The Emperor of Exmoor, a red stag (''Cervus elaphus''), was reportedly killed in October 2010.Exmoor, Emperor Stag, shot dead

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

, 25 October 2010.Fury over Britain's largest wild animal shot dead

The Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet i ...

, 25 October 2010. Its weight has been estimated as over and its height at . Red deer on

Exmoor Exmoor () is loosely defined as an area of hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north Devon in South West England. It is named after the River Exe, the source of which is situated in the centre of the area, two miles north-west of Simons ...

National Park are larger than red deer in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

owing to their diet.Britain’s ‘biggest wild beast’ — a red deer stag roaming Exmoor
The Times Online, 8 October 2009. The deer was given its nickname by photographer Richard Austin. Its body was reportedly discovered near the

A361 road The A361 is an A class road in southern England, which at is the longest three-digit A road in the UK. History When first designated in 1922, the A361 ran from Taunton (Somerset) to Banbury (Oxfordshire). It was later extended west through B ...

between Tiverton and

Barnstaple Barnstaple ( or ) is a river-port town and civil parish in the North Devon district of Devon, England. The town lies at the River Taw's lowest crossing point before the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool from ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, during the annual

rutting season The rut (from the Latin ''rugire'', meaning "to roar") is the mating season of certain mammals, which includes ruminants such as deer, sheep, camels, goats, pronghorns, bison, giraffes and antelopes, and extends to others such as skunks and eleph ...

. It was reportedly killed by a licensed hunter, and an unnamed man reported hearing two shots. Within a few days, other local observers reported having seen the animal alive, leading to the suggestion that this may be a manufactured story. Few of the reported facts can actually be verified. ''

'' called the story "a myth". The animal was believed to be around 12 years old at the time of the claim, but healthy. Older animals are sometimes culled, particularly when their

incisor Incisors (from Latin ''incidere'', "to cut") are the front teeth present in most mammals. They are located in the premaxilla above and on the mandible below. Humans have a total of eight (two on each side, top and bottom). Opossums have 18, wher ...

teeth are worn, making it difficult for them to survive the winter, but a former worker in deer management stated that "The Emperor was starting to get past his best, but he was definitely not at that stage yet." The same observer stated, on the topic of stalking during rut, "... we should maintain a standard and stop all persecution during this important time of the year", but the practice is legal and the importance of hunting, both in species management and to the local economy, is asserted by the national park authority.

Deer stalking Deer stalking, or simply stalking, is a British term for the stealthy pursuit of deer on foot to hunt for venison, for leisure, as trophies, or to control their numbers as part of wildlife management, just as with rabbiting and boar hunting. D ...

is legal in Britain under the '' Deer Act 1991'', although hunters must seek permission from the landowner. The heads can fetch over £1000. The possible death of the Emperor of Exmoor prompted several MPs to sign an

Early Day Motion In the Westminster parliamentary system, an early day motion (EDM) is a motion, expressed as a single sentence, tabled by a member of Parliament, which the Government (in charge of parliamentary business) has not yet scheduled for debate. Hi ...

with the intent to ban hunting of wild animals in Britain. A head said to resemble the Emperor's was hung in the Hartnoll Hotel in Bolham, Devon in December 2011. The head was removed after the hotel received threats.

References

{{reflist 2010 animal deaths Cervus Exmoor Deer hunting Individual deer Individual wild animals Individual animals in England 2010 in England