(Cervus nippon)

Adult size - stags (males): 40 to 70 kg, 70 to 95cm at shoulder. Hinds (females): 30 to 45kg, 50 to 90cm at shoulder, dependent on subspecies.
Antlers - branched, similar to red deer but with a maximum of eight points. Bey tine absent. Angle between brow tine and the main beam is always less than 90.
Life span - exceptionally up to 18 years.
Status - introduced, locally abundant and increasing.
UK distribution - widespread and expanding in Scotland from west to east. Patchy in England (bands exist across the north and south) and Northern Ireland (County Fermanagh and County Tyrone), absent from Wales.
Habitat - coniferous woodlands and heaths on acid soils.
Food & feeding - grazers of grasses and dwarf shrubs, especially heather. Coniferous tree shoots and tree bark may occasionally be taken in small quantities.
Social organisation - sika are fairly unsocial, tending to be solitary for most of the year and only form small groups in winter. The sexes are strongly segregated and occupy discrete geographic ranges for most of the year, only coming together to mate.