Black Fallow Buck

[beast 1,884]

Nice young buck from a local park I help to manage. These deer supposedly come from the Epping herd and typically have much less palmate antlers than average fallow. They are also small and gazelle -like with even the biggest bucks rarely topping 70kg.

 

This one was feeding amongst some patches of bramble so allowed me to approach a few yards whenever his head was down and freeze when he looked up. Neck shot from yards with Ruger. 243

Edited October 8, 2017 by beast

[forest of dean redneck 11,563]

Years ago when the mother in law was alive I went up to Epping to help her out,and drove into Harlow couple times whilst there and the herds of fallow running the stubble up there were amazing to watch.

[j1985 1,983]

Seen a few of these little fallow, worked on a shoot in cuffley and they'd made there way over the m25. If you drive 10 mins the other way back toward where I live you have big tall fast ones with proper palmated antlers.

[beast 1,884]

There are proper feral herds in Epping but also the encloved der which have supposedly been genetically isolated for 500 years or more. I can't remember the exact story but I think they came from Denmark as a gift to one of the English kings. Whipsnade have had a herd from this group for about 50 years and they too have the same characteristics.

[Jarvis 277]

We have Black (Melanistic) fallow where I live in Northamptonshire and they have the same size palmate antlers as any other fallow colouration I have seen.

[beast 1,884]

Yeah up in Ashridge near us they do too. It is the herds which have been bred down from the eppingreat herd which have the stick like antlers

[sussex 5,777]

Do they ever bring new blood into this herd Beast and do they source from other captive deer herds .?

[beast 1,884]

Nice buck. The wild bucks round here lol like that?

[beast 1,884]

 

Do they ever bring new blood into this herd Beast and do they source from other captive deer herds .?[/quote

 

This herd was established in the 60s with about 10 pure Epping founders and has had no new blood since. I have told them to get some new bucks from epping but no moves to do so. The herd is therefore incredibly inbred but that dosent seem to be problematic

[novice 25]

Surely the reduced size is a strong indicator of inbreeding, rather then evidence of any specific strain?

 

I know of a captive herd in Cumbria that are similar, weedy little things, mainly as nutrition and culling has been historically neglected. I believe things have improved more recently though.

 

Novice

[beast 1,884]

It's an interesting question novice. These are not weedy or poor doers they are fithe muscular and healthy just slim and gazelle-like. The original root stock is of similar type and I have read that other herds from this bloodline are too. It's a bit like saying that whippets are smaller than greyhounds because they are inbred rather than because that is how they have evolved.

Apart from size inbreeding will manifest as things like low fertility or minor deformations like bent tails bug we have none of that here.

I believe that these deer have gone through the genetic bottleneck many generations ago and the faulty ones died off or failed to breed.

[j j m 6,538]

very good bud

[Flacko 1,742]

What weight did he come in at THE STALKER ?

[The one 8,473]

Aye the head looks like a red i had to google palmate it means hand like

[novice 25]

Thanks for the reply Beast. Not something I've come across before.