Nice To Sika, To Sika Nice
This is a Sika deer, I took the photograph at Arne Peninsula yesterday afternoon, there were two deer together but I couldn't persuade them to pose together. The Sika have achieved a little notoriety lately due to their ability to destroy fields crops at night at a mind boggling rate of half a ton per night per herd.
The Dorset Sika are quite a resourceful bunch, they were introduced onto Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour during the nineteenth century and local rumour has it that they swam ashore on the first night on the island. Dorset couldn't be a better suited natural habitat for them, it has a mixture of an acid soil habitat to which they gravitate, especially in winter, Pine forests, Sitka Spruce, Larch with boggy ground and heather all suit them. The Isle of Purbeck has broad-leafed woodland, arable land, banks of gorse and rhododendron. The more inaccessible parts of the county, which are not farmed intensively, encourage a thriving population of high density.
They aren't particularly comfortable around humans but the pair I photographed allowed Janis and I to get within around seventy five yards of them.
Olympus E-510 with Zuiko 70-300mm lens at 215mm: ISO 400, 1/320 sec at F/5
4 comments:
She looks pregnant Paul. Are they protected? I hope there are no hunters that way.
I like the "photographer" habit that has now started (all the relevant technical info re equipment, shutter speed etc at the foot of the post)
They are protected under the Wildlife Act 1976.
I'm glad you like the technical bit - I do it on Flickr so I thought I'd do it here (but not all the time that's too nerdy!)
Excellent photo, Paul. I've never heard of Sika deer before. I think we only get roe deer around here and it's not often you actually see them. Anything more than a fleeting glimpse is quite rare.
Did I tell you we bought my son a digital SLR for Christmas? He's quite keen (he'd have to be for us to spend that kind of money!) and he does seem to have a "natural eye" for a photo.
Thanks Shy.
I'm glad your son is a keen photographer and a 'natural'.
I'm just getting better now, the workshops help as does trying a variety of different subjects.
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