This is the largest species of the Mazama genus. It weighs between 30 and 40 Kg and is 65 cm tall (Duarte, 1996). Ribeiro (1919) and Vieira (1955) believe that this species occurs from Guianas and Peru to Rio Grande do Sul State of Brazil, including Paraguay and Argentina. Junqueira (1940) states that the Red Brocket Deer prefer large forests and riverbanks that are almost always covered with vast vegetation, thereby avoiding the sun. In Argentina, Olrog and Lucero (1981) reported that M. americana inhabits closed fields. As Emmons (1990) stated, this species is adapted to living in forests. According to Bodmer (1997), this species in the Amazon prefer firm, humid forest borders. In the rain forests, Red Brocket Deer are predominantly frugivores with fruit making up around 80% of their diet. During seasonally dry periods the diet of M. americana switches to greater proportions of browse.

The Red Brocket Deer distribution ranges across northern South America from northern Argentina (Misiones, Salta, Jujuy, Tucumán, Formosa, Chaco and Corrientes), Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam, Trinidad, Tobago, and Venezuela (Emmons and Feer 1997, Reid 1997, Medellín et al. 1998, Juliá and Richard 2001, Wilson and Redder 2005).

The species occurs in several protected areas across its range. The Red Brocket Deer is one of the focal species in a community-based wildlife management initiative in the Tamshiyacu-Tahuayo Community Reserve of the Peruvian Amazon.