Big game

Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus)

The roe deer is relatively small in size compared to other representatives of the Antelope family. Body length from 95 to 135 cm, width at the forelimbs 65 – 75 cm, height at the withers 65 – 75 cm and total weight between 15 and 30 kg, sometimes up to 35 kg. The tail is short (2-3 cm) and hardly noticeable or absent. An interesting fact about the roe deer is that it lacks a gall bladder. The first and second horns are unbranched, between 5 and 12 cm, while in adult roe deer they reach 20 to 28 cm, often ending in two or three, rarely four tips. Only the male specimens (called roe deer, single roe deer) have horns — short and erect. In the winter, the males lose their horns, but they grow back in the spring for the new breeding season. As they begin to grow, the new antlers are covered with a layer of velvet-thin skin, which gradually disappears as skin circulation is lost. Roe deer can speed up the process by rubbing their antlers on trees to harden them for dueling during the breeding season. Roe deer are the only ones from the deer family whose antlers grow even in winter. The body is reddish and the facial parts are gray. Body coloration varies between seasons - golden-reddish in summer, but darkens to brown and even black in winter with lighter belly and white rump.