Roe and Sika Hybrid?

270Buck

Well-Known Member
Hi,

I was very lucky this morning. After taking my spaniel sika, for a walk with my partner and 2 children, we decided to drive past a local deer park. We stopped the car and was watching a herd of 150 red and sika. There were also some fallow deer further away in the park.
The owner of the estate spotted my family and I and drove over to us in his Polaris electric 4x4. He asked us if we would like to come and hand feed the deer. We all jumped at the chance, 5 minutes later we were all in the vehicle.

We were all in the herd of mainly red and sika, the fallow were a bit more cautious and kept their distance. My 6 year old twin daughters absolutely loved being so close to the deer.

Whilst talking to the owner about the deer, where he got his stock from etc. He mentioned that he had a sika hind give birth to what he believes a sika x roe hybrid? I questioned him as I have never heard of this before. He was adamant that it happened, he allowed the calf to grow for 6 months and then culled it? The roe are resident to this area and some live within the confines of the deer park.

I am unsure that this could physically happen as

  1. The roe and sika rut are at different times of year?
  2. The sika or red stags would not tolerate this happening?
  3. As both of these deer are from a different family, could this genetically be possible?
I wonder what you guys will make of this?


Kind regards,

r.atkinson
 
I may be wrong, but I dont think this is genetically possible. Plus if it was with the amount of woodland reds and roe sharring common grounds north of the border it would be a well documented occurance by now surely.
 
My understanding is also that they are different species and so this is not possible. However the "science" of taxonomy sometimes seems like less of a science and more of an art to me and strange things do happen.
 
Hi,

I was very lucky this morning. After taking my spaniel sika, for a walk with my partner and 2 children, we decided to drive past a local deer park. We stopped the car and was watching a herd of 150 red and sika. There were also some fallow deer further away in the park.
The owner of the estate spotted my family and I and drove over to us in his Polaris electric 4x4. He asked us if we would like to come and hand feed the deer. We all jumped at the chance, 5 minutes later we were all in the vehicle.

We were all in the herd of mainly red and sika, the fallow were a bit more cautious and kept their distance. My 6 year old twin daughters absolutely loved being so close to the deer.

Whilst talking to the owner about the deer, where he got his stock from etc. He mentioned that he had a sika hind give birth to what he believes a sika x roe hybrid? I questioned him as I have never heard of this before. He was adamant that it happened, he allowed the calf to grow for 6 months and then culled it? The roe are resident to this area and some live within the confines of the deer park.

I am unsure that this could physically happen as

  1. The roe and sika rut are at different times of year?
  2. The sika or red stags would not tolerate this happening?
  3. As both of these deer are from a different family, could this genetically be possible?
I wonder what you guys will make of this?


Kind regards,

r.atkinson

Its not April the first is it?:D
 
This seems very very unlikely. Roe does would come into oestrus at a time when sika stags would still be in velvet and in male groups and a sika hind would be in oestrus when a roebuck was well past the rut and a coupling that way would probably be physically impossible.
 
Was the park owner happliy puffing on a 'crack pipe' and wearing a wellington boot on his head crying "look at me mummy, I'm a chimney" :cuckoo:?????

It is not genetically possible. A 'Manbearpig' on the other hand most certainly is, he lives in my shed !
 
Errr think you will find that it is not possible. Two different species and genus, more than likely a sika x red as they are both Cervus. Roe are not.
 
In theory it is possible: inter Genera hybrids are known, such as Goat x Sheep, although they look alike they are different Genus, one with 54 chromosomes the other with 60.

But physically I doubt it, more likely to only really to be likely with Artificial insemination I would think.
 
impossible, look at the latin names, cervus, dama,caprelous etc . sika and red both have cervus in there name roe dont,

so no can do.
 
In theory it is possible: inter Genera hybrids are known, such as Goat x Sheep, although they look alike they are different Genus, one with 54 chromosomes the other with 60.

But physically I doubt it, more likely to only really to be likely with Artificial insemination I would think.

I was once told that a ewe would carry a goat foetus until it started to grow its hair,she would then slip it..
 
Not only are inter Genus hybrids theoretically possible and not that uncommon, inter familial hybrids have been known (domestic fowl x guinea fowl), which in taxonomic terms is wider that the roe x red hybrid.

So don’t be too hasty to dismiss.
 
Interestingly there have been a number of experimental attempts at hybridising Roe, the most recent work being Sokolov and Gromov in 1985 in Leningrad Zoo, mostly between Siberian and European Roe.

Their findings are that the results are pretty poor with most offspring being still born or dying shortly after birth, so perhaps an accidental deer farm hybrid is less than likely!
 
why did he cull it,he should have had it tested and have some picts,cant beleive it untill i could see it,as one said is it aprill:lol: the 1st.
 
possible but doubtful, but possible. ie horse x ass = mule which are sterile, lion x tiger = liger also sterile and only known in zoos, rabbits x guinea pigs, offspring of which die soon after being born because of profound deformities.
 
What would you have called it???????

Presumably a RIKA or a SIKROE. Poor kid imagine going to school with a name like that! It would be sure to be bullied

:rofl:
 
why did he cull it,he should have had it tested and have some picts,cant beleive it untill i could see it,as one said is it aprill:lol: the 1st.

Exactamundo, my thoughts too !!!!!

"RIKA" sounds about right........it smells a bit to me, sniff sniff !
 
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