White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus)

I saw this mother deer with her two fawns on Monday, July 27 browsing in tall grass near a back road. Getting out of my car to take a picture, the fawns were more wary of me than the mother probably because the mother is more conditioned to nearby human activity.

The white-tailed deer is an abundant mammal ranging from Canada to the Northern countries of South America. Their diet is plant-based as they are herbivores and they typically inhabit fields and meadows and use forests for shade and protection. White-tailed deer eat leaves, berries, grass, corn, nuts, and even fungi. Deer inhabit less than a square mile as their home and family groups of a mother her fawns are very common. Does are usually found alone if they have no offspring. Male bucks stay in groups of about 3-4 anytime outside of mating season, during this time they are found alone. On average, they live for 6 to 14 years and male weigh between 150-300 while female can weigh from 90 pounds to 200. Although deer are commonly seen in the daylight hours, they are mainly nocturnal and use early sunrises and sunsets to forage for their food. Does have a gestation period of seven months and produce 1-3 offspring usually in May or June.

White-tailed deer are the smallest individuals in the North American deer family which includes the mule deer and black-tailed deer, as well. White-tailed deer can be easily identified by their white underside of their tail but they also have tan coats in the summer, gray-brown coats in the winter, white down their underside of neck to their stomach as well as around their nose and eyes.

Publicado el julio 31, 2020 10:48 TARDE por aam1019