130925-studie-wildlife-comeback-in-europe

3.8. Red deer
Cervus elaphus
Summary
The Red deer has a wide distribution across most
of the European continent, with the exception of
northern Scandinavia, Finland and Iceland, where
it is limited by severe climate. Declines and local
extinctions occurred throughout the species’
native range from the 16 th century due to overexploitation,
habitat loss and competition with
livestock. Through changes in legislation, hunting,
habitat, and predator and competitor levels, as
well as translocations, reintroductions and recolonisation,
the cervid has grown in abundance and
range, and now represents the greatest biomass of
any ungulate in Europe.
Background
General description of the species
The Red deer (Cervus elaphus) is the most widely
distributed deer species in the world, with a large
but patchy distribution across Eurasia and also
reaching into northern Africa [1, 2] , being limited
only by severe winter climate [3] . It also occurs in
introduced populations in parts of the southern
hemisphere such as Chile, Argentina, Australia
and New Zealand [4] . Once considered a single
species, Red deer is now divided into six to ten
subspecies globally [4] . It is the fourth largest
ungulate [5] and second largest deer on the European
continent [6] . Although active throughout day and
night, peaks of activity occur at twilight due to
human activity [6] . As an intermediate feeder with
a large rumen, the Red deer consumes a variety
of plants including grasses, sedges, browse, fruits
and seeds; the exact composition differs between
males and females, and habitats [4] . Females and
young live in small matrilineal herds but gather
into larger groups in winter, while stags live a
solitary life, except in summer when they may
occur in all-male herds, and during the rut in late
summer when they gather harems [4] . One calf
is usually born in May or June after a gestation
period of around 8.5 months [4] . Young reach sexual
maturity between 1.5 and 2.5 years depending on
habitat quality [4] . The natural maximum lifespan
of the species is 17–18 years, although individuals
as old as 26 years have been recorded [4] .
Distribution in Europe
The species appeared in Europe in the late Early
Pleistocene around 900,000 years ago [4] and was
able to persist in southern Europe (Iberia, southwestern
France, Italy, Balkans, Greece) and east
of the Carpathians in Moldavia during the Last
Glacial Maximum [7, 8] . The clades present today can
be traced back to different refugia: the western and
eastern European lineages (scoticus, atlanticus,
elaphus, hippelaphus and hispanicus) stem from
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