Taxonomy
Fallow deer (Q.GIllildama) are being
raised in captivity in many parts of the world
today. Fallow deer belong to a) the Order' Artiodactyla', which is made up of plant eating
mammals with an even number of toes on each
hoof, b) the Suborder 'Ruminantia', which includes cud-chewing mammals, and c) the Family
'Cervidae' or Deer, which are distinguished from
other ruminants becausethey have antlers rather
than horns. The Eurasian subfamily of deer is
made up of fallow, red, sika, axis and Pere David
deer. Although fallow deer are closely related to
the others in the genus 'Cervus', they have their
own genus 'Dama'.
r"
palmation of Mesopotamian fallow deer antlers
is at the base of the antler while the European
fallow have the palmation out near the top of the
antlers.
The coat colour of European fallow deer
is highly variable, ranging from white to black.
There are four main colour patterns, but the
actual range of colours is more of a continuum.
White fallow deer are born a pale sandy
colour and tend to become white by their second
summer.
There are several features which distinguish the 'Dama' genus from the 'Cervus'
genus. The most immediately noticeable difference is that mature male fallow deer have broad,
flat, palmate antlers. The deer in genus 'Cervus'
(ie. elk, red deer) have antlers which are more or
less circular in cross section, with open branches.
Dama deer have short neck hair, while Cervus of
both sexes do have thick, fairly long manes. The
Fig 1. Coatpatternsof fallow deer
other main difference is that fallow deer have no
upper canine teeth, while both sexesof Cervus
Menil fallow deer have a light brown
deer have them.
coat with bright white spots, a white speculum
(the area of the buttocks) and white under parts.
There are 2 living subspecieswithin the
genus Dama, the European fallow deer and the
Common or ginger fallow deer are a
Mesopotamian or Persian fallow deer. The most rich brown over the head, upper neck, back,
obvious differences between the two are body
sides and legs, with white spots over the back
size, and antler shape. Mesopotamian fallow
and flanks. There is a black stripe that runs
deer are up to 40% larger than their European
down the midline from neck to rump and over
cousinsr. European fallow does range from 42
the dorsal side of the tail. Black also outlines
to 50 kg while the bucks are 75 to 100 kg. The
the white buttock patch. The underside is white.
Publishedwith supportfrom Northern Lights Big GameCorpopration
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Agriculture DevelopmentFlUId
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Black fallow are actually dark brown
with paler underparts. Their coats become
darker and glossy in the summer. All the coats
become more dull and the spots less distinct in
winter pelage. The Mesopotamian fallow deer
seemto only have the spotted common or menil
colouring with a darker brown dorsal stripe.
History and Distribution
Archaeological evidence indicates that
fallow deer were husbanded for millennia before
the advent of the Neolithic era some 5,000 years
before present. Based upon findings from
Paleolithic archaeological sites (between 10,000
and 100,000 years ago), fallow deer appear to
have been semi-domesticated by the Phoenicians who were a great seafaring nation. They
seemto have been involved with trade and
translocation of the deer, distributing them from
eastof the Mediterranean Sea, the area occupied
by Lebanon and Syria today, to regions throughout Europe and as far as Great Britain. Phoeni-
cian involvement with fallow deer was continued by the Romans and Greeks. Fallow deer are
depicted on ancient Greek coins and in Roman
art. There were written records of catching,
taming and rearing fallow deer in Roman parks.
According to mythology, the Oracle at Delphi
decreed that fallow deer be introduced to the
Greek island of Rhodes 'to fight serpents with
their sharp hooves'. They still exist on the island
of Rhodes today.
Mesopotamian Fallow Deer
Remains found in caves indicate that Mesopotamian fallow deer were used as food by
prehistoric man 100,000 years ago. There is
plenty of evidence that they survived the last
Glaciation age, but at the present, they are dangerously near extinction. There are no known
free-ranging members of this species today.
Several years ago, one herd of 30 de~r on an
estate in West Germany, Georg Yon Opal Game
Park, was thought to be the largest herd left in
the world. Todaythereare a few deerin guarded
preservesin their native Iran, a few were spirited into Israel from Iran, anda small handful
exists in zoologicaland / or researchcollections.
Thereare world wide efforts to protectthem,
increasetheir numbersandpreservegenetic
material by artificial insemination,and someday
by embryo transferand geneticbanking.
show a distinct voluntary decreasein appetite
(seasonal anorexia) and use fat stores that have
been built up during the summer seasonof
intense feeding and weight gain (Klein). This
emphasizes deer requirements for an unlimited
supply of good quality, high protein feed during
the summer. In very cold winter climates, fallow
deer require high energy (high carbohydrate)
supplemental feed to provide body heat.
European Fallow Deer
The present distribution of fallow in Europe extends north to Denmark and Sweden,
through eastern Europe and western USSR to
Turkey, along the north Mediterranean shore
eastward to Spain and Portugal. They have also
been introduced into southern Africa, North
America, South America, Australia and New
Zealand. The traditional habitat of fallow deer in
temperate regions is the fringe between mixed
woodlands and open grasslands. However, their
present distribution from the subtropics of
Australia to the harsh cold of the Canadian
prairie winter, indicates the extreme adaptability
of this species.
Feeding and Reproductive
Biology
Deer generally show greater dietary adaptation than bovine species. They have seasonal synchronization of birth, body growth,
activity cycles and growth stasis to correspond to
feed quantity, quality and availability.
For
example, maximum nutritional demands for
females come during lactation. The precise
timing of breeding and birthing insures that
maximal lactational demands coincide with the
most lush and plentiful growth of forage (June,
July and August in Canada). The summer is the
time of fawning and lactation, and the time of
maximum weight gain for the yearlings. For the
mature bucks, it is the time for antler growth and
regaining of body condition and fat reserves
which were depleted during the previous autumn
rut and winter.
During seasonsof decreasedforage
availability, the deer tend to adopt low levels of
activity (energy conserving behaviour), they
Puqerty in male fawns is triggered by
male hormone production which stimulates
testicular development. It occurs between the
beginning of antler pedicle growth (7 months)
and sperm production (14 months). Although
16 month old bucks have been known to successfully breed, they do not reach social or
behavioural sexual maturity until about 5 or 6
years of age.
Fallow bucks seem to spend the entire
year preparing for or recovering from the rut.
The breeding season for males is the period
when they are fertile and can copulate, from
September to about February. Spermatogenesis
has begun in August and reaches a peak in October/November, coincident with the rut. Testicular size has increased dramatically, (diameter
doubles, weight increases 3 to 4X) from their inactive, midsummer size.
The 'rut' is a short period within the breeding
season during which the bucks exhibit intense
sexual behaviour. Most of the conceptions take
place during the rut, but if males and females
have free access to each other, breeding can
occur much later in the season.
By early autumn, once the velvet is rubbed
and bucks are in hard antler, they migrate to
areas where the does are. Here they set up their
rutting 'stands', their territory to defend, which
may be approximately 1/4 hectare. They mark
their stand by scraping the earth, thrashing trees
and shrubs and spraying pungent urine on themselves and their surroundings. This is the only
time of the year that bucks vocalize. They groan
loudly and with variable frequency throughout
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the rut.
Rutting behaviour and odour of the bucks
stimulates cycling and estrus in the does. Does
approach the 'master buck' in his territory and
form a loose harem around him for the duration
of the rut. Change in day length (photoperiod)
to short days/long nights is the major stimulus
for triggering the breeding seasonfor bucks and
does, but the does have the added biological
stimulation of the buck's behaviour to induce
ovarian cycling.
Gestation for fallow deer averages234 :t
6 days is reported. Fawning occurs after the doe
has been acting restlessly for 1 or 2 days and has
moved away from the rest of the doe herd.
Stagesof the birth process are as with other
species. Once the fawn is born and cleaned up
by the dam, it assumesa hiding position, only
getting up to suckle when the mother returns to
feed it every few hours. This hiding behaviour
usually continues for 10 to 14 days, until the
fawn is strong enough to run with its mother for
periods during the day. Slightly older fawns can
be found in 'creches' or 'nursery groups' where
several fawns will be resting and hiding together
in one area of the paddock. When they reach 2
months of age, fawns spend their time running
with the rest of the mob, playing with each other
and doing more of their own foraging, while depending less upon maternal lactation. Crosssuckling is not uncommon among fallow deer
and rarely is there aggression seen by does towards fawns other than their own.
Fallow deer are gregarious animals so
their social organization is based upon a herd
structure. The adult does, yearlings and fawns
form one herd, while the adult bucks form
smaller bachelor herds. They spend most of the
year apart, getting together only for the rutting
season. Apart from fawning and the rut, fallow
deer do not show territorial behaviour.
Fallow deer in zoological collections
have been known to live up to 20 years, with
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does producing fawns almost every year after 2
years of age. Other scientists have estimated the
reproductive life of fallow deer to be about 15
years. Actual longevity and reproductive performance of fallow deer will be determined more
accurately as they continue to be raised in captive and semi-captive situations.
Fig. 3. Fallow deerdoeand recentlyarrived fawn.
Fawnsshouldweigh between4 and4.5 kg.
Further reading
1. Allen, P.L., Asher,G.W. eds. 1988.Progressive Fallow Farming. MAF, RuakuraAgricultural Centre,New Zealand.
2. Baker,Keith. 1973.ReproductiveBiology of
Fallow Deer (llim,a~)
in the Blue Mountainsof New Zealand.M.Sc. Thesis.
3. Chapman,D. andN. 1975.Fallow Deer.
TerenceDaltonLimited, Lavenham,Suffolk.
4. Hudson,R.J.,K.R. Drew, L.M. Baskins.1989.
Wildlife ProductionSystems.CambridgeUniversity Press.
5. Klein, D.R. 1985.Biology of DeerProduction.
P.K. Fennessey,K.R.Drew, eds.The Royal
Societyof New Zealand.
7. Yon Kerckerinck,J. 1987.DeerFarming in
North America. PhanterPress,Rhinebeck,New
York.
Photocredits.
Fig 1. D. Clausen
Fig 3. Judit Smits