Red Deer

Red Deer are most active at dawn when they ascend the hills and at dusk when they descend to graze the lower slopes and settle down for the night. Red Deer are much larger than Roe Deer and often form large herds of fifty or more. It is not difficult to spot Red Deer browsing amongst the heather on higher ground during the day.

Stags develop a new set of antlers each year during the summer. For most of the year they run in exclusivley male groups. In late August, as the rut approaches, these groups break up as the stags make their way to the rutting grounds.

Arriving by mid September, the strongest stags "round up" a group of hinds and defend them from rivals throuhgout the course of the rut. The most conspicuous element of this defence is roaring, which lets other stags know how strong they are. Locking antlers only happens as a last resort and can lead to serious injury.

Calfs are born the following May.