Details
Dama dama
The fallow deer is a medium-sized deer known for palmate antlers and often spotted summer coats. It moves between woodland shelter and open grazing ground.
Map: Ecoregions 2017 © RESOLVE (CC BY 4.0) · Natural Earth (PD)
It inhabits Palearctic woodland, edges, and grassland, with many introduced populations elsewhere. It favors a close mix of cover and feeding areas.
Length 130-175 cm; weight 30-100 kg. Males carry broad palmate antlers, and coat color ranges from tan to dark or white. Many animals show pale spots in summer.
Crepuscular and herd-forming, it is often seen in groups. During the rut males call and compete with antlers while defending mating areas.
A herbivore, it eats grasses, leaves, shoots, and acorns or other mast. Feeding shifts seasonally between open ground and woodland.
Breeding occurs in autumn, and females bear usually one fawn in spring or early summer. The fawn hides at first before following the mother.
It is listed as Least Concern. Where introduced or overabundant, browsing can affect ground vegetation and forest regeneration.
