Dear deer
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons
There are two native species of deer in the UK, the Red and the Roe, though Fallow deer are now so well-established as to be considered native. The Normans introduced them to England around the 11th century.
Other non-native deer, like Muntjac deer from China and Chinese Water deer, and Sika deer from Japan, are seen in increasing numbers. All the male deer grow antlers, apart from the Chinese Water deer, which instead have large canine teeth, called tusks. Sometimes, these deer are called ‘vampire deer.’
Red deer are the largest species. The iconic baying stag is strongly associated with Scotland, though it is also found in numbers in other parts of England and Wales.
A stag starts growing his antlers in the spring. They grow rapidly, at the rate of 2½ cm (1”) a day and are fully developed by September, in time for the mating season, or rut. They are covered in velvet, which supplies the growing bone with oxygen and nutrients, until just before the rut. Then the velvet is rubbed off, against tree bark in the summer, and the bone dies. The antlers are shed in early spring and are grown again from early summer.
The size and extent of antlers may indicate a stag’s age, but teeth are a more accurate pointer. Stags with twelve points are called Royals, but the points must be equally distributed. A beast with five on one side and seven on the other will not be classified as a Royal.
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Stags with fourteen points used to be informally known as Imperials and those with sixteen as Monarchs. However, Sir Edwin Henry Landseer’s famous painting, ‘The Monarch of the Glen,’ clearly shows a stag with twelve points.
The much smaller roe deer also grow antlers, but they never exceed three points. They were the original inspiration for the book ‘Bambi.’ I wrote about roe deer a number of years ago.
Roe often shows up as a word in crossword puzzles.
ReplyDeleteWe have so many deer in Michigan. I really like it when they have their velvets. They look really smooth. We have a lot of deer come into the garden despite living in the city. This summer we had a mother and two fawns. Really lovely to see them grow!
ReplyDeleteWhite-tailed deer are native where I live. They are lovely animals.
ReplyDeleteI'm slightly shocked they were introduced by the Normans. Not the Romans? I wonder how we know this.
ReplyDeleteWhere my parents lived in Sussex, roe deer were becoming quite a problem for the local farmers as there was nothing to control their numbers. Not a problem though for the Magdalen College Oxford deer park, culls to control numbers meant that venison was a regular on the college dinner menu.
ReplyDeleteI recognised the Landseer as soon as I opened your page. The handsome animal's position, and the rocks behind make him truly monarchical.
ReplyDeleteRed deer in Glen Torridon. Now that's a familiar topic.
ReplyDeleteCheers! Gail.
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ReplyDeleteThe artist really caught the regality of the deer. No hard hooved animal is native to Australia and they are all pest species but we have fallow, red, chital, hog rusa and sambar.
ReplyDeleteAnother species we don't have here. I suppose they never managed to swim across the Irish Sea. If we ever come across venison in the shops it is generally the farmed variety usually from Scotland. A rare treat for us.
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