The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran and parts of western Asia. It also inhabits the Atlas Mountains of North Africa; being the only living species of deer that lives in Africa.

The red deer has been introduced to other areas, such as Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Canada, Peru, Uruguay, Chile and Argentina. In many parts of the world, red deer (venison) meat is used as a food source.

Red deer are ruminants, characterized by a four-chambered stomach. Genetic evidence indicates that the red deer, as traditionally defined, is a group of species, rather than a single species, although exactly what the group is like. Includes the remains in dispute.

The closely related and slightly larger American elk, or wapıtı, native to North America and northeast Asia, had been considered a subspecies of the red deer, but has recently become established. shed as a distinct species.

The ancestor of all red deer (and elk) probably originated in central Asia and resembled a sika deer.

Although red deer were once rare in parts of Europe, they were never close to extinction.

Reintroduction and conservation efforts, such as in the United Kingdom and Portugal, have resulted in increased red deer populations, while other areas, such as North Africa, have continued. edited to show a demarcation of the pollution.