Hunting Area - Anatolsk Red Stag in Turkey

Red deer are only present in certain parts of Turkey, the primary hunting districts can be found in the region around the Black Sea, the Taurus Mountains, central Anatolia and the Marmara region.

Generally these are very hill, forest clad districts, with a mix of oak- and conifer forests, clearings, meadows and very thick scrub. This is a really good habitat for both red deer and wild boar. The districts vary in size, but generally are many thousands of hectares in size. Normally hunting takes place at an altitude of 800 - 1,600m above sea level.

In 1937 the red deer was given complete protection in Turkey, and it was only as recently as 2004 that this level of protection was lifted in the districts around Afyon, Eskisehir and Karabük, and a limited number of licenses were made available. It is possible that the Turkish ministry responsible for game and wildlife will open up more districts over the next few years.

As in other parts of Europe hunting takes place as early morning and evening stalking sessions. Hunting can consist of stalking or lying in wait and guiding here is always 1:1. Even though you can hunt roebuck in Turkey from 1st May to 31st October, we recommend you visit either in May or during the rutting season, which takes place in the last half of July and the first half of August.

In May daytime temperatures are around 20-25 ℃ while in the summer they are normally 30-35 ℃.

Please do not expect too much of your guides when it comes to their language skills, if they do not speak either a little English or German, there will be an interpreter where you are staying, and when out hunting you will rarely encounter any communication problems.