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The fully developed antlers of fallow deer are easily distinguished from the antlers of other deer species as they are flattened in comparison to those of other deer. The palmation (flattening) is usually fringed with a series of mini points and these are called spellers. Going up the antler from the coronet the first point or tine is called the brow, the second is called the trey and then comes the flattened palmation.

Fallow deer go through an annual cycle of antler shedding and regrowth. The bucks grow their antlers over the spring and summer when food is readily available to provide the required nutrients for antler development. Antlers continue to grow until they are fully formed from about the end of July to mid August. At this time the covering of velvet dries off and is shed over the next week or so. They keep these antlers until after the rut and they are shed in late winter.

The first pair of antlers grown consists of simple spikes which can vary from 1-20 cm in length. The antler has a club shape, being thicker at the base where it forms an irregular, pearled coronet. This first set of antlers or head gives rise to the yearling bucks being called ‘prickets’ or “spikers”.

As a buck gets older the antlers become larger and more palmated until the animal reaches its prime. Fallow bucks grow the largest antler for their size in the deer family. Once past its prime the antlers start to deteriorate in size and weight, termed ‘going back’. Any buck which develops a particularly good head is referred to as being in its prime, irrespective of age.

Bucks are also characterized by a prominent Adam’s apple and a long penile sheath, known as a brush. The tail of the Fallow is the longest of all the deer species in the British Isles and is a good recognition feature