Staff at a country park have celebrated the arrival of this baby reindeer which became the first born in England – for 800 years.
The baby reindeer – nicknamed Blue – is the first born in the country since the animals were hunted to extinction in 13th century.
Blue is the first young born to a herd of one male and five females imported from Scandinavia to the Trevarno Estate near Helston, Cornwall.
Officials imported the reindeer in 2008 as part of the estates’ Christmas celebrations in its public house and gardens.
But the animals have now acclimatised and 8lb Blue was born on May 1 to mum Prancer and dad Rudolph.
The healthy calf – named after the estate’s bluebell fields – has no antlers but they will grow over the coming years.
Officials at the estate say his parents are the first breeding pair in England since the species were hunted to extinction 800 years ago.
Reindeer handler Ellie Pearce said: ”It was incredibly exciting waiting for the first birth. I arrived in one morning and there he was on the hay looking absolutely beautiful.
”Since then he’s put on a pound a day and he’s become incredibly friendly and inquisitive.
”He can actually outrun me already but he doesn’t tend to stray far from his mother as she is very protective.”
The calf, which currently stands at little over a 1ft tall, is being fed by his mother but is already developing a taste for grazing in a specially designed pen.
He will soon be introduced to the rest of the herd and allowed to gaze in front of visitors to the 750-acre estate.
Trevarno’s general manager Richard Cox said: ”We’ re obviously delighted with the new addition. He really is a gorgeous little fellow and everyone here has fallen in love with him.”
A further three new calves are expected this month, bringing the total number of reindeer at Trevarno to fourteen.
The only place where reindeer roam wild in Britain is in the Cairngorms in Scotland, where they were re-introduced in the 1950s.
* Trevarno estate dates back to 1246, houses 70 acres of historic gardens as well as the National Museum of Gardening and has been owned by several notable families.
In 1994 Trevarno was put up for sale for the first time in 120 years and split into 33 lots to make the disposal more manageable.
It was purchased by business partners Nigel Helsby and Mike Sagin, who bought all 33 lots and embarked on a mass restoration plan to regenerate the gardens.
