The Whitetail Deer
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Type: Mammal■
Diet: Herbivore■
Average life span in the wild: 6 to 14 years■
Size: 6 to 7.75 ft (1.8 to 2.4 m)■
Weight: 110 to 300 lbs (50 to 136 kg)■
Group name: Herd■
Size relative to a man:White-tailed deer, the smallest members of the North American deer family, are found from southern Canada to South America. In the heat of summer they typically inhabit fields and meadows using clumps of broad-leaved and coniferous forests for shade. During the winter they generally keep to forests, preferring coniferous stands that provide shelter from the harsh elements.
Adult white-tails have reddish-brown coats in summer which fade to a duller grayish-brown in winter. Male deer, called bucks, are easily recognizable in the summer and fall by their prominent set of antlers, which are grown annually and fall off in the winter. Only the bucks grow antlers, which bear a number of tines, or sharp points. During the mating season, also called the rut, bucks fight over territory by using their antlers in sparring matches.
Female deer, called does, give birth to one to three young at a time, usually in May or June and after a gestation period of seven months. Young deer, called fawns, wear a reddish-brown coat with white spots that helps them blend in with the forest.
White-tailed deer are herbivores, leisurely grazing on most available plant foods. Their stomachs allow them to digest a varied diet, including leaves, twigs, fruits and nuts, grass, corn, alfalfa, and even lichens and other fungi. Occasionally venturing out in the daylight hours, white-tailed deer are primarily nocturnal or crepuscular, browsing mainly at dawn and dusk.
In the wild, white-tails, particularly the young, are preyed upon by bobcats, mountain lions, and coyotes. They use speed and agility to outrun predators, sprinting up to 30 miles (48 kilometers) per hour and leaping as high as 10 feet (3 meters) and as far as 30 feet (9 meters) in a single bound.
Although previously depleted by unrestricted hunting in the United States, strict game-management measures have helped restore the white-tailed deer population.
This deer is tan or reddish-brown in the summer and grayish-brown in the winter, with certain areas remaining white all year round. Fawns are spotted with brown tails and a white underside. When sensing danger, the deer raises its tail – this is called ‘flagging.’ Showing this large white patch on the underside of the tail signals an alarm to other deer and helps a fawn follow its mother to safety.
The deer is a great jumper and runner. It can reach speeds of up to 58 kilometers per hour.
Weight Range
Bucks: 100-300 lbs
Does: 75-200 lbs
01: 100 lb (buck) / 75 lb (doe)
02: 110 lb / 80 lb
03: 115 lb / 85 lb
04: 120 lb / 90 lb
05: 125 lb / 95 lb
06: 130 lb / 100 lb
07: 135 lb / 105 lb
08: 140 lb / 110 lb
09: 145 lb / 115 lb
10: 150 lb / 120 lb
11: 165 lb / 125 lb
12: 180 lb / 130 lb
13: 195 lb / 135 lb
14: 210 lb / 140 lb
15: 225 lb / 150 lb
16: 240 lb / 160 lb
17: 255 lb / 170 lb
18: 270 lb / 180 lb
19: 285 lb / 190 lb
20: 300 lb (buck) / 200 lb (doe)
Originally from STP Strong