Dama dama
Silhouette: Anthony Caravaggi · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The European fallow deer (Dama dama), also known as the common fallow deer or simply fallow deer, is a species of deer native to Eurasia. It is one of two living species of fallow deer alongside the Persian fallow deer (Dama mesopotamica). It is historically native to Turkey and possibly the Italian Peninsula, Balkan Peninsula, and the island of Rhodes near Anatolia. During the Pleistocene it inhabited much of Europe, and has been reintroduced to its prehistoric distribution by humans. It has also been introduced to other regions in the world.
Some taxonomists include the rarer Persian fallow deer as a subspecies (D. d. mesopotamica), with both species being grouped together as the fallow deer, while others treat it as a different species (D. mesopotamica). The white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) was once classified as Dama virginiana and the mule deer or black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus) as Dama hemionus; they were given a separate genus in the 19th century.
The male fallow deer is known as a buck, the female is a doe, and the young a fawn. Globally, adult bucks are 140–160 cm (55–63 in) long, 85–95 cm (33–37 in) in shoulder height, and... Wikipedia →
Calls of females1:07
Italy · 2017
© Luca Baghino · XC987682 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Call0:16
United Kingdom · 1977
© Simon Elliott · XC960555 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Recording0:23
United Kingdom · 2024
© funny_dawg · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kosciuszko National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Aigüestortes National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 3 | Doñana National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 4 | Grampians National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Nahuel Huapi National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 6 | Great Otway National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 10 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 11 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 12 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Fallow Deer sighting in Wadden Sea National Park on a given day, based on 35 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 8th most-seen of the 20 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Fallow Deer in Wadden Sea National Park on a given day, against under 5% in November, the lowest month.
Between 6 and 9 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Fallow Deer sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
9th of 12
Of the 12 parks where we can rate Fallow Deer sightings, Wadden Sea National Park ranks 9th at about 10%. The best odds are in Kosciuszko National Park (Australia, about 60%), Aigüestortes National Park (Spain, about 50%) and Doñana National Park (Spain, about 30%).
Same family: Cervidae
The closest relatives of the Fallow Deer that you can see in Wadden Sea National Park (family Cervidae, Deer) are Western Roe Deer (about 30%) and Red Deer (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Fallow Deer is recorded against all the mammals logged in Wadden Sea National Park (35 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
