The Red Deer is our largest deer species. It stands up to four and a half feet at the shoulder. The male is larger than the female. The colour of the coat is a red-brown. The male only grows antlers and these are shed yearly after the rut.

The red deer is found on the hills and moorlands of the Highlands of Scotland. The males and females usually live in separate groups for most of the year. On the open hill, the females tend to monopolise the better, grass-rich habitats, whilst the males graze the poorer, heather dominant areas.

Grasses, rushes and sedge comprise most of the summer diet. Heather and blaeberry are mostly eaten during the winter months.The females group together in herds of up to forty animals. There is a dominant hind, her dependent youngsters and her older daughters complete with their own offspring.  The stag herds are less stable and comprise totally unrelated individuals. 

The stags leave their bachelor herds and attempt to round up their own harem of between ten to fifteen hinds around September.  The stag becomes very protective of his harem, as he has to fight off other potential stags who wish to mate with his hinds.  After the rut, the mating season, the stags and hinds segregate again.  The calves produced as a result of the autumn matings are born from mid-May.  The calves are usually weaned by eight months old.  The young males start to develop their antlers at around ten months.  They are annually shed in March or April. 

The antlers become more branched as the stag ages, with the mature stags having a stronger chance of impressing and gathering hinds than the lesser antlered youngsters. The mature male should easily deter the youngsters by sight alone.  

Red Deer Fun Fact - It is best to leave deer antlers where they are if you happen to find them.  They are frequently nibbled by red deer and other mammals for the phosphorous and calcium.

Red deer - Photograph Courtesy of Heinz Seehagel

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