Adult size is reached at 6 years for females and 4-5 years for males. A medium sized deer, it is usually 30-40 inches high at the shoulder, with a body length of 40 to 60 inches. In the summer, its coat is yellowish-brown with white spots. In the winter the coat turns grayish-brown and the spots are less noticeable. There is a white patch on the rump, bordered with black.
Males have antlers.
These cud-chewers are found in large forests punctuated by clearings, but are adaptable to man's agricultural regions while feeding on grasses, leaves, and bark. After challenges between males, mating occurs during December. The female bears one calf in July or August. It is red-brown with a dark back stripe, light colored saddle patch and underparts. The males are horned and the females are horned or polled.