Skip to main content

Red Deer (Cervus elaphus)

Red deer are the second largest of Australia’s wild deer species and are probably the deer with which most mainland Australians are familiar because of their presence in large numbers on deer farms.

A mature stag stands about 120cm at the shoulder and weighs somewhere between 135kg and 160kg. Hinds are considerably smaller standing about 90cm and weighing about 92kg.They are called red deer because their summer coat is a rich russet-brown on their body and outer legs. The underparts of the body and neck tend towards grey. Both sexes have a distinctive straw-coloured patch on the rump or caudal area. In winter, their coats vary between dull brown and grey. Calves have white spots at birth but this coat is soon replaced and, at about six weeks of age, they are a uniform dull brown in colour.

The antlers of a mature red stag are quite impressive and consist of a main beam and three tines on the lower half of the antler. These are the brow tine which grows out of the main beam just above the coronet, the bez tine which is normally situated just above the brow, and the trez tine which protrudes from the main beam just below its half-way mark. The main beam usually ends in a terminal crown of two or three tines. A stag having brow, bez and trez tines and a crown of three terminal tines on both antlers is referred to as a ‘royal’. An abundance of good food may influence antler growth to such an extent that mature stags will commonly grow antlers with more than twelve points.

History
Present situation

Join ADA

Sign up and become a member today
CLICK HERE
DEER SPECIES CLOSE
CLOSE