Donal Hickey: What you need to know about deer rut season at Killarney National Park

Great nature photo opportunities here — but don't be one of those amateur photographers who wander into the fields and get too close to the herds, disrupting the animals’ normal routines. And definitely don't approach fighting stags... that's a recipe for disaster

Rutting their stuff… The annual rutting season is underway.  The Irish red stags are bellowing while the Sika are whistling. @KillarneyNationalPark Picture: Valerie o’Sullivan/NPWS

A growing awareness of nature and its wonders is seen as a key factor in the rising popularity of wildlife photography, both amateur and professional.

At this time of year, scores of photographers head to Killarney National Park to get pictures of magnificent, red deer stags during the annual rut, or mating season. Indeed, deer-watching has become a sort of mini tourist industry there.

Well-equipped, professional photographers are joined by countless other people ‘snapping’ with their mobile phone cameras, or just observing.

You can, of course, also become a domestic wildlife photographer by, for instance, looking out for a robin in the garden, or a hedgehog sniffing around for food, or a cheeky fox poking its nose into a waste bin.

Nevertheless, nature reserves and national parks are real magnets. Photographers will be out in numbers during the October bank holiday...  though it’s not as simple as pointing a camera in the direction of animals and hoping for that elusive, magical shot.

Deer feeding in the long grass at Ross Castle, Killarney, County Kerry. Picture: Dan Linehan

The Photography Academy of Ireland describes this as an art form which calls for "a combination of technical expertise, patience and a genuine love of nature". Professionals have good gear, long lenses and tripods, and will have their research done regarding location and movements of animals.

Photographer John Burke has been on an annual adventure to Killarney for well over a decade. Sometimes, he gets the perfect shot, but the deer can all hide in the woods on another day, and he gets nothing.

He explained: “For me personally, that’s the fun of it. If all I wanted to do is take a picture of an animal, then I’d go to the zoo. But to capture the stags, the hinds, bucks and fawns in their own environment, makes it so worthwhile."

An Irish Red Stag with his three hinds making their way up Mangerton Mountain. Picture Valerie o’sullivan/NPWS

Luck can also play a part — being in the right place at the right time.

Burke warned that an exponential growth in photographer numbers poses some threats to the natural behaviour of deer.

In Killarney Magazine, he said some wander into the fields and get too close to the herds, disrupting the animals’ normal routines:

“Others have been seen approaching fighting stags... a recipe for disaster. Once a rut begins, a stag sees only red. A charging stag may go in any direction."

A sentiment echoed by the Photography Academy which advises people to keep a safe distance from deer at this time, always remembering that people are the visitors in their natural habitat.

Temporary signage erected to warn motorists of the potential danger caused by deer crossings. Source: Garda Síochána – Cork, Kerry, and Limerick – Southern Region Facebook

With deer more active, motorists also need to take extra care. I’ve recently seen a few deer carcasses on roadsides, including on the Cork to Macroom road, just west of the city.