Editing Deer (section)

==Human interaction==

{{Further|Deer in mythology}}
[[File:Lascaux, Megaloceros.jpg|thumb|[[Upper Palaeolithic]] [[cave painting]] of a ''[[Megaloceros]]'' giant deer at [[Lascaux]], 17,300 years old]]

===Prehistoric===

Deer were an important source of food for early hominids. In China, ''[[Homo erectus]]'' fed upon the [[sika deer]], while the red deer was hunted in Germany. In the [[Upper Palaeolithic]], the reindeer was the staple food for [[Cro-Magnon]] people,<ref name=guide/> while the [[cave paintings]] at [[Lascaux]] in southwestern France include some 90 images of stags.<ref name=Curtis>{{cite book |last=Curtis |first=Gregory |title=The Cave Painters: Probing the Mysteries of the World's First Artists |year=2006 |publisher=Alfred A. Knopf |location=New York |isbn=978-1400043484 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/cavepaintersprob00curt/page/96 96–97, 102] |edition=1st |url=https://archive.org/details/cavepaintersprob00curt/page/96 }}</ref> In [[China]], deer continued to be a main source of food for millennia even after people began farming, and it is possible that sika and other deer benefited from the frequently abandoned field sites.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lander |first1=Brian |last2=Brunson |first2=Katherine |title=Wild Mammals of Ancient North China |journal=The Journal of Chinese History |date=2018 |volume=2 |issue=2 |pages=291–312 |doi=10.1017/jch.2017.45|s2cid=90662935 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Brunson |first1=Katherine |last2=Lander |first2=Brian |title=Deer and Humans in the Early Farming Communities of the Yellow River Valley: A Symbiotic Relationship |journal=Human Ecology |date=2023 |volume=51 |issue=4 |pages=609–625 |doi=10.1007/s10745-023-00432-x |bibcode=2023HumEc..51..609B |s2cid=261164022 }}</ref>

===Historic===

[[File:Greek Gilt-silver Rhyton (Libation Vessel) In the Form of a Stag's Head.jpg|left|thumb|[[Ancient Greece|Ancient Greek]] gilt-silver [[rhyton]], 4th century BC]]
Deer had a central role in the ancient art, culture and mythology of various peoples including the [[Hittites]], the [[ancient Egypt]]ians, the [[Celtic people|Celts]], the [[Ancient Greece|ancient Greeks]], and certain East Asian cultures. For instance, the [[Stag Hunt Mosaic]] of ancient [[Pella]], under the [[Kingdom of Macedonia]] (4th century BC), possibly depicts [[Alexander the Great]] hunting a deer with [[Hephaestion]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Chugg |first=Andrew |year=2006 |title=Alexander's Lovers |location=Raleigh, N.C. |publisher=Lulu |isbn=978-1-4116-9960-1 |pages=78–79}}</ref> In Japanese [[Shintoism]], the sika deer is believed to be a messenger to the gods. [[History of China|In China]], deer are associated with great medicinal significance; [[deer penis]] is thought by some in China to have [[aphrodisiac]] properties.<ref>{{cite news|last=Harding |first=Andrew|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/5371500.stm|title=Beijing's penis emporium|work=[[BBC News]]|date=23 September 2006|access-date=23 June 2010}}</ref> Spotted deer are believed in China to accompany the god of longevity. Deer was the principal sacrificial animal for the Huichal Indians of Mexico. In medieval Europe, deer appeared in hunting scenes and coats-of-arms. Deer are depicted in many materials by various pre-Hispanic civilizations in the Andes.<ref name=guide>{{cite book |last1=Feldhamer |first1=G. A. |last2=McShea |first2=W. J. |title=Deer: The Animal Answer Guide|date=2011 |publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press |location=Baltimore |isbn=9781421403885 |pages=123–32}}</ref><ref name="Ref_f">Berrin, Katherine & Larco Museum (1997) ''The Spirit of Ancient Peru:Treasures from the [[Larco Museum|Museo Arqueológico Rafael Larco Herrera]].'' New York: [[Thames and Hudson]], {{ISBN|0500018022}}.</ref>

The common male given name ''[[Oscar (given name)|Oscar]]'' is taken from the [[Irish Language]], where it is derived from two elements: the first, ''os'', means "deer"; the second element, ''cara'', means "friend". The name is borne by a famous hero of [[Irish mythology]]—[[Oscar (Irish mythology)|Oscar]], grandson of [[Fionn Mac Cumhail]]. The name was popularised in the 18th century by [[James Macpherson]], creator of 'Ossianic poetry'.

===Literary===

[[File:Rama stalks the demon Marica, who has assumed the form of a golden deer.jpg|thumb|upright|In the Indian epic [[Ramayana]], [[Rama]] kills the illusional [[Maricha|golden deer]]]]
Deer have been an integral part of fables and other literary works since the inception of writing. Stags were used as symbols in the latter Sumerian writings. For instance, the boat of Sumerian god Enki is named the ''Stag of Azbu''. There are several mentions of the animal in the [[Rigveda]] as well as the [[Bible]]. In the Indian epic [[Ramayana]], [[Sita]] is lured by a golden deer which [[Rama]] tries to catch. In the absence of both Rama and [[Lakshman]], [[Ravana]] kidnaps Sita. Many of the allegorical [[Aesop's fables]], such as "The Stag at the Pool", "The One-Eyed Doe" and "The Stag and a Lion", personify deer to give moral lessons. For instance, "The Sick Stag" gives the message that uncaring friends can do more harm than good.<ref name=guide/> The [[Yaqui people|Yaqui]] deer song accompanies the deer dance which is performed by a pascola [from the Spanish 'pascua', Easter] dancer (also known as a deer dancer). Pascolas would perform at religious and social functions many times of the year, especially during Lent and Easter.<ref name=guide/><ref name=harvey>{{cite book |last1=Harvey |first1=G. |title=Readings in Indigenous Religions |date=2002 |publisher=Continuum |location=London |isbn=978-0826451019 |page=109}}</ref>

In one of [[Rudolf Erich Raspe]]'s 1785 stories of ''[[Baron Munchausen]]'s Narrative of his Marvellous Travels and Campaigns in Russia'', the baron encounters a stag while eating cherries and, without ammunition, fires the cherry-pits at the stag with his musket, but it escapes. The next year, the baron encounters a stag with a [[cherry tree]] growing from its head; presumably this is the animal he had shot at the previous year. In [[Christmas]] lore (such as in the narrative poem "[[A Visit from St. Nicholas]]"), [[reindeer]] are often depicted pulling the [[sleigh]] of [[Santa Claus]].<ref name="A Visit from St. Nicholas">{{cite news |last=Moore |first=Clement C. |author-link=Clement Clarke Moore |url=http://iment.com/maida//familytree/henry/xmas/poemvariants/troysentinel1823.htm |title=An Account of A Visit from St. Nicholas |work=Troy Sentinel |date=2 December 1823 |page=2 |access-date=27 March 2015}}</ref> [[Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings]]'s [[Pulitzer Prize]]-winning 1938 novel ''[[The Yearling]]'' was about a boy's relationship with a baby deer. The fiction book ''[[Fire Bringer]]'' is about a young fawn who goes on a quest to save the Herla, the deer kind.<ref name=firebringer>{{cite book |last1=Clement-Davies |first1=D. |title=Fire Bringer |date=2007 |publisher=Firebird |location=New York |isbn=978-0142408735 |edition=1st American}}</ref> In the 1942 [[Walt Disney Pictures]] film, ''[[Bambi]]'' is a [[white-tailed deer]], while in [[Felix Salten]]'s original 1923 book ''[[Bambi, a Life in the Woods]]'', he is a [[roe deer]]. In [[C. S. Lewis]]'s 1950 fantasy novel ''[[The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe]]'' the adult Pevensies, now kings and queens of [[Narnia]], chase the White Stag on a hunt, as the Stag is said to grant its captor a wish. The hunt is key in returning the Pevensies to their home in England. In the 1979 book ''[[The Animals of Farthing Wood (book)|The Animals of Farthing Wood]]'', The Great White Stag is the leader of all the animals.

===Heraldic===

[[File:Blason Raon aux bois.svg|thumb|upright|right|Arms of [[Raon-aux-Bois]], France]]
[[File:Coat of arms of Åland.svg|thumb|upright|left|Arms of [[Åland]]]]
Deer of various types appear frequently in European [[heraldry]]. In the British armory, the term "stag" is typically used to refer to antlered male red deer, while "buck" indicates an antlered male fallow deer. Stags and bucks appear in a number of [[Attitude (heraldry)|attitudes]], referred to as "lodged" when the deer is lying down, "trippant" when it has one leg raised, "courant" when it is running, "springing" when in the act of leaping, "statant" when it is standing with all hooves on the ground and looking ahead, and "at gaze" when otherwise statant but looking at the viewer. Stags' heads are also frequently used; these are typically portrayed without an attached neck and as facing the viewer, in which case they are termed "caboshed".<ref name="Davies">[[Arthur Fox-Davies]], [https://archive.org/details/completeguidetoh00foxduoft. ''A Complete Guide to Heraldry''], T.C. and E.C. Jack, London, 1909, 208–210,</ref>

Examples of deer in [[coats of arms]] can be found in the arms of [[Hertfordshire]], England, and its county town of [[Hertford]]; both are examples of [[canting arms]]. A deer appears on the arms of the [[Israel Postal Company|Israeli Postal Authority]]. Coats of arms featuring deer include those of [[Baden-Württemberg]], [[Dotternhausen]], [[Thierachern]], [[Friolzheim]], [[Bauen]], [[Albstadt]], and [[Dassel]] in Germany; of the [[Earls Bathurst]] in England;<ref>{{Cite book|last=Courthope|first=William|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v6u5S-H7BCUC&dq=rendalen&pg=PR15|title=Debrett's Complete Peerage of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland: With Additions to the Present Time and a New Set of Coats of Arms from Drawings by Harvey|date=1839|publisher=J. G. & F. Rivington|language=en}}</ref> of [[Balakhna]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://geraldika.ru/s/10615 |title=ГЕРБ ГОРОДА БАЛАХНА |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=ГЕРБОВНИК.РУ |publisher= |access-date=5 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> [[Gusev, Kaliningrad Oblast|Gusev]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.admgusev.ru/city/cityinfo/symbols.php |title=Символика |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=АДМИНИСТРАЦИЯ МУНИЦИПАЛЬНОГО ОБРАЗОВАНИЯ "ГУСЕВСКИЙ ГОРОДСКОЙ ОКРУГ" |publisher= |access-date= 5 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> [[Nizhny Novgorod]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://xn--b1acdfjbh2acclca1a.xn--p1ai/upload/getODA/depdoc51513_0.html |title=Положение о символах города Нижнего Новгорода |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= 20 December 2006|website=Городская Дума Нижнего Новгорода  |publisher= |access-date=5 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> [[Odintsovo]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://geraldika.ru/s/2419 |title=ГЕРБ ОДИНЦОВСКОГО ГОРОДСКОГО ОКРУГА |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=ГЕРБОВНИК.РУ |publisher= |access-date=5 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> [[Slavsk]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://geraldika.ru/s/9488 |title=ГЕРБ СЛАВСКОГО МУНИЦИПАЛЬНОГО ОКРУГА |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=ГЕРБОВНИК.РУ |publisher= |access-date=5 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> and [[Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug|Yamalo-Nenets]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://geraldika.ru/s/1887 |title=ГЕРБ ЯМАЛО-НЕНЕЦКОГО АВТОНОМНОГО ОКРУГА |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=ГЕРБОВНИК.РУ |publisher= |access-date=5 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> in Russia; of [[Berezhany]], [[Sambir]] in [[Ukraine]]; of [[Åland]],<ref>{{cite web |title=CoA of Åland |url=https://heraldica.narc.fi/aineisto.html?id=590&lang=en |website=EUROPEANA HERALDICA |publisher=National Archives of Finland |access-date=5 November 2023}}</ref> Finland; of [[Gjemnes Municipality|Gjemnes]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gjemnes.kommune.no/ |title=Velkommen til Gjemnes kommune |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Gjemnes kommune |publisher= |access-date= 5 November 2023|quote=}}</ref> [[Hitra Municipality|Hitra]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hitra.kommune.no/ |title=Hitra kommune |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Hitra kommune |publisher= |access-date=6 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> [[Hjartdal Municipality|Hjartdal]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hjartdal.kommune.no/ |title=Hjartdal kommune |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Hjartdal kommune |publisher= |access-date=6 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> and [[Rendalen Municipality|Rendalen]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rendalen.kommune.no/|title=Rendalen kommune |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Rendalen kommune |publisher= |access-date=6 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> in Norway; of [[Jelenia Góra]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://patchion.com/en/poland/1821-jelenia-gora-deer-mountain-coat-of-arms.html |title=Jelenia Gora - Deer Mountain Coat of Arms |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Patchion |publisher= |access-date=6 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> Poland; of [[Umeå]],<ref name="Wærn 1992">Clara Nevéus och Bror Jacques de Wærn: ''Ny svensk vapenbok'', Streiffert, Stockholm 1992, {{ISBN|91-7886-092-X}}, p.150</ref> Sweden; of [[Queensland]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/coat-of-arms |title=Coat of Arms |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=5 July 2017 |website= |publisher=Queensland Government |access-date=6 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref> Australia; of [[Cervera]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cervera.cat/ |title=Paeria de Cervera |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Paeria de Cervera |publisher= |access-date=6 November 2023  |quote=}}</ref> Catalonia; of [[Selonia]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.president.lv/lv/jaunums/andris-teikmanis-jaunizveidotais-gerbonis-atveido-selijas-unikalitati-identitati-un-vesturi |title=Andris Teikmanis: jaunizveidotais ģerbonis atveido Sēlijas unikalitāti, identitāti un vēsturi |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=31 May 2022 |website=Latvijas Valsts Prezidents |publisher= |access-date= 6 November 2023|quote=}}</ref> and [[Semigallia]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://likumi.lv/ta/id/246381-vidzemes-latgales-kurzemes-un-zemgales-gerbonu-likums |title=Latviešu vēsturisko zemju ģerboņu likums |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= 18 October 2023|website=Likumi |publisher= |access-date= 6 November 2023|quote=}}</ref> in Latvia; and of [[Coat of arms of Chile|Chile]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://minrel.gob.cl/minrel/ministerio/ceremonial-y-protocolo/emblemas-nacionales |title=Emblemas nacionales |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores |publisher= Gobierno de Chile |access-date= 6 November 2023|quote=}}</ref>

Other types of deer used in heraldry include the hind, portrayed much like the stag or buck but without antlers, as well as the reindeer and winged stags. Winged stags are used as [[supporter]]s in the arms of the [[de Carteret family]]. The sea-stag, having the antlers, head, forelegs and upper body of a stag and the tail of a [[mermaid]], is often found in German heraldry.<ref name="Davies"/>

===Economic===

[[File:Warring States Bronze Deer 1b.jpg|thumb|Bronze deer, [[Warring States period]]]]
Deer have long had economic significance to humans. Deer meat, known as [[venison]], is highly nutritious.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Kralj |first1=Richard Andrew |url=https://extension.psu.edu/venison-is-it-for-you|title=Venison, Is It For You?|website=Penn State Extension|date=September 2014|language=en|access-date=20 January 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Blythman |first1=Joanna |last2=Sykes |first2=Rosie |title=Why venison is good for you {{!}} Joanna Blythman and Rosie Sykes |url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/sep/28/venison-deer-meat-health-heart-benefits |work=The Guardian |date=September 2013 |access-date=20 January 2020}}</ref> It can be obtained responsibly through the process of hunting deer in their natural habitat. Domestically, it is produced in small amounts compared to [[beef]], but still represents a significant trade. Deer hunting is a popular activity in the U.S. that can provide the hunter's family with high quality meat and generates revenue for states and the federal government from the sales of [[Hunting license|licenses, permits and tags]]. The 2006 survey by the [[United States Fish and Wildlife Service|U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]] estimates that license sales generate approximately $700 million annually. This revenue generally goes to support conservation efforts in the states where the licenses are purchased. Overall, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that big game hunting for deer and elk generates approximately $11.8 billion annually in hunting-related travel, equipment and related expenditures.<ref name="Ref_d">{{cite web|url=http://library.fws.gov/pubs/nat_survey2006_final.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://library.fws.gov/pubs/nat_survey2006_final.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live |title=U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau. 2006 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation |access-date=16 November 2012}}</ref> Conservation laws prevent the sale of unlicensed wild game meat, although it may be donated.

[[File:Mavrogheni trasura cerbi.jpg|left|thumb|[[Nicholas Mavrogenes]], [[Phanariotes|Phanariote]] [[List of rulers of Wallachia|Prince]] of [[Wallachia]], riding through [[Bucharest]] in a stag−drawn carriage. Late 1780s]]
Deer have often been bred in captivity as ornaments for parks, but only in the case of reindeer has thorough domestication succeeded.<ref name=ea/> By 2012, some 25,000 tons of red deer were raised on farms in North America. The [[Sami people|Sami]] of Scandinavia and the [[Kola Peninsula]] of Russia and other nomadic peoples of northern Asia use reindeer for food, clothing, and transport. Others are bred for hunting are selected based on the size of the antlers.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Laskow |first1=Sarah |title=Antler Farm |url=https://medium.com/re-form/antler-farm-dbd3ba1ec3f2 |website=[[Medium (service)]] |access-date=28 August 2014|date=27 August 2014 }}</ref> The major deer-producing countries are New Zealand, the market leader, with Ireland, Great Britain and Germany. The trade earns over $100 million annually for these countries.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Burden|first1=Dan|date=June 2012|title=Deer Venison Ranching Profile|url=http://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/livestock/deer-venison-ranching-profile/|access-date=11 April 2016|publisher=Agricultural Marketing Resource Center|archive-date=20 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420142405/http://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/livestock/deer-venison-ranching-profile/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Automobile collisions with deer can impose a significant cost on the economy. In the U.S., about 1.5&nbsp;million deer-vehicle collisions occur each year, according to the [[National Highway Traffic Safety Administration]]. Those accidents cause about 150 human deaths and $1.1&nbsp;billion in property damage annually.<ref name="Ref_c">{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/AUTOS/11/14/deer_crash/index.html |date=14 November 2006 |title=Worst states for auto-deer crashes |publisher=CNN.com |access-date=5 April 2009}}</ref> In Scotland, several roads including the [[A82 road|A82]], the [[A87 road|A87]] and the [[A835 road|A835]] have had significant enough problems with ''deer vehicle collisions'' (DVCs) that sets of vehicle activated automatic warning signs have been installed along these roads.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.snh.gov.uk/docs/C301114.pdf|title=North West Area: Vehicle Activated Deer Warning Signs|publisher=[[Transport Scotland]]|id=07/NW/0805/046|date=April 2010|access-date=11 July 2013|journal=|archive-date=16 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140316083756/http://www.snh.gov.uk/docs/C301114.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[File:Roe deer fur skin (leather side).jpg|thumb|243x243px|Leather side of a [[roe deer]] hide]]
The skins make a peculiarly strong, soft leather, known as [[Buckskin (leather)|buckskin]]. There is nothing special about skins with the fur still on since the hair is brittle and soon falls off. The hooves and antlers are used for ornamental purposes, especially the antlers of the [[roe deer]], which are utilized for making umbrella handles, and for similar purposes; elk antlers is often employed in making knife handles. Among the [[Inuit]], the traditional ''[[ulu]]'' women's knife was made with an antler or ivory handle.<ref>{{cite web|title=Inuit Bering Sea Eskimo Walrus Ivory and Iron Semi-Lunar Knife 'Ulu' (1800 to 1900 Inuit)|url=https://www.finch-and-co.co.uk/antiquities/d/inuit-bering-sea-eskimo-walrus-ivory-and-iron-semi-lunar-knife-ulu/51906|access-date=2 October 2018|archive-date=2 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002180601/http://www.finch-and-co.co.uk/antiquities/d/inuit-bering-sea-eskimo-walrus-ivory-and-iron-semi-lunar-knife-ulu/51906|url-status=dead}}</ref> In China, a [[traditional chinese medicine]] is made from stag antler, and the antlers of certain species are eaten when "in the velvet".<ref name=ea>{{Cite Americana|wstitle=Deer}}</ref> Antlers can also be boiled down to release the protein gelatin, which is used as a topical treatment for skin irritation and is also used in cooking.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Kawtikwar|first=Pravin|date=2010|title=Deer antlers- Traditional use and future perspectives|journal=Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge|volume=9|pages=245–251}}</ref>

Since the early 20th century, deer have become commonly thought of as pests in New Zealand due to a lack of predators on the island causing population numbers to increase and begin encroaching on more populated areas. They compete with livestock for resources, as well as cause excess erosion and wreak havoc on wild plant species and agriculture alike. They can also have an effect on the conservation efforts of other plant and animal species, as they can critically offset the balance within an environment by drastically depleting diversity within forests.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Nugent|first1=G.|last2=Fraser|first2=K. W.|date=1993-10-01|title=Pests or valued resources? Conflicts in management of deer|journal=New Zealand Journal of Zoology|volume=20|issue=4|pages=361–366|doi=10.1080/03014223.1993.10420359|issn=0301-4223|doi-access=free}}</ref>