Home/Species/ Fallow Deer

Dama dama

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Fallow Deer

G5Secure Found in 1 roadless area NatureServe Explorer →

G5SecureGlobal Rank

Least concernIUCN

Identity

Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.101112

Element CodeAMALC05010

Record TypeSPECIES

ClassificationSpecies

Classification StatusStandard

Name CategoryVertebrate Animal

IUCNLeast concern

Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

KingdomAnimalia

PhylumCraniata

ClassMammalia

OrderArtiodactyla

FamilyCervidae

GenusDama

Synonyms

Cervus damaLinnaeus, 1758

Other Common Names

Daim (FR)

Concept Reference

Jones, C., R. S. Hoffman, D. W. Rice, M. D. Engstrom, R. D. Bradley, D. J. Schmidly, C. A. Jones, and R. J. Baker. 1997. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 1997. Occasional Papers, Museum of Texas Tech University 173:1-20.

Taxonomic Comments

Formerly included in the genus Cervus. Placed in the genus Dama by Feldhamer et al. (1988); Grubb, in Wilson and Reeder (1993, 2005); and Jones et al. (1997). Grubb (following Geist 1998) included D. mesopotamica as a subspecies of D. dama, however this is recognized as a distinct species by the American Society of Mammalogists (ASM 2025).

Conservation Status

Rank MethodExpertise without calculation

Review Date2016-04-04

Change Date1996-11-19

Edition Date2006-02-03

Range Extent Comments

Native to southern Turkey and (subspecies mesopotamica) Iran and formerly Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, eastern Turkey, and possibly Syria; introduced to Europe, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Uruguay, Fijian islands, Lesser Antilles, and western Canadian islands (Grubb, in Wilson and Reeder 2005). Exists in a semi-wild state in many areas of the United States.

Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Often found in brushy, hilly areas near grassy meadows; prefers older forest interspersed with areas of grass; tolerates diverse habitats: mixed forest, broadleaf forest, subalpine vegetation, grassland, scrub, savanna (Feldhamer et al. 1988).

Ecology

Highly gregarious. Does and fawns form small herds separate from groups of bucks. May compete with mule deer in certain areas.

Reproduction

Rut occurs in October; males join female herds in fall, leave herd in winter. Bucks are polygamous. Gestation lasts 8 months. Litter size usually is 1. Weaning is complete at about 7 months Females first breed at 6-7 months or 16 months; males usually at 4 years. See Howery et al. (1989) for information on seasonal reproductive activity in Texas.

Terrestrial Habitats

Forest - HardwoodForest - MixedWoodland - HardwoodWoodland - MixedShrubland/chaparralSavannaGrassland/herbaceousOld field

Other Nations (2)

United StatesNNA

Province	Rank	Native
Massachusetts	SNA	No
Nebraska	SNA	No
Tennessee	SNA	No
Alabama	SNA	No
Texas	SNA	No
Kentucky	SNA	No
Georgia	SNA	No

CanadaNNA

Province	Rank	Native
British Columbia	SNA	No

Roadless Areas (1)

California (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Fox Mountain	Los Padres National Forest	52,072

References (20)

American Society of Mammalogists (ASM). 2025. Mammal Diversity Database (Version 1.13) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10595931. Online. Available: https://www.mammaldiversity.org/
Banfield, A. W. F. 1974. The mammals of Canada. University of Toronto Press, Toronto, Canada. 438 pp.
Bradley, R.D., L.K. Ammerman, R.J. Baker, L.C. Bradley, J.A. Cook. R.C. Dowler, C. Jones, D.J. Schmidly, F.B. Stangl Jr., R.A. Van den Bussche and B. Würsig. 2014. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 2014. Museum of Texas Tech University Occasional Papers 327:1-28. Available at: http://www.nsrl.ttu.edu/publications/opapers/ops/OP327.pdf
Cronin, M. A. 1991a. Mitochondrial-DNA phylogeny of deer (Cervidae). J. Mamm. 72:533-566.
Feldhamer, G. C., K. C. Farris-Renner, and C. M. Barker. 1988. DAMA DAMA. Mammalian Species 317:1-8.
Geist, V. 1998. Deer of the world: their evolution, behavior, and ecology. Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. 421 pp.
Godin, A. J. 1977. Wild mammals of New England. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. 304 pp.
Howery, L. D., J. A. Pfister, and S. Demarais. 1989. Seasonal reproductive activity of 4 exotic ungulates in Texas. J. Wildl. Manage. 53:613-617.
Jones, C., R. S. Hoffman, D. W. Rice, M. D. Engstrom, R. D. Bradley, D. J. Schmidly, C. A. Jones, and R. J. Baker. 1997. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 1997. Occasional Papers, Museum of Texas Tech University 173:1-20.
Jones, J. K., Jr., R. S. Hoffman, D. W. Rice, C. Jones, R. J. Baker, and M. D. Engstrom. 1992a. Revised checklist of North American mammals north of Mexico, 1991. Occasional Papers, The Museum, Texas Tech University, 146:1-23.
Kraus, F., and M. M. Miyamoto. 1991. Rapid cladogenesis among the pecoran ruminants: evidence from mitochondrial DNA sequences. Systematic Zoology 40:117-130.
Lever, C. 1985. Naturalized mammals of the world. Longman Group Limited, England.
Pacheco, V., H. de Macedo, E. Vivar, C. Ascorra, R. Arana-Cardó, and S. Solari. 1995. Lista anotada de los mamíferos peruanos. Conservation International, Washington, DC.
Wemmer, C. M., editor. 1987. Biology and management of theCervidae: proceedings of a symposium. Smithsonian Inst. Press, Washington, D. C. 1000 pp.
Whitaker, J. O., and W. J. Hamilton. 1998. Mammals of the eastern United States. Comstock Publishing, Ithaca, New York.
Whitaker, J. O., Jr. 1996. National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mammals. Alfred A. Knopf, New York, USA. 937 pp.
Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 1993. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. xviii + 1206 pp. Available online at: http://www.nmnh.si.edu/msw/.
Wilson, D. E., and D. M. Reeder (editors). 2005. Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference. Third edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. Two volumes. 2,142 pp. [As modified by ASM the Mammal Diversity Database (MDD) at https://www.mammaldiversity.org/index.html]
Wilson, D. E., and S. Ruff. 1999. The Smithsonian book of North American mammals. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C. 750 pp.
Zeiner, D. C., W. F. Laudenslayer, Jr., K. E. Mayer, and M. White, editors. 1990b. California's wildlife. Volume III. Mammals. State of California, The Resources Agency, Department of Fish and Game, Sacramento, CA. 407 pp.