Abstract:
The domestication of plants and animals is recognized as pivotal inmankind’s social evolution. Yet, surprisingly few species have actuallybeen farmed, prompting speculation as to which attributes are needed forsuccessful domestication. Although red deer were the staple source of meatthroughout Europe in the mesolithic, they have not been widely domesticated,leading many ethologists to argue that they are behaviourally unsuitable.Recently, the most widely accepted criterion of domestication, the ability offarmers to control the breeding of a species, has been fulfilled in red andother species of deer with the widespread adoption of even the mosttechnologically advanced methods of artificial breeding. Simultaneously andconversely, the population growth of wild deer in many temperate parts of theworld has stimulated a search for contraceptive techniques.