The Red Deer is a majestic creature. It has a medium long head, a long square rump, and a shaggy brown coat. Most distinctive are its splendid antlers. These have many branches and tines. They form a 'crown'. The males possess a throat mane. It takes the antlers over 100 days to grow to their full size, from their first growth. The deer is unable to provide enough energy and minerals for the quickly growing antlers from the food it eats. And so must deplete its bodily reserves of such minerals as calcium to allow the antlers to grow. Although the antlers look like dangerous weapons, they have a mainly defensive role. The many tines protect the deer from other males' antlers during fighting.
The antlers are used during the rut in autumn. By this time the antlers are fully-grown and have lost their soft velvet covering. The rut is when the males compete for bands of females. They do this by having bellowing matches. If they still cannot decide which male is the stronger they will have a pushing contest. The strongest males will collect harems of females with which they can breed.
The Red Deer gets its name because of the deep red colour of its summer coat. The Red Deer is a very impressive animal and is Britain's largest mammal. The males have antlers, but the female does not. The antlers are grown afresh each year. They can grow up to three quarters of a metre in length. Red Deer weigh 100 to 350kg and have a maximum lifespan of 25 years. The females are smaller than the males.
Where do Red Deer live?
Red Deer have a very wide distribution over Europe and Asia. They are present across the whole of the temperate Eurasia and America. However in Europe they are abundant only in the East. Red Deer like to live in the grasslands around woodlands, but is usually found now in mixed mountain woodland. In Scotland Red Deer live on the moors of the Scottish Highlands. They move to higher ground in the summer to eat, but return to lower areas when the winter returns.
What do Red Deer eat?
The diet is made up of grass and various herbs but it also eats heather and lichen.
Antlers play an important part in the life of the male deer. They are used as weapons by the males to help them to gain access to females. And to protect their harems from other males. Antlers are not permanent like horns, and are lost each year. In Red Deer the antlers are cast in March or April. From June or July new antlers begin to grow. By late August growth is complete, but the antlers are still covered in velvet. By the end of August the velvet has fallen or been rubbed off and the antlers are complete and ready to be used!
How do Red Deer breed?
The most exiting time of the Red Deer year is the rutting or breeding time. This normally occurs from September. For most of the year the stags are separate from the hinds and live a mostly solitary life. For most of the year females live in herds, but at the rutting time these break up into small groups. The males try to collect groups of females into 'harems' so they can breed with them.
However to keep a harem takes a lot of energy. Males have to compete for harems. Males which already have a group will face competition from males wanting one. Often they have a ritual battle where they test each other's strength, or have roaring bouts to gauge which is stronger. Only rarely do the deer actually fight. Normally stags under 5 years old are too young and not powerful enough to gain access to harems, and males are too old from about 11 years of age. The optimal time is when the males are about 8 years old. Normally there are 10 to 20 females to a harem. At the end of the rutting the males are exhausted and have used up a great deal of their reserves.
When are the young born?
There is a long pregnancy of 8 or 9 months. The young are born in May or June. Normally only a single calf is born. The young have white spots but these fade with time. These act as camouflage when the calf is very young.