How can you tell the difference between a Red Stag and an Elk?
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There are many differences, but the most noticeable is in size. A red stag is like a big mule deer with a donkey head on it. The head always looks oversized to me. Wapiti are much bigger animals with a HUGE one running about 900 pounds. The red stag tops out at about 500 that I've seen. Stags have "crowns" on the ends of their antlers, while elk have herd,royal, and imperial points on the end of theirs.
...youll see the differences. Light colored eyes, the antler crown after the back point like George described, a coarse reddish coat, and a very pronounced "brush" under the throat. Red deer hold their heads up to posture, and appear very "chesty" when doing so. The ears are shorter and in my opinion pointier too. Red deer can get big and heavy, but not so long as an elk. Unfortunately they do cross them here in the states, which complicates things. Some crosses fit better on a smaller elk form. By the way, I just caped a red stag this evening.