More commun than its bigger cousin the red deer, roe deer are the smallest and the most widespread species of deer in France. I love observing them as much for their curious yet timid nature as for their elegant and graceful beauty. Their eyesight is generally pretty poor, but this is largely compensated by excellent hearing capacities and a very acute sense of smell. Whilst roe deer are typically crepuscular, it is not uncommon to spot individuals at the edge of a field or a woodland in broad daylight outside the hunting season. Yet getting close to them is a different story! Having been hunted for generations roe deer have learned to be deeply suspicious of humans and approaching them without alerting their highly tuned senses is a real challenge.
