GENERAL INFORMATION

The white-tailed deer is one of our best known and easily recognized large mammals. They are abundant in most areas of our state, especially in the eastern Coastal Plain. Other members of the deer family found in North America include the elk, moose, caribou, and mule deer.

DESCRIPTION

The white-tailed deer is a large animal which varies quite a bit in size, depending on the particular subspecies (there are 30 recognized) and the region where it is found. In our area, adult weight averages from about 100 to 150 pounds. Some whitetail deer from the northern United States and Canada may weigh as much as 350 pounds. Mature males are generally larger than the females. The whitetail is an ungulate, or hoofed animal, with each foot ending in a cloven or two piece hoof. The underparts of the deer's body are white with a white patch on the throat and another smaller band of white around the nose. The underside of the tall is also white. The upper body parts are colored reddish brown during the warmer months but in the fall, white-tailed deer molt into their winter coats of dark, grayish brown. For several months of the year, male white-tailed deer, known as bucks, are easily recognized by the presence of antlers on the head, which the females, known as does, lack.        

HABITS AND HABITATS

White-tailed deer are extremely cautious and wary animals with highly developed senses of sight, smell, and hearing. When threatened with danger, they will often attempt to quietly sneak away. If seriously frightened however, a whitetail deer will often utter a loud, snorting call, and then quickly run away while raising the tail upwards like a flag, exposing the white underneath as a visual alarm to other deer nearby. Buck deer are primarily solitary animals except during the breeding season, also called the rut, when they actively seek out does for breeding. In our area, the breeding season takes place during late November and early December. Buck deer rub their antlers against small saplings to mark their territory and also use them to fight with other males during the rut. After the breeding season, the antlers are shed and a new set begins to grow later in the spring. Does often travel together, especially during the winter months, or a doe will often be accompanied by her young from the previous season. By late spring, the young deer begin to drift away from their mothers. Does give birth to their young in early summer. The young deer, known as fawns, are almost scentless for the first few days of their life. White spots on a reddish brown coat help to camouflage the fawn on the sun dappled forest floor where it spends much of it's time hiding from predators. The mother returns periodically to nurse the fawn until it is large enough to follow her about. White-tailed deer occupy a variety of habitats from forests to fields and swamps. They are most common where a variety of habitats are found, providing them with all their seasonal needs. Whitetails are herbivores, feeding on a large variety of plant materials such as tender young leaves, stems, and shoots. Deer also seek out mushrooms and wild fruits and will feed on man's agricultural crops, such as corn and soybeans, often causing considerable damage. A major fall and winter food is acorns.

HISTORY

White-tailed deer have played a very important role in the history of our country. They were used extensively by Native Americans for both food and clothing and also by the early settlers. Extensive clearing of land, unregulated hunting, and loss of habitat brought the whitetail deer population to a record low by the late 1800's. Changing land uses, strict game laws, and a lack of natural large predators have caused the white-tailed deer population to rebound dramatically. Whitetails are the number one game animal in the United States.

MEET OUR WHITE-TAILED DEER

The Nature Center currently has 8 white-tailed deer. One of these is a mature buck. The rest are does and a button buck (immature, young male). Only two of our deer are tame, the rest are semi-wild. The two tame does were hand-raised by individuals as pets, a practice that is illegal in North Carolina and is also dangerous. White-tailed deer, like many other wild animals in captivity, often become agresssive towards people when they become mature. Each year we have several fawns born in our deer habitat, usually in early June. They are allowed to remain wild and the following spring, these yearling deer are captured and released into a protected wilderness area nearby.

This article may be reproduced for classroom use by students and educators but may not be reprinted otherwise without written consent from the Nature Center.
©2002 WNC Nature Center