Field guide
Fallow deer
A smaller, more compact deer with distinctive palmate antlers on mature bucks. Introduced in the 1860s and largely confined to pockets of the North Island and parts of the South, often in farmland-forest margins.
Dama dama
Where you’ll find them
Prefers a mix of open country and cover, so farm boundaries and forest edges are typical ground. Bucks group up and become vocal in the autumn rut.
Dogs and 1080
Where fallow overlap with pest control operations the usual 1080 precautions apply — check the map before bringing a dog.
Check 1080 operationsBefore you go
Seasons, permits, firearms rules and access conditions differ by region and by land status, and they change. We don’t publish them — check with the authority for the land you’re on: DOC for public conservation land, your regional council for pest rules, and the landowner for private land.