Young red deer finds new home among flock of sheep

A young red deer has joined a flock of sheep on the Suffolk coast and seems to have been adopted. The deer appears to have lost his herd and joined 100 sheep which graze on National Trust land at Dunwich Heath and Orford Ness in Suffolk.

Andrew Capell, the flock's shepherd, said: "I've been involved with sheep all my life but I've never seen deer interact with them. They seem to have accepted him as one of their own."

The buck joined the sheep after the flock was moved from the Orford Ness National Nature Reserve in early December. "He seems to be happy living with the sheep and has made a few friends, but he comes and goes and hops over the fence to visit them when he likes," said Mr Capell.

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"He's found some animals which are his own size and there is a bit of a pecking order within the flock and he'll be bottom rung at the moment." The National Trust said it hoped the deer would re-join its herd if it roamed past the flock of sheep.