On a chilly and damp day earlier this month, we were walking around Lenzie Moss when we spotted a small group of roe deer. This species is mostly solitary but will form small groups during the winter months. If they are frequently disturbed, they will only emerge from woodland cover into open spaces after dark, making them difficult to spot. However, in this case, the deer we saw were obviously used to people walking on the paths around the reserve and therefore knew that humans and their dogs were unlikely to trek out across the marshy area. They were also well camouflaged among these boggy habitats.
I was able to capture the image above by standing behind a tree some distance away from the group of deer. I isolated this doe as it was the nearest animal to us and because I liked having the house and cars in the background to show how close this species lives to human populations. I had to wait a while for it to look up from feeding and look over its shoulder. I think a bark from a dog helped me out! Unfortunately, the light wasn’t great but the muted tones in the image definitely reflect the wintry feel of this early December day. Did you know that the roe is one of the deer species that is native to the British Isles? The other truly native species is the red deer. Today, roe deer are abundant throughout England, Wales and Scotland.