Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus; Ukrainian: козуля; kozulia). A small (100 cm tall at the shoulder), nimble, almost tailless deer of the family Cervidae that inhabits lightly forested zones of Ukraine in the Carpathian Mountains, the Crimean Mountains, and Polisia. Its coat is reddish brown in summer and grayish brown in winter. The roe deer is hunted commercially for its meat, hide, and antlers. In 2007 its population in Ukraine exceeded 130,000. It is a protected species; approximately 3 percent of the roe deer population is allowed to be hunted annually.

[This article was updated in 2009.]


Encyclopedia of Ukraine