Deer Rutting Season

Take the kids on a walk this Autumn and go spot some deer rutting...

Autumn is a great time of year to get your family out hiking. Wrap up warm and enjoy those autumn colours.

But it's not all about falling leaves and pumpkins; the wildlife isn't hibernating yet.

October is deer rutting season for some of the larger British deer, where the stags fight for the does, the female deer.

Dawn and dusk are the best time to see them, but you may get a glimpse of rutting at other times of the day too.

Finding Deer

Finding deer in the wild can be difficult, depending on where you live.

We live in a more rural part of the country and have been lucky to come across deer a few times. However, one of the best places to see deer rutting is on one of the many organised guided rutting walks at some of the parkland found up and down the country.

For instance, our local National Trust Attingham Park has a deer rut walk with the wards that run between 5 pm and 7 pm at dusk at the weekend.

Tips for Spotting Deer with your kids

• A good time to watch is early morning and dusk as the deer are most active.
• Wear appropriate clothing and footwear. Camouflage colours help, as deer are easily disturbed.
• Watch quietly from a safe distance. Some child-friendly binoculars are useful.
• Listen out for the bellowing and whistling of dominant stags.
• Look out for 'buck rubs' on trees. Bucks remove bark from trees, usually one to two feet off the ground, to mark their territory.
• The fiercest fights tend towards the end of the rut when the Alpha male stag becomes weaker, and others may try their luck.
• It's not an activity that's suitable for bringing dogs to.

Interesting facts about Deer Ruts

• Stags crash antlers to claim territory; they don't usually get hurt during the fights.
• Stags mark their territory by stomping on the ground.
• Bucks rub their antlers on a tree to remove the soft velvet that protected them when new; they become ivory-coloured at the tips.
• A Red stag will go to a peaty bog or muddy pool to wallow, covering itself in mud. This helps spread a strong rutting scent.
• Rivals sometimes walk side by side to assess each other's strengths and size each other up.
• The loud whistling sound the Sika deer make can be heard from 1km away.

Types of British Deer in the Countryside

Red Deer

Red Deer are native to the UK and are the largest deer to roam the countryside.

If you live in Scotland, the Lake District, or South West England, you may be lucky enough to hear the roars of red deer stags and watch them pushing and shoving to gain the upper hand.

Roe Deer

Roe deer are also native to the UK and can be found in southern England and Scotland, though not across the central part of the UK (the Midlands and Wales).

Although reddish, they are much smaller than Red Deer, and the males have smaller antlers.

Rutting season is in July and August for Roe Deer.

Fallow Deer

Fallow Deer disappeared from the UK during the last ice age but were re-introduced by the Romans and Normans.

These deer have dappled coats and are medium-sized. They are quite common in parkland across the UK.

Sika Deer

Sika Deer is not a UK native but can be seen in woodland throughout the UK.

These are small grey-brown deer. The males have small antlers.

Muntjac Deer

Muntjac Deer is a very old species of deer, and again, not a native of the UK, but it can be found in southern and central England.

This deer is very small and is about the size of a large dog.

Chinese Water Deer

As the name suggests, these deer are not native to the UK. You can find these deer in Norfolk.

Their rutting season is a bit later, from November through to January.

They are very good swimmers, hence the 'water' in the name.

Sources and More Information

• The British Deer Society
• Discover Wildlife
• BBC Nature
• The Wildlife Trust - Roe Deer
• The Wildlife Trust - Fallow Deer
• The Wildlife Trust - Muntjac Deer
• The Wildlife Trust - Chinese Water Deer
• Wikipedia - Deer of Great Britain

UPDATE: Pictures from our Deer Rutting Trip

So since writing this post, we went out with a National Trust ranger at Attingham Park to watch the deer rutting.

It was a really good evening out, not something you would normally do!

We managed to get quite close to the deer. Here are a few pictures we took.