Roe deer occur in all districts of the region, but most often in the center and south – Pskov, Pechory, Ostrov, Porkhov, Nevel’, Pustoshka etc. They mainly inhabit lighter coniferous or mixed forests, where the forest floor and underbrush are well-developed. They prefer keeping close to forest glades, rivers and brooks, sometimes going out into open fields, wood beds and parks near settlements. In the summer, roe deer are solitary, whereas in the winter they form small bevies. Their summer diet consists of grass, tree and bush leaves, mushrooms and berries. In the winter, they eat branches, twigs, tree and bush buds, pine needles, dry leaves and grass. Often, they come to forage at haystacks, and visit salt licks. In snowy winters, roe deer migrate over short distances in search for food and snow-free patches.
In postwar years, roe deer encounters were far between, and thus roe hunt was forbidden since 1945. At present, such hunt is licensed. According to the data of 1980-90’s, the livestock numbers of roe deer fluctuate between 4.0 and 5.0 thousand species.
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