Roe Deer Capreolus capreolus
History
The Roe Deer is truly native and indigenous to the UK. Due to overhunting in the 1700’s the Roe Deer became extremely scarce and were considered extinct by 1800 in England and Wales. In Scotland there were still populations of Roe Deer but only found in the Scottish Highlands.
Roe Deer were reintroduced in the Victorian era to East Anglia, Dorset and Sussex, during this time Roe Deer were gradually spreading and colonising into all of Scotland and Northern England. Roe Deer are now abundant and occur in every Southern English County, Kent being the last county to have Roe Deer.
Their natural expansion means that the Midlands have now got healthy and increasing numbers of Roe Deer which are also spreading into Wales. In the next 10-15 years the whole of England, Scotland and Wales are likely to have healthy Roe Deer populations, perhaps the highest population of Roe Deer the UK has ever experienced.
The Roe Deer population increase has been assisted greatly by the significant increase of woodland and forestry planting during the 20th and 21st century, albeit Roe Deer are detested by foresters due to the huge amount of damage they do.
Roe Deer Require careful, professional Management and Control.
call iQ Deer Management on 01280 811198 to Discuss the Many Options Available
Roe Deer - Appearance
A male Roe Deer is called a Buck, a female a Doe and a baby is called a Kid.
Roe deer are 60cm to 75cm at the shoulder and are the fourth largest species of deer found in the UK. There are significant regional differences in the weight of Roe Deer, they weigh between 10 to 25kg with Bucks being slightly larger than does.
Roe Deer have black eyes and a black nose with a white chin with large lozenge shaped ears which are often seen erect as they intently listen for danger.
Roe are described as dainty and elegant, during the summer months they have a rich rusty red fur and is when most people will agree they are at their most beautiful. In the winter their pelage changes, they are a dull grey brown with some occurrences of them being very dark grey and nearly black. In their winter coat some but not all Roe Deer display white patches on the underside of their neck these are referred to as gorget patches.
They boast a white rump which is most apparent in the winter when in contrast to their slate grey fur. When Roe Deer are alarmed they puff out their white rump which is an attempt to confuse any predator that may be pursuing them.
Roe Deer have a very short almost indistinguishable tail, although Roe Does have an additional piece of white hair between their hind legs which is called an anal tush which could easily be confused as a tail. Roe Bucks do not have an anal tush it is one of the methods we employ to identify what sex the deer is.
When Roe Deer are alarmed they tend to run away from danger whilst leaping and bounding as they go. They tend to only travel 100 metres or so and then stop to look back at whatever it was that alarmed them.
Roe Deer Behaviour
Roe deer are observed in small family groups or as single animals, although in the winter months seeing groups of roe deer numbering 15+ is commonly observed. The collective noun for a group of roe deer is a bevy.
A mature Roe Buck more habitually choose a solitary life, whereas a Roe Doe tends to be accompanied by her own Roe Kids for most of the year.
A lot of Roe Deer activity occurs in the Spring. The Roe Bucks establish their territories or in most cases re-establish the same territory from last year. Bucks that are gaining maturity and do not have a status in their own right are pushed out of mature Bucks territories. At this time adolescent Bucks quest to find areas of their own that no mature Buck commands. When Roe Does are nearing giving birth to this years offspring they drive off their Kids from last year, sometimes these kids will wander far and wide in search of a new home, both of these factors contribute to the increased Roe Deer Distribution growth year on year. It is during this period when the immature Roe Deer cause most damage to trees as they are attempting to establish their own territories, it is also the peak time for road traffic collisions as they are journeying for new territories with favourable feeding and cover.
On occasion a mature territorial Buck that does not see as any threat may permit a young immature Buck to live in his established territory. This is good for the development of the juvenile Buck as he will be in an area of good feeding and cover, this too will allow him to gain good knowledge of the mature Bucks domain. During the rut if this adolescent Buck tries to mount a doe the resident Buck will aggressively chase him off, the young Buck may very well be injured in this encounter. If the immature Buck is able to remain in the vicinity and grows in body weight and antler size he will ultimately take over the territory, although if a roe Buck does not command his own territory by his third birthday it may be unlikely he will ever do so.
During the rut Roe Bucks that have been previously driven out of a carved out territory may remain in the periphery. The love sick males cannot help themselves and will search for unattended females in the process trespassing on another Bucks range which will often end in battles.
Studies have been done on Roe Doe Kids using radio transmitting collars, the study shows the exact spot a Roe Doe is born, where it “hits the grass” so to speak it will rarely stray more than 1 mile from this point for its whole life. Due to the Roe Doe always staying in the same area it knows the best places feeding and shelter throughout the 4 seasons which in turn means its offspring will benefit from the intimate knowledge of the local flora and fauna. Roe Does do not fray trees like a Buck does to make physical boundaries, but she does mark her territory using scent glands that are found in the cleaves of her hooves.
Roe Buck Antlers
A typical mature Roe Buck has two antlers which have three points on each side, these points are called brow point, top point and back point. The base of the antler is called a coronet which grows out of the skull via the pedicle, older Bucks tend to have larger thicker coronets. The main beam of the antler has a rough ridged and knobbly appearance which is called pearling. Every year Roe Bucks antlers fall of which is known as casting which happens between October and December, the older Bucks tend to cast earlier than the younger Bucks, the antler regrowth starts immediately.
In the first nine months of a Roe Buck kids life they develop two small knobs on their head, referred to as buttons. These buttons fall off in the early spring and then their first antlers begin to grow. In areas with excellent genetics, nutritious feeding and a good soil type a strong young Buck can develop a six-point head in his first year, ordinarily in their first year 2 points on each side or even a pair of spikes would be considered quite normal.
As Roe Deer antlers develop they are covered in a grey furry skin known as velvet. Under the velvet there are blood vessels and nerves that feed the antler during is development. On occasions Roe Bucks damage the velvet whilst the antlers are developing which may cause abnormal non-typical antlers to form. By April Roe Deer antlers are usually fully developed, although in older animals this could be as early as March. As the hours of daylight increases it causes Roe Bucks to have an increase in testosterone which stops the blood supply to the velvet covered antlers. The velvet then dries out and shrinks, this is when Roe Bucks cause a lot of damage to forestry as they rub their antlers on saplings to assist in the removal of the velvet, this is called fraying. The antlers when clean are bright white and only get their dark colouration from the fraying activity as the sap and bark from the trees they damage colour their antlers.
Mature Bucks start to mark out their territories from April onwards, this is the significant time when Roe Bucks cause damage as they franticly and aggressively rub their antlers on the bark killing lots of trees every year. The reason they fray is so they leave their scent on and around their territorial boundary, their preorbital gland found in their head deposits the warning sign to other Bucks that this is their territory and to stay away.
If you ever see a Roe Buck still in velvet anytime in June it is highly likely that this Buck has been injured or is suffering from an illness, the velvet will become fly blown and infested with maggots and will result in a slow agonising death. If you ever see a Roe Buck like this please call iQ Deer Management immediately so we can deal with the animal to prevent any further suffering 01280 811198
Roe Deer Annual Breeding Cycle
The timing of the Roe rut varies from year to year and location to location, but generally speaking it takes place towards the end of July and into early August. It is the Roe Does that are more sexually dominant as they will trigger the start of the rut, a Roe Doe that has fed well over the winter and is in good body condition will come into season earlier than a Doe that has lived in a more harsh environment, so the Midlands and Southern English Roe Rut tends to occur earlier than in Northern England and Scotland.
When the Roe Doe comes into oestrus if there is no Buck in attendance the Doe will endlessly search for a Buck and lead him back to her preferred area. Before the Doe allows the Buck to mount her she will assess whether he is a strong enough contender and is worthy of passing on his genes. It is during this part of the courtship when Roe Bucks are observed chasing Does, sometimes round and round in circles, perhaps around a tree or bush leaving characteristic marks in the ground known as a “Roe Ring”. Once the Doe is satisfied that the Buck is commendable she will allow copulation, the Buck will cover her a number of times in a short period of time. If the Doe is not successfully fertilised during the first encounter she will come into season a few days later and the process will be repeated, maybe by the same Buck or perhaps a different one entirely.
Bucks will readily fight over Does during the rut. The battles are ferocious and can be a prolonged affair. Before the fighting commences the Bucks may challenge each other with barks, if neither Buck backs down the contest starts and only ends when one Buck retires. Injuries are common, Bucks may even die as a result of the bout.
Roe Deer are the only species of deer that once copulation has occurred during the rut the embryo does not continue developing and only implants in the uterus 5 months later, this is known as delayed implantation, it is believed that Roe Deer have evolved like this so when the foetus is developing in the spring it benefits from the Does access to a more nutritious diet.
Roe Kids are generally born in late May and early June, occasionally new born Kids are observed as early as March or as late as August. In the Midlands and Southern England Roe Does giving birth to twins is standard, if a Doe is in great condition triplets are fairly common.
Roe Deer Vocalisation
Roe Deer readily bark, the Doe being the for the vocal of the sexes. Their bark could be confused with a medium sized dog, the bark sounding deeper the older the deer is.
Bucks bark at one another in what is a challenging call, this can happen at any time of year but is heard most when bucks are establishing their territory in May, June and July. Bucks do have a variety of other vocalisations during the rut when in pursuit of a doe in heat.
Roe Does bark when they believe they have detected danger, this is as a warning to their Kids and may continue barking for a long period thereafter. As well as the deep bark, Roe Does communicate with their Kids using high pitched squeaks and pheeps. When a Roe Doe is in oestrus she has a unique call which is to announce to any Bucks in the vicinity that she is ready for copulation.
Roe Deer Habitat, Feeding and Activity
Roe are a highly adaptable deer found in an extremely wide variety of habitats. Preferring the thick cover of coniferous or broadleaf forests, but also happy to live their lives on open moorland. The two features Roe Deer must have are shelter and a variety of food. The perfect Roe Deer habitat would be areas of farmland with pockets of dense cover, that together with thick hedgerows and copses.
Roe have an extraordinary sense of smell, their vision is limited to shades of black and white. They can however detect the slightest movement and in particular the shape of a human.
Roe Deer are not grazing animals like the larger UK species of deer like Red Deer, Sika Deer or Fallow Deer. Roe Deer are browsers and selectively feed on the new growth of a variety of trees and plants which is why they are known to cause so much damage to tree plantations.
Roe Deer love to eat flowers, overnight a beautiful garden could be decimated as the Roe Deer work their way through flower beds and hanging baskets, vegetable patches are also high on the list of a Roe Deer’s desire too.
Roe Deer are ruminants and feed in bouts followed by periods laying up to chew the regurgitated cud. Heavy feeding occurs in the spring and summer when the hedgerows are laden, this is also the time when Roe Bucks are growing a new set of antlers and Roe Does foetuses are rapidly developing.
Roe Deer are most active at dawn and dusk, but can be witnessed feeding at all times of day dependant on the time of year and weather conditions. If the weather conditions have been bad (in particular high winds and rain) Roe Deer will stay in or close to cover, when conditions improve they will almost immediately start feeding to catch up on lost time and also to dry off. If Roe Deer are regularly disturbed they can become nocturnal and will only start feeding immediately before last light. If a Roe Deer is disturbed whilst feeding in the open it will generally head directly for cover.