The good, the bad, the comfortable: a review of welfare practices and indicators based on the five domains model in farmed deer.

Increasing consumer interest in game meat has globally expanded wild animal farming, with deer being a prominent non-traditional species farmed in numerous countries. Consequently, methods for assessing the welfare of captive animals have been developed over the last few decades, and despite its limitations, the Five Domains Model has become one of the most popular practical tools for welfare assessment. Our review focuses on welfare indicators in farmed red and fallow deer, the primary deer species in European farms.

The effects of challenge or social buffering on cortisol, testosterone, and antler growth in captive red deer (Cervus elaphus) males.

We equipped 17 captive red deer males (Cervus elaphus) with GPS collars to measure inter-individual distances throughout the 5-months of the antler growth period. We expected some individuals to associate regularly with others while others would not. We predicted that males aggregating with others within a socially stable environment (Associates) would benefit from a form of "social buffering" and would likely have lowered cortisol (C) and testosterone (T) concentrations.

Ivermectin decreases parasite load, testosterone, and potentially antler length in a group of captive red deer males (Cervus elaphus).

Secondary sex traits (SSTs) can favour males in intra-sexual competition, allowing females to reliably assess their quality. They can also be connected to other aspects of fitness, such as resistance to parasites and pathogens, as parasites have negative effects on the development of SSTs. Antlers are one of the most recognizable examples of SSTs whose development is regulated by testosterone and reflects the actual condition of the bearer.

Same place, different time, head up: Multiple antipredator responses to a recolonizing apex predator.

Prey adjust their antipredator behavioral tactics to minimize the risk of an encounter with predators. Spatiotemporal responses of prey to predators have been reported, but the nature of antipredator response is not ubiquitous and it is the object of increasing interest, especially considering the recent recovery of large carnivores in Europe, and the potential for behavioral antipredator responses to elicit consequences at the ecosystem level. We have tested multiple antipredator responses by fallow deer to wolf in a Mediterranean protected area recently recolonized by this apex predator.

A Pleistocene Fight Club revealed by the palaeobiological study of the Dama-like deer record from Pantalla (Italy).

Here, we report on the exceptionally well-preserved deer record from the locality of Pantalla (central Italy), dated in the Early Pleistocene (ca. 2.1-2.

"How not to judge a deer by its cover": A personality assessment study on captive adult red deer males (Cervus elaphus).

Personality is not a uniquely human characteristic and it has been documented in a wide range of organisms, from mammals to birds, reptiles, fish, and invertebrates. However, personality is still poorly understood in Cervids. Therefore, our study aimed to fill this gap by i) investigating personality and ii) exploring its links to dominance hierarchy, assessed by behavioral observations in 11 captive and tame male red deer (Cervus elaphus).

To beat or not to beat: Behavioral plasticity during the antler growth period affects cortisol but not testosterone concentrations in red deer (Cervus elaphus) males.

Out of rut, male red deer (Cervus elaphus) associate themselves in bachelor groups where animals compete for rank position via agonistic interactions. In a previous study on red deer, males were recognized either as "Non-Fighters" (NF, low frequency of attacks) or "Fighters" (F, high frequency of attacks). This study, therefore, aims to verify the consistency of the inter-individual differences in fighting attitude across different social contexts and investigate whether they could be considered an individual characteristic.