细确切，民国则尤为具体明确。明清至民国，贵州麝产地数量不断减少，这是自然环境和社会因素共同作用的结果：贵州山地的开垦、树木的砍伐造成森林的减少是引起麝产地变化的自然因素；商贸的需求、价格的昂贵引起人们对麝的捕杀是导致麝产地变化的社会因素。.