Deer of the World tells the fascinating story of how the family Cervidae has evolved over the past 30 million years and how its adaptations have made it one of the most successful mammals in the world today. Here Dr Valerius Geist combines over 40 years of firsthand research with information from English, German, and Russian sources both published and unpublished to form the most comprehensive, up-to-date volume available on deer evolution, behaviour, and ecology. Since prehistory, deer have flourished in nearly every habitat, from desert to forest, from topics to tundra and have left a fossil record of dramatic earlier forms. As glaciers and humans altered the earth's landscape, deer adapted. Deer of the World defines the body types of both past and present species, revealing how they avoid predation, whether they prefer dense vegetation or open plains habitat, whether their numbers are limited by resources or predators, and how well-suited they are to their environments.