UKC

Yesterday my partner and I hiked onto Ladhar Bheinn on Knoydart, we went from Mam Barrisdale over Stob a' Chearcaill.

Right in the middle of the path on Stob a' Chearcaill was a Deer's front leg from the knee down.

It was fresh with no decay, ants, maggots flys etc. Snapped off perfectly at the joint, still soft and fleshy. It looked like it had just been snapped off.

No sign of a 3 legged deer, no crags above where the owner of the leg could have had a catastrophic fall.

The only explanation we could come up with is that perhaps the deer stalker at Barrisdale had left some limbs lying around after shooting a deer, and a bird of prey had deposited it on the Mountain top.

I didn't think cutting the legs off was normal practice though.

Just wondered if anyone has a better idea of how this stray limb might have got there.

Apologies for the graphic detail, just genuinely curious.

I've seen this too except it was all 4 legs chopped off at the knee and left standing up. Aliens or stalkers.

I've seen similar - 4 lower parts of deer legs, perfectly chopped off below the knee, lying at various points down a track in Strathconon, and a couple of times finding 1 or 2 similar leg parts on other hill walks. I never found an answer by googling, so await an informed answer with interest!

Someone tried to sell me 8 severed legs for £50 once, but it was two deer...

They have glands in the legs so if they don't choppy choppy it can spoil the meat

Sorry I have no idea 

Thanks for enlightening me, that does seem to be the reason. Just been reading about tarsal, metatarsal and interdigital glands in deer legs ... I'm now looking forward to coming across some chopped off deer legs in the hills when I'm with someone else so I can share my new-found knowledge!!

I found, or rather my dog did, a well rotten deer leg in a tree near Neilston Quarry outside Glasgow. 

At least now I have an idea why.

I'm jealous.  I've never ever seen one or more deer legs on their own.  

I have.  I've seen four in a roe.

You have a dog that can climb trees??

Groan !!!!!  (Nice one though! - It didn't fall on Fallow ground and I didn't see Red at your joke)

I was doing DofE supervision once, and we stopped at a regular meeting point, down a quiet country back lane. We got out of the car to wait, and got increasingly disturbed by an awful smell.

It turned out to be legs, lights and head of a deer. Presumably cleaned at the scene by a poacher. Or maybe an opportunist who had hit or found a deer on the road...

She can if they've fallen!

This tree was small and she was at its base, stretched up with nose in the air twitching. A few feet above was the leg.