The Beautiful White Tail
What You Need To Know About The White Tailed Deer
The White Tailed deer is the smallest out of the members of North American deer species and are found from South America to southern Canada. In the hot months of summer, these animals usually inhabit meadows and fields using coniferous and broad-leaved forests to obtain shade. In the winter months, they usually stick to the forests in preference to the coniferous stands which offer shelter from harsh elements. If you want to get the right feed for a white tailed deer, this article from Feed That Game has some great information.
Breeding
The adult White Tailed deer have a reddish-brown coat in the months of summer that fade to a dull grayish-brown in the months of winter. The male deer which are known as the bucks are easy to recognize in the fall and summer by their antlers, which grow annually and then fall off during winter. It is only the males that grow antlers, that bear various sharp points or tines. In the mating season which is also known as a rut, the males will fight for territory, in the way of using antlers as their weapons in sparring-matches.
The female deer that are known as does, will typically mother 1 to 3 young at the same time, usually between the months of May and June, after gestation periods of 7 months. The babies are known as fawns with reddish-brown coats that feature white spots which assist them in blending into the surrounding forests.
Behavior And Diet
The White Tailed deer are classified as herbivores that graze leisurely on just about any available plants. They have stomachs which allow for a way to digest varied diets which includes alfalfa, corn, grass, nuts, fruit, twigs, leaves and even the lichens along with other types of fungi. They will occasionally venture out when it is daylight but are mainly crepuscular or nocturnal which means they usually browse at dusk or dawn. The White Tails, especially the fawns are preyed on by coyotes, mountain lions and bobcats. It is their agility and speed that allows a way for them to outrun their predators.
The deer prefer to stay near open woodlands but are also found on fringes of the urban areas along with faming country. These animalâs habitats include along rivers and streams, forests, farms and the burned shrub-fields. The open areas will only be used when there are forests or thick shrubs nearby.
Behavior
The White Tail deer are the more shy and nervous of all the deer based in Washington. Their tails will wave from side-to-side if they are scared or startled. These animals are extremely agile, giving them the abilities to bound up to speed of 30-miles an hour through the forests.
The females are highly protective over their fawns and when in search of food the mother is known to leave her offspring in hiding spots for hours. While the fawn waits for its mother to come back, they will lie flat to the ground, so that they blend into the forest floors.
The White Tails are usually solitary which means they live on their own, particularly in the summer. The more basic of the social units include one female with her young, although the does are known to graze with other does in larger herds.
The antlers on the males are never used as a weapon to fend off predators but are rather used in mating seasons, where the males will fight in order to breed with the females. These antlers fall off during January and March and will start to grow again when it is spring. The majority of the White Tail deer species only live for around 2 to 3 years. Their maximum life-span in their natural environments is around 20 years, but very few of them will live for longer than 10 years. Having the right type of feeding equipment will give you an ease in hunting this type of deer.