A SPECIES of Oriental deer may be spreading across the region with the help of deerstalkers who have introduced it into the countryside.

But the claim, by Terry Coult, conservation manager with Durham Wildlife Trust, has been refuted by the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC), which says muntjac deer are not practical for stalking.

Muntjac, from China, were introduced into southern England in the early 20th Century because they were regarded as a pleasant addition to the countryside.

Now, the deer, which are the size of a labrador, have spread and are already in Cleveland and North Yorkshire.

The deer can devastate woodland wildflower populations and Mr Coult, writing in the trust's magazine, said that there had been rumours of muntjac in County Durham in the 1990s.

Last year, there were reports of the deer near the Durham Wildlife Trust reserve, at Trimdon Grange Quarry, and suggestions that muntjac had been released into woodland next to the trust's reserve at Malton, near Consett.

Mr Coult said: "It appears that Durham is being colonised naturally from the south with a little help from illegal introductions, possibly by deerstalkers wishing to add a new species to their sport."

But Jeffrey Olstead, BASC's head of media, said it was more likely that the deer were spreading rapidly without anyone noticing.

"It is very unlikely that they are being introduced because they are so secretive and are not an easy deer to stalk because they live in dense undergrowth. They never come out as roe deer do."

Meanwhile, naturalists say the endangered red squirrel is thriving in one of the region's most remote upland areas.

Red Alert, the project set up to help save the creatures in the face of competition from introduced North American grey squirrels, has received reports of a strong population in the forest surrounding Killhope Leadmining Centre, in Weardale, County Durham.

Jason Reynolds, project officer for the scheme, whose supporters including Durham Wildlife Trust and English Nature, said: "At a time when many red squirrel populations in the county are struggling, this is really excellent news, especially as there are no greys present."