Genetic analysis and archaeological knowledge combine to reveal the ancient origins of the deer

Modern deer populations have hidden cultural histories dating back to the Roman Empire, which should be considered in decisions about their management and conservation.

New research, combining DNA analysis and archaeological findings, has revealed how deer have been repeatedly moved to new territories by humans, often as a symbol of colonial power or due to ancient cultures and religions.

The results show that the animal was first introduced to Britain by the Romans and not the Normans, as previously believed. The findings also reveal how British colonial ties during the 17th and 19th centuries played a key role in the spread of deer around the world, including to the Caribbean island of Barbuda, where the fallow deer is the national animal.

The research, carried out jointly by the University of Durham and the University of Exeter, compares contemporary records of deer with zooarchaeological samples dating back 10,000 years.

The work was published simultaneously in two new studies. “The 10,000-year biocultural history of the fallow deer and its implications for conservation policy” is presented in the latest edition of PNASwhile “Ancient and modern DNA tracks the temporal and spatial dynamics of European fallow deer populations since the Eemian interglacial” appears in Scientific reports.

Dr Karis Baker, Department of Biosciences at Durham University, said: “Over the past 10,000 years, humans have manipulated deer populations with varying results. The Persian fallow deer (Dama mesopotamica) is now endangered, while the European fallow deer (Dama dama) are globally widespread and both considered wild, domestic, endangered, invasive and are even l national animal of Barbuda and Antigua. But despite this close association with humans, there has been little consensus regarding their natural range or the timing and circumstances of their human presence. mediated translocations.

Using several hundred DNA samples extracted from modern and archaeological deer specimens from around the world, including the oldest sample sequenced so far in the UK, at 130,000 years old, the researchers were able to generate a evolutionary historical “tree” for the animal.

The analysis revealed two distinct European populations of fallow deer. The first originated in the Balkans and spread throughout southern and western Europe during the Iron Age and the Roman Empire, including as far as England, but survives today only in certain pockets of Spain, Italy and the Greek islands.

The second originated in Anatolia and remained relatively isolated until it was introduced to Britain in 1000 AD, from where it was transported throughout the world. A third group, the Persian deer, was once widespread throughout southwest Asia but is now listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Professor Rus Hoelzel, from the Molecular Ecology Group in the Department of Biosciences at Durham University, said: “These data provide a number of fascinating insights. For example, populations in southern Europe show signs of stability for long periods, suggesting very early translocation from a likely glacial refuge in the Balkans.

Combining the genetic data with archaeological and historical records allowed the team to build a picture of how deer were moved by humans at different times and in different cultural contexts. The animal’s strong association with the Greco-Roman goddesses Artemis and Diana, for example, is thought to have been responsible for much of its movement around the Mediterranean during the Bronze Age, Iron Age and Roman period.

The team identified the first evidence of deer beyond the Mediterranean at a Roman palace at Fishbourne, in what is now West Sussex, and found evidence suggesting the animal remained in the country for several hundred years before disappearing. Several centuries later, deer from the Anatolian population were then reintroduced around 1000 AD, just before the Norman Conquest, and it was this population which, in turn, was exported around the British Empire.

This practice was referenced in the 17th-century Dutch hunting manuscript “Jacht-Bedryff”, for example, which states that Maurice of Nassau, later Prince of Orange, acquired 100 deer from England to stock the forest of La Hague. Historical records also show that Anatolian deer were exported to the island of Barbuda by the Codrington family of Gloucestershire, where its cultural status changed from a symbol of colonial rule to that of freedom, following emancipation slaves in 1834.

Naomi Sykes, Lawrence Professor of Archeology and Head of the Department of Archeology and History at the University of Exeter, said: “These discoveries overturn much of what we thought we knew about the origins and spread of suede. Deer have been repeatedly translocated, largely as symbols of cultural power, meaning that today they expose the limitations of labels such as “domestic,” “wild,” “endangered.” » and “invasive”.

The authors argue that the example of Barbuda, where the deer enjoys no legal protection due to its foreign status – despite being the national animal – has implications for conservation principles.

Professor Sykes said: “Conservation policy is invariably based on a contemporary or recent understanding of an animal’s status, such as how and when it was introduced. But while many species can legitimately be called invasive, this is not true for all translocated populations, some of which are closely linked to human history and could offer a valuable cultural heritage or conservation resource.