Deer (singular and plural) are the
ruminant mammals forming the
family Cervidae. Species in the family include the
white-tailed deer,
mule deer (such as the
black-tailed deer),
elk,
moose,
red deer,
reindeer (caribou),
fallow deer,
roe deer,
pudú and
chital. Male deer of all species (except the Chinese
water deer) and female reindeer grow and shed new
antlers each year. In this they differ from permanently
horned animals, such as
antelope, which are in
the same order as deer and may bear a superficial resemblance to them.