(photo by: Enrico Canal (CTA-CFS))
Cervus elaphus
Classe: Mammiferi (Mammalia)
Order: Artiodattili (Artiodactyla)
Family: Cervidi (Cervidae)
Dimensions: length up to 260 cm; height at shoulders 150 cm
Life: 25-30 years
Habitat: it lives in open woods, moorlands, and mountain pastures
Diet: it has a very varied diet (especially grass, leaves, small plants)
Reproduction: the mating season is in autumn, when the male attracts the female with his characteristic bell
Cubs: in spring a single baby is born
Curiosities: during the mating season, males splash about in puddles or wallow in mud
Notes: the coat is reddish-brown in summer and becomes greyish-brown in winter, with a mane of long hair developing on the neck of males. Antlers change every year and may present anomalies depending on different factors. When it lives in open areas, it forms large herds; on the contrary, when it lives in the woodlands, groups are smaller
In the Park: Zoldo, Cajada, Monte Serva, Val Imperina, Camporotondo, Piani di Erera, Piani Eterni, Agordino. The species is growing in number