RARE sightings of red deer are being made near built-up areas of East Lancashire.

Steven Brindle, from Yew Tree Drive, Ramsgreave, spotted one of the magnificent creatures as it grazed on land near his house, just three miles from Blackburn town centre.

Wildlife experts said that sightings of normally-shy deer so close to a built-up area were “extremely rare” as the animals normally do not like to stray near people.

Steven, 50, said: “I’m a mechanic and I was on my way home from dropping a car off at about 10.30am when I looked across the fields near my house and saw something that looked very big.

“At first I saw the top of its head and neck and I thought it was a llama, but having been interested in wildlife all my life, I knew it was too big.

“Then as I got closer to the field, it stood up.”

Mr Brindle rushed home to tell his wife about the sighting, and grabbed his camera to take some shots.

The pair then spent the rest of the day watching the animal through binoculars from their home as it grazed.

Mr Brindle said: “We were watching it all day, and it gradually moved over the hill at about 6.30pm and we haven’t seen it since, even though we kept looking.

"It was amazing to see something like that here, and with it being the day after my birthday, it was an extra little present.”

Red deer are more commonly seen in the Silverdale area in north Lancashire or in the Forest of Bowland, but reports of red deer have also been made near Burnley.

James Ellaby, of Lancashire Wildlife Trust, said: “These animals don’t usually venture into civilisation like that.

“We’re not aware of an big increase in the local red deer population or of any specific examples of them being forced out of areas by development.

“We haven’t seen any specific evidence of red deer moving across Lancashire, and it’s most likely that was an unusual example of a single deer straying into a populated area.

“If you see a wild deer when you are out and about, the best thing to do is to leave it be.

“But if you’ve got a camera, take a picture and send it into us at info@lancswt.org.uk “If the deer is in distress, you should call the RSPCA on 0300 1234 999.”

The red deer

The Red deer is one of the largest deer species. The animal inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, parts of central and western Asia, and the Atlas Mountains region between Morocco and Tunisia in northwestern Africa. They have also been introduced to other areas including Australia, New Zealand and Argentina.

They migrated into Britain from Europe 11,000 years ago. They were used extensively by Mesolithic man as a source of food, skins and tools (bones and antlers).

Red deer can live to the age of 18. The species has a heavy infant mortality at and shortly after birth.

Adult stags weigh between 90-190kg, and measure 107-137cm at the shoulder. Females (hinds) weigh between 63-120kg, and are 107-122cm at the shoulder. Deer on the open hills in Scotland are smaller than those in lowland English woodland.

They graze on grasses and dwarf shrubs such as heather and bilberry as well as tree shoots when other food is limited.