The European fallow deer (Dama dama), also known as the common fallow deer or simply fallow deer, is a species of ruminant mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. It is historically native to Turkey and possibly the Italian Peninsula, Balkan Peninsula, and the island of Rhodes in Europe. Prehistorically native to and introduced into a larger portion of Europe, it has also been introduced to other regions in the world. Taxonomy Some taxonomists include the rarer Persian fallow deer as a subspecies (D. d. mesopotamica), with both species being grouped together as the fallow deer, while others treat it as a different species (D. mesopotamica). The white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) was once classified as Dama virginiana and the mule deer or black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus) as Dama hemionus; they were given a separate genus in the 19th century. Description The male fallow deer is known as a buck, the female is a doe, and the young a fawn. Adult bucks are long, in shoulder height, and typically in weight; does are long, in shoulder height, and in weight. The largest bucks may measure long and weigh . Fawns are born in spring around and weigh around . Their lifespan is around 12–16 years. Much variation occurs in the coat colour of the species, with four main variants: common, menil, melanistic, and leucistic – a genuine colour variety, not albinistic. White is the lightest coloured, almost white; common and menil are darker, and melanistic is very dark, sometimes even black (and is easily confused with the sika deer). Common: Chestnut coat with white mottles, it is most pronounced in summer with a much darker, unspotted coat in the winter. The light-coloured area around the tail is edged with black. The tail is light with a black stripe. Menil: Spots are more distinct than common in summer and no black is seen around the rump patch or on the tail. In winter, spots are still clear on a darker brown coat. Melanistic (black): All year the coat is black, shading to greyish-brown. No light-coloured tail patch or spots are seen. Leucistic (white, but not albino): Fawns are cream-coloured; adults become pure white, especially in winter. Dark eyes and nose are seen. The coat has no spots. Most herds consist of the common coat variation, yet animals of the menil coat variation are not rare. The melanistic coat variation is generally rarer, and