what are the 2 truely wild groups

[lewiso]

hi i read somewhere that there are only 2 truely wild herds of red deer in england. does anybody know which they are?

[ron1863]

I think that could be Exmoor, though Red Deer and Roe Deer are the only true native species of deer in the U.K.

[Hobjob]

Herds occur in Suffolk (Suffolk coast, good rut in Minsmere) and Norfolk (thetford). Both these are old Royal hunting forests.

I've also seen then in New Forest and Peaks and I gather they
are fairly common in Lake District.

How ar they defining "2 truely wild herds" ................ may a lot
of room for interpretation in that phrase.

[lewiso]

i dont really know how to define it it was something i read ages ago so cant really remember what it said. sorry im being very vague here

[ron1863]

This is an extract from a Parliamentary paper re Red Deer:

If any hon. Member has an alternative deer management system, I should like to hear it. The House cannot now say that it did not know or understand the consequences of passing such a Bill. The survival of the last great truly wild red deer herd in England--the only one that we have left--is now at risk. Recognising the consequences of passing the Bill may not suit the prejudices of Labour Members, but they have now been told and warned by everyone who is concerned about conservation on Exmoor.



House of Commons Hansard Debates for 28 Nov 1997 (pt 8)

[davevikingr]

There are FOUR species of deer native to Britain - sadly we have made at least one of them extinct with another extinct through either climate change or human intervention, or indeed both. Our missing species are Reindeer and Elk (Moose).
It is generally stated that Reindeer became extinct naturally through climate change in prehistoric times - however a stone carving from the Pictish era in Scotland (c.400-900 AD) shows a deer that has a resemblance to a Reindeer and there is a notice in the 12th century Orkneyinga Saga of deer hunting in Caithness in the 1100s in which both Red Deer and Reindeer were hunted. It is, that said, possible that the hunters in question (the Norse Earls of Orkney) imported reindeer from Scandinavia. The Flow Country of Caithness could be good Reinder habitat !
There are a couple of domestic herds of Reindeer in the Cairngorms, some of which roam free.

[aeshna5]

Originally Posted by davevikingr

There are FOUR species of deer native to Britain - sadly we have made at least one of them extinct with another extinct through either climate change or human intervention, or indeed both. Our missing species are Reindeer and Elk (Moose).
It is generally stated that Reindeer became extinct naturally through climate change in prehistoric times - however a stone carving from the Pictish era in Scotland (c.400-900 AD) shows a deer that has a resemblance to a Reindeer and there is a notice in the 12th century Orkneyinga Saga of deer hunting in Caithness in the 1100s in which both Red Deer and Reindeer were hunted. It is, that said, possible that the hunters in question (the Norse Earls of Orkney) imported reindeer from Scandinavia. The Flow Country of Caithness could be good Reinder habitat !
There are a couple of domestic herds of Reindeer in the Cairngorms, some of which roam free.

Fallow Deer were also indigenous but became extinct here during the last glaciation, surviving in south Europe. Current feral animals were introduced probably by the Normans in the 11th century.