White-tailed deer
White-tailed deer, scientifically known as Odocoileus virginianus, are hoofed mammals primarily found in North America, thriving in forests, meadows, and fields. With an estimated population of 15-20 million, they are one of the most abundant wildlife species in the United States. Characterized by their smooth brown to red coats, distinctive antlers, and the white tails that give them their name, these deer exhibit a range of physical traits and behaviors. Adult males, called bucks, can grow impressive antlers that are shed and regrown annually, while females are known as does and their young as fawns.
As herbivores, white-tailed deer have a diverse diet that includes grasses, leaves, berries, and nuts, which has facilitated their adaptability in the face of expanding human development. While they serve as prey for larger predators like cougars and wolves, their population has flourished in many areas due to a reduction in these natural threats and their ability to thrive in altered habitats. Despite being largely harmless to humans, they can cause accidents, particularly on roads, due to their unpredictable movements. In recent years, concerns have grown regarding chronic wasting disease affecting deer populations, highlighting ongoing challenges in managing their numbers and health. Culturally, white-tailed deer symbolize the beauty of nature and are recognized in various official capacities, including as state animals in several U.S. states.
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White-tailed deer
White-tailed deer are hoofed mammals that are extremely common in North American forests, hills, meadows, and fields. Their range covers most of the continental United States and the southern half of Canada. They are less common in the southern United States, but their range does extend into South America.
White-tailed deer have several distinct visual traits, such as their smooth brown to red coat, their antlers, their springing gait, and the white tails for which they are named. Juvenile deer have white spots in their coats that fade gradually with age. Whitetails are herbivores, and they can live off a variety of plant life, including grass, leaves, berries, and nuts. A whitetail's stomach has four different chambers to help it process this wide variety of foods. Whitetails' versatility of diet has helped them continue to thrive even as humans expand into their territory.
Background
The scientific name of the white-tailed deer is Odocoileus virginianus. They are mammals belonging to the family Cervidae. Adults typically weigh about one hundred pounds and measure about six feet in length, but specimens weighing nearly three hundred pounds and exceeding seven feet in length have been found.
Adult male whitetails are called bucks. Adult females are called does. Juveniles are known as fawns. Every year, bucks grow and shed sets of antlers. The antlers can have a considerable range of sizes, depending on the individual specimen, and they can also have differing amounts of branches. Age can be a factor in the size of antlers, but they are also determined by genetics. Does can grow antlers, but this is rare. When antlers are growing, they are encased in a soft material called velvet.
Bucks have full-grown antlers in time for mating season, at which point they use them to spar with each other for dominance. Victorious bucks mate with more does. Does will have between one and three fawns in the spring. Mothers keep fawns hidden until they are at least a month old. Once they can follow their mother, they remain with her until they are a year or two old. Males usually become independent at younger ages than females.
Whitetails communicate with a variety of sounds, scents, and actions. They have several glands that can release different scents, each with corresponding meanings. Most frequently, they involve marking territory, but they are also used to warn other whitetails of danger. Their distinct white tails can provide a visual warning of danger when held straight up. Mothers and offspring have vocal methods of calling to each other, especially when the fawns are very young and not as mobile.
These cooperative tactics, combined with their senses, make whitetails well suited for detecting threats. If they cannot avoid a predator's notice by keeping still, they use their considerable speed and agility to escape. Whitetails can move at approximately thirty miles per hour, even when navigating around trees and other obstacles. They are also impressive jumpers, with bounds that can reach ten feet in height and thirty feet in distance.
Overview
Scientists have conducted research regarding how whitetails have impacted the surrounding environment. They found that whitetails, particularly in heavily forested regions, prefer to feed from young saplings. This prevented areas with heavy deer populations from retaining the tree cover that they had maintained in the past, since young trees were killed off before they could grow. With increased light reaching forest floors, the ratio of native plants shifted, with some species thriving in the new conditions while others suffered.
While humans have taken over a great deal of whitetails' natural habitat, the deers' adaptable nature has helped them endure the changes in many regions and thrive in others. Whitetails' chief natural predators were wolves, cougars, and to a lesser extent, bears. These were all species seen as dangerous to humans and their livestock, and their numbers have been drastically reduced. While whitetails can be a nuisance to agriculture, their largely harmless nature meant they were largely ignored by humans, other than some hunting for sport and food. The elimination of predators and whitetails' adaptability led to an increase in the deer population as humanity settled and developed more of the continent.
In fact, whitetails began overrunning forests so much that humans have been organizing efforts to keep the population under control. Controlled hunting is the most widespread method. Whitetails are one of the most popular targets of hunting in North America. Their speed, keen senses, and camouflage make them a satisfying challenge for hunters. They typically pose no threat but are large enough to provide a generous amount of meat.
Whitetails are almost completely harmless to humans. However, their instincts to freeze or run in erratic patterns when threatened, along with the sheer amount of whitetails and humans coexisting, sometimes leads to dangerous situations. Around roads, whitetails are known to freeze in the paths of oncoming vehicles, or sometimes unexpectedly dart across or change direction—unpredictable actions meant to confuse and evade predators. They can cause serious damage to vehicles or startle drivers, who may make sudden swerves to avoid them. Whitetails sometimes jump fences or find themselves in other confined spaces in search of food. In this situation, they often panic, endangering themselves as well as people or property in the area.
In the early twenty-first century, several different organizations monitoring deer populations found an increasing amount of cases of chronic wasting disease in whitetails. This neurological disease is fatal in most cases and is extremely contagious. It has ravaged herds across North America.
Deer are often used and seen as symbols of the beauty and strength of nature. Several US states consider the whitetail their state animal, with a handful of others using it as a symbol in different official capacities. South Carolina adopted the whitetail as its official state animal in 1972. Milwaukee, Wisconsin's National Basketball Association (NBA) franchise is known as the Bucks, featuring a whitetail in its logo.
Bibliography
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"White-Tailed Deer." State Symbols USA, www.statesymbolsusa.org/symbol-official-item/south-carolina/state-mammal/white-tailed-deer. Accessed 11 Feb. 2017.