How Tall Is a Red Deer at the Shoulder? 1.1 m (3 ft 7 in)

Compared with things you know

About twice the height of a maximum-size carry-on suitcase (56 cm)
About 1.3 times the height of a standard 55-gallon steel drum (88 cm)
About 65% of the height of an adult person (1.7 m)

Red deer 1.1 m
Steel oil drum 88 cm
Adult person 1.7 m

Drawn to scale: Steel oil drum, 88 cm tall · Red deer, 1.1 m tall at the shoulder · Adult person, 1.7 m tall

Red deer dimensions

Measurement	Metric	Imperial	Source
Height at the shoulder	1.1 m	43.31 in	^[1]^[2]
Head-and-body length (Scottish stag, average)	2.01 m	6 ft 7 in	^[1]
Antler length (typical, total length)	71 cm	27.95 in	^[1]

Shoulder height by sex^[1]^[2]

Stag (male), British Deer Society	1.07–1.37 m (3 ft 6 in – 4 ft 6 in)
Hind (female), British Deer Society	1.07–1.22 m (3 ft 6 in – 4 ft 0 in)
Stag, Scotland average	1.22 m (4 ft 0 in)
Hind, Scotland average	1.14 m (3 ft 9 in)
All red deer (Wikipedia range)	95 cm – 1.3 m (3 ft 1 in – 4 ft 3 in)

How it is measured

Red deer height is quoted at the shoulder, so a stag's head and antlers rise above the figure. Wikipedia gives a shoulder height of about 95 to 130 cm (37 to 51 in) for the species. Only stags carry antlers. They typically measure 71 cm (28 in) in total length, and large ones can grow to 115 cm (45 in).^[1]

Stags, hinds and habitat

Stags are larger than hinds. The British Deer Society gives 1.07 to 1.37 m at the shoulder for stags and 1.07 to 1.22 m for hinds. In Scotland, stags average 122 cm (48 in) at the shoulder and hinds 114 cm (45 in). Wikipedia gives a stag's length from nose to base of tail as 175 to 250 cm and a hind's as 160 to 210 cm, with the tail adding 12 to 19 cm. Deer in open upland habitats tend to be smaller than those in wooded lowland areas.^[1]^[2]

Compared with other deer

The British Deer Society calls the red deer Britain's largest land mammal and one of the largest deer species. It is closely related to the slightly larger American elk. Size also differs between subspecies. Wikipedia names the Corsican red deer as the smallest, at about 80 to 100 kg, and the Caspian red deer as the largest. The large deer of the Carpathian Mountains can weigh up to 500 kg.^[1]^[2]

Did you know?

A red deer stag grows a new set of antlers every year, and they can grow 2.5 cm (1 in) in a single day.

Questions people ask

How tall is a red deer?

A red deer is about 0.95 to 1.3 m (37 to 51 in) tall at the shoulder, according to Wikipedia. The British Deer Society gives 1.07 to 1.37 m for stags and 1.07 to 1.22 m for hinds.^[1]^[2]

How tall is a red deer stag compared with a person?

A large stag stands up to 1.37 m at the shoulder. The British Deer Society puts the average adult man in Britain at 1.77 m, so the stag's shoulder is lower than a man's head. The stag's own head and antlers rise above its shoulder.^[2]

How long is a red deer?

Wikipedia gives 175 to 250 cm (69 to 98 in) from nose to base of tail for stags and 160 to 210 cm (63 to 83 in) for hinds. The tail adds another 12 to 19 cm.^[1]