With long legs, slender necks, huge eyes and large ears, deer are graceful mammals that can appear unexpectedly in a garden, field or woodland! They can move extremely fast and can jump easily over high hedges and fences. Only the males grow impressive antlers which they shed each year and regrow.  ​​

• Deer have incredible hearing and can rotate their big ears 180 degrees without moving their heads, which helps them catch every rustle and movement.
   

• Deer have a powerful sense of smell and can sniff out an approaching predator from a long way away.
   

• Deer are amazing jumpers and can leap over fences or hedges that are up to 10 feet high and bound 30 feet in a single jump!
   

• They are also brilliant swimmers and can easily cross rivers when they need to. 
   

• Baby deer are called fawns, and their cute white spots help them hide in dappled forest or woodland sunlight.
   

• Deer are also incredibly fast and can reach top speeds of between 30 and 37 miles per hour.
   

• A group of deer is called a herd.

How Your Family Can Help Deer

If you spot any deer don’t get too close as they’re very shy and nervous. Just watch them from a distance.
 

Although it’s tempting to offer them food like apples or carrots, human food can make wild deer very sick. Don’t worry, they are brilliant at foraging and can find plenty food in the woods or forests.
 

If you have a dog, remember to keep it on a lead in woods or forests, especially during May to July which is the birthing season, so the deer feel safe and calm.