If you live near Studley Royal and its deer park, as we do, you’ll be used to deer. They’re very shy though, and unless you’re there very early, or when poor weather is keeping visitors away, you’ll only get distant views of them.
Yesterday though, we were having a walk, a long walk, just outside the park grounds. Our path had led us upwards, through woodland, and alongside the long stone wall which bounds the estate. And that’s when we noticed them. A stag with his harem of does – some twenty or thirty of them. We stuck our noses over the wall, and watched. The deer watched us, and concluded that since these faces apparently had no bodies attached, they posed no threat.
The stag – and there was only one – was striding around in an assertive manner, aiming to garner respect. The deer weren’t bothered either way, and there were no other males to impress. He realised he was wasting his time, and fell to grazing instead.
I’m still stuck without a camera, so these slightly fuzzy efforts will have to do as a record of a few magic moments shared with a parcel of deer we came across .
Did you know that ‘parcel‘ is a collective noun for deer? Me neither. Try these too.
Herd – leash – gang – brace – clash – bevy – rangale – bunch – mob.
Today’s Ragtag prompt is ‘parcel’. And as usual, click on any image to view it full size.
From Pyrenees to Pennines 
Interesting the use of the word ‘parcel’ to describe a clutch of deer. Loved your pictures too.
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Ah, but if only you’d seen the real thing!
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The colour of the deer and the autumn colours complement each other so beautifully. Nope, didn’t know about ‘parcel’ for deers. I think that many of the collective nouns sound suspiciously contrived and I wonder if real live people ever actually use them in real live conversations?
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I dunno either. Parcels might refer to their dead meat value? Yes, the autumn colours and the deer had got their acts together, hadn’t they?
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Oh no, now I’ll be thinking of dead deer parts wrapped up in brown paper and string, but you did raise a rueful laugh. However, I choose to focus on the collectively live deer in the autumn landscapes instead!
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Aren’t they wonderful. Thank you for a new collective noun.
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Bet you never use it though! I probably won’t get the chance.
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I love collective nouns–I think a murder of crows is especially evocative! How frustrating, to see such beautiful animals and not have a camera you can trust!
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I know. Father Christmas – are you listening?
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