Deer are a common sight where I live. They are herbivores and forage for food in the moorland, woods and also people’s gardens! A friend told me they were a bit too fond of the tulips in her garden.
They will run away if they catch your scent so it’s best to watch them downwind of where they are grazing. They will startle easily at movement too. Sometimes I hear them barking at each other in the wood, a low rough echoey bark that could be mistaken for a dog’s bark.
The deer I see are Roe deer, brown with white rear patches. Sometimes there will be a group of them, at other times they are on their own.
It’s always a delight to see a mother with her young. This drawing is from a photograph I took at Aberlady Bay, East Lothian last year.
The other day I had had a very quiet walk with nothing much to see at all. At this time of year the birds are more heard than seen, being able to hide amongst fresh lime green foliage. However, I came across a solitary young deer. I froze and kept watch on it through my medium camera lens. It couldn’t smell me and was a very curious youngster. Gradually it did the creeping up on me.
It came quite close and I was amused by all its expressions and tentative movements. It passed by me and thought to leap over a wall but then decided I was harmless and retreated back to its original grazing area. I was then able to walk past it without it even bothering about me. The deer look quite scrawny and lean at the moment. Maybe the dry weather has made grazing poorer for them.
Sarah's Wildlife Watch 