Thewhite-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), also knowncommonly as thewhitetail and theVirginia deer, is a medium-sizedspecies ofdeer native toNorth,Central andSouth America. It is the most widely distributed mainlandungulateherbivore in the Americas; coupled with its natural predator, themountain lion (Puma concolor), it is one of the most widely distributed terrestrialmammalspecies in the Americas and the world. Highly adaptable, the varioussubspecies of white-tailed deer inhabit many different ecosystems, from arid grasslands to theAmazon andOrinoco basins; from thePantanal and theLlanos to the high-elevation terrain of theAndes.[3]
In North America the white-tailed deer is very common (even considered a nuisance in some areas) in states to the east and south of theRocky Mountains, including southwesternArizona, with the exception of the AmericanWest Coast andBaja California Peninsula, where its ecological niche is filled by theblack-tailed deer (in thePacific Northwest) or themule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) from that point west except for mixeddeciduousriparian corridors, river valley bottomlands, and lower foothills of the northern Rocky Mountain region fromWyoming west to easternWashington and easternOregon, and north to northeasternBritish Columbia and southernYukon, including in theMontana valley and foothill grasslands. The westernmost population of the species, known as theColumbian white-tailed deer, was once widespread in the mixed forests along theWillamette andCowlitz River valleys of western Oregon and southwestern Washington, but current numbers are considerably reduced, and it is classified asnear-threatened by theIUCN. This population is separated from other white-tailed deer populations.[4]
Texas is home to by far the most individual white-tailed deer of all U.S. states, Canadian provinces, or Latin American countries, with an estimated population of 5.3million, with both wild deer and farmedherds, the latter raised for largerack size and breeding.[5] High populations of white-tailed deer are known to exist on theEdwards Plateau ofCentral Texas, as well as inIllinois,Maryland,Michigan,Minnesota,Indiana,Iowa,Mississippi,Missouri,New Jersey,New York,North Dakota,Ohio,Pennsylvania, andWisconsin. The conversion of land adjacent to theCanadian Rockies to agricultural use, and partial clear-cutting ofconiferous trees (resulting in widespread deciduous vegetation), has been favorable to the white-tailed deer and has extended its distribution to as far northwest as the Yukon. Populations of white-tailed deer around theGreat Lakes have expanded their range north and westward, also due to conversion of land to agricultural use, with localcaribou,elk, andmoose populations declining. White-tailed deer arecrepuscular, meaning they are most active at dawn and dusk, sporadically resting throughout the day and night.[6]
Sometaxonomists have attempted to separate white-tailed deer into a host ofsubspecies, based largely onmorphological differences. Genetic studies,[clarification needed] however, suggest fewer subspecies within the animal's range, as compared to the 30 to 40 subspecies that some scientists have described in the last century. TheFlorida Key deer,O. v. clavium, and theColumbian white-tailed deer,O. v. leucurus, are both listed as endangered under the U.S.Endangered Species Act. In the United States, the Virginia white-tail,O. v. virginianus, is among the most widespread subspecies. Several local deer populations, especially in thesouthern United States, are descended from white-tailed deer transplanted from various localities east of theContinental Divide. Some of these deer populations may have been from as far north as the Great Lakes region to as far west as Texas, yet are also quite at home in theAppalachian andPiedmont regions of the south. These deer, over time, have intermixed with the local indigenous deer (O. v. virginianus and/orO. v. macrourus) populations.
Central and South America have a complex number of white-tailed deer subspecies that range from Guatemala to as far south as Peru. This list of subspecies of deer is more exhaustive than the list of North American subspecies, and the number of subspecies is also questionable. However, the white-tailed deer populations in these areas are difficult to study, due to overhunting in many parts and a lack of protection. Some areas no longer carry deer, so assessing the genetic difference of these animals is difficult.
Doe in September in Peace River, Alberta, Canada; between summer and winter coatsA portrait of a young female white-tailed deer
The white-tailed deer's coat is a reddish-brown in the spring and summer, and turns to a grey-brown throughout the fall and winter. The white-tailed deer can be recognized by the characteristic white underside to its tail. It raises its tail when it is alarmed to warn the predator that it has been detected.[11]
Female with tail in alarm posture
An indication of a deer's age is the length of the snout and the color of the coat, with older deer tending to have longer snouts and grayer coats.
A population of white-tailed deer in New York is entirely white except for the nose and hooves – notalbino – in color. The formerSeneca Army Depot inRomulus,New York, has the largest known concentration ofwhite deer. Strong conservation efforts have allowed white deer to thrive within the confines of the depot.
The white-tailed deer's horizontally slit pupil allows for good night vision and color vision during the day. Whitetails process visual images at a much more rapid rate than humans and are better at detecting motion in low-light conditions.[12]
The white-tailed deer is highly variable in size, generally following bothAllen's rule[13] andBergmann's rule[13] that the average size is larger farther away from the equator. North American male deer (bucks) usually weigh 68 to 136 kg (150 to 300 lb),[14] but mature bucks over 180 kg (400 lb) have been recorded in the northernmost reaches of their native range, namely Minnesota, Ontario, and Manitoba. In 1926, Carl J. Lenander Jr. took a white-tailed buck near Tofte, Minnesota, that weighed 183 kg (403 lb) after it was field-dressed (internal organs and blood removed) and was estimated at 232 kg (511 lb) when alive.[15] The female (doe) in North America usually weighs from 40 to 90 kg (88 to 198 lb). White-tailed deer from the tropics and the Florida Keys are markedly smaller-bodied than temperate populations, averaging 35 to 50 kg (77 to 110 lb), with an occasional adult female as small as 25 kg (55 lb).[16] White-tailed deer from theAndes are larger than other tropical deer of this species and have thick, slightly woolly-looking fur. Length ranges from 95 to 220 cm (37 to 87 in), including a tail of 10 to 37 cm (4 to 15 in), and the shoulder height is 53 to 120 cm (21 to 47 in).[17][18] Including all races, the average summer weight of adult males is 68 kg (150 lb) and is 45 kg (100 lb) in adult females. It is among the largest deer species in North America, and is also one of the largest in South America, behind only the marsh deer.[19]
Deer havedichromatic (two-color) vision with blue and yellow primaries;[20] humansnormally have trichromatic vision. Thus, deer poorly distinguish the oranges and reds that stand out so well to humans.[21] This makes it very convenient to use deer-hunter orange as a safety color on caps and clothing to avoid accidental shootings during hunting seasons.
Males regrow their antlers every year. About one in 10,000 females also has antlers, although this is usually associated withfreemartinism.[22] Bucks without branching antlers are often termed "spikehorn", "spiked bucks", "spike bucks", or simply "spikes/spikers". The spikes can be quite long or very short. Length and branching of antlers are determined by nutrition, age, and genetics. Rack growth tends to be very important from late spring until about a month beforevelvet sheds. Healthy deer in some areas that are well fed can have eight-point branching antlers as yearlings (1.5 years old).[23] Although antler size typically increases with age, antler characteristics (e.g., number of points, length, or thickness of the antlers) are not good indicators of buck age, in general, because antler development is influenced by the local environment. The individual deer's nutritional needs for antler growth is dependent on the diet of the deer, particularly protein intake. Good antler-growth nutritional needs (calcium) and good genetics combine to produce wall trophies in some of their range.[24] Spiked bucks are different from "button bucks" or "nubbin' bucks", that are male fawns and are generally about six to nine months of age during their first winter. They have skin-covered nobs on their heads. They can have bony protrusions up to 10 mm (1⁄2 in) in length, but that is very rare, and they are not the same as spikes.
Antlers begin to grow in late spring, covered with a highly vascularised tissue known as velvet. Bucks either have a typical or atypical antler arrangement. Typical antlers are symmetrical and the points grow straight up off the main beam. Atypical antlers are asymmetrical and the points may project at any angle from the main beam. These descriptions are not the only limitations for typical and atypical antler arrangement. TheBoone and Crockett or Pope and Young scoring systems also define relative degrees of typicality and atypicality by procedures to measure what proportion of the antlers is asymmetrical. Therefore, bucks with only slight asymmetry are scored as "typical". A buck's inside spread can be from 8–60 cm (3–25 in). Bucks shed their antlers when all females have been bred, from late December to February.[citation needed]
White-tailed deer are generalists and can adapt to a wide variety ofhabitats.[25] The largest deer occur in the temperate regions of North America. The northern white-tailed deer (O. v. borealis), Dakota white-tailed deer (O. v. dacotensis), and northwest white-tailed deer (O. v. ochrourus) are some of the largest animals, with large antlers. The smallest deer occur in the Florida Keys and in partially wooded lowlands in theNeotropics.
Although most often thought of as forest animals depending on relatively small openings and edges, white-tailed deer can equally adapt themselves to life in more open prairie, savanna woodlands, and sage communities as in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. These savanna-adapted deer have relatively large antlers in proportion to their body size and large tails. Also, a noticeable difference exists in size between male and female deer of the savannas. The Texas white-tailed deer (O. v. texanus), of the prairies and oak savannas of Texas and parts of Mexico, are the largest savanna-adapted deer in the Southwest, with impressive antlers that might rival deer found in Canada and the northern United States. Populations ofArizona (O. v. couesi) and Carmen Mountains (O. v. carminis) white-tailed deer inhabit montane mixed oak and pine woodland communities.[26] The Arizona and Carmen Mountains deer are smaller, but may also have impressive antlers, considering their size. The white-tailed deer of theLlanos region of Colombia and Venezuela (O. v. apurensis andO. v. gymnotis) have antler dimensions similar to the Arizona white-tailed deer.
In some western regions of North America the white-tailed deer range overlaps with those of themule deer. White-tail incursions in theTrans-Pecos region of Texas have resulted in some hybrids. In the extreme north of the range, their habitat is also used bymoose in some areas. White-tailed deer may occur in areas that are also exploited byelk (wapiti) such as in mixed deciduous river valley bottomlands and formerly in the mixed deciduous forest of eastern United States. In places such asGlacier National Park in Montana and several national parks in the Columbian Mountains (Mount Revelstoke National Park) and Canadian Rocky Mountains, as well as in the Yukon Territory (Yoho National Park andKootenay National Park), white-tailed deer are shy and more reclusive than the coexisting mule deer, elk and moose.
Central American white-tailed deer prefertropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, seasonal mixed deciduous forests, savanna, and adjacent wetland habitats over densetropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests. South American subspecies of white-tailed deer live in two types of environment. The first type, similar to the Central American deer, consists of savannas, dry deciduous forests, and riparian corridors that cover much of Venezuela and eastern Colombia.[27] The other type is the higher elevation mountain grassland/mixed forest ecozones in the Andes Mountains, from Venezuela to Peru. The Andean white-tailed deer seem to retain gray coats due to the colder weather at high altitudes, whereas the lowland savanna forms retain the reddish brown coats. South American white-tailed deer, like those in Central America, also generally avoid dense moist broadleaf forests.
Since the second half of the 19th century, white-tailed deer have been introduced to Europe.[28] A population in theBrdy area remains stable today.[29] In 1935, white-tailed deer were introduced toFinland. The introduction was successful, and the deer began spreading through northernScandinavia and southernKarelia, competing with, and sometimes displacing, native species. The 2020 population of some 109,000 deer originated from four animals provided byFinnish Americans from Minnesota.[30][31]
White-tailed deer eat large amounts of food, commonly eatinglegumes and foraging on other plants, includingshoots, leaves,cacti (in deserts), prairie forbs,[32] andgrasses. They also eat acorns, fruit, and corn. Their multi-chambered stomachs allow them to eat some foods humans cannot, such asmushrooms (even those that are toxic to humans)[clarification needed] andpoison ivy. Their diets vary by season according to the availability of food sources. They also eat hay, grass, white clover, and other foods they can find in a farmyard. Though almost entirely herbivorous, white-tailed deer have been known to opportunistically feed on nesting songbirds, field mice, and birds trapped inmist nets, if the need arises.[33] When additional amounts of minerals such as calcium are needed in their diet, they can resort toosteophagy, chewing on bones of dead animals.[34] A grown deer can eat around 900 kg (2,000 lb) of vegetable matter annually. A population of around 8 deer per square kilometre (20 /sq mi) can start to destroy the forest environment in their foraging area.[35]
Their diet consists mostly of woody shoots, stems, and leaves of woody plants as well as grasses, cultivated crops, nuts, berries, and wildflowers. The items they feed on are not generally abundant in mature forests and are mostly found at "edges".[36] Edges are described as a "mosaic of vegetation types that create numerous interwoven 'edges' where their respective boundaries intersect" and provide optimum cover for browsers such as the white-tailed deer.[37] White-tailed deer can easily thrive in suburban areas, as a combination of increased safety from some predators (including human hunting), high quality and abundance of foods in home gardens, city parks, open farmland, and other factors all create landscapes with an abundance of edge habitat.
The white-tailed deer is aruminant, which means it has a four-chambered stomach. Each chamber has a different and specific function that allows the deer to eat a variety of different foods, digesting it at a later time in a safe area of cover. The stomach hosts a complex set of microbes that change as the deer's diet changes through the seasons. If the microbes necessary for digestion of a particular food (e.g., hay) are absent, it will not be digested.[38] Utilizingforegut fermentation, the fermented ingesta (known ascud) is regurgitated and chewed again,[39][40] to mix it with saliva and reduce the particle size. Smaller particle size allows for increased nutrient absorption and the saliva is important because it provides liquid for the microbial population, recirculates nitrogen and minerals, and acts as a buffer for the rumen pH.[41]
There are several natural predators of white-tailed deer, withwolves,cougars,American alligators,jaguars (in the American southwest, Mexico, and Central and South America) and humans being the most effective natural predators. Aside from humans, these predators frequently pick out easily caught young or infirm deer (which is believed to improve the genetic stock of a population), but can and do take healthy adults of any size.Bobcats,Canada lynx,grizzly andAmerican black bears,wolverines, and packs ofcoyotes usually prey mainly on fawns. Bears may sometimes attack adult deer, while lynxes, coyotes, and wolverines are most likely to take adult deer when the ungulates are weakened by harsh winter weather.[17] Many scavengers rely on deer as carrion, includingNew World vultures,raptors,red andgray foxes, andcorvids. Few wild predators can afford to be picky and any will readily consume deer as carrion. Records exist ofAmerican crows andcommon ravens attempting to prey on white-tailed deer fawns by pecking around their face and eyes, though no accounts of success are given.[42] Occasionally, bothgolden andbald eagles may capture deer fawns with their talons.[43] In one case, a golden eagle was filmed inIllinois unsuccessfully trying to prey on a large mature white-tailed deer.[44]
White-tailed deer typically respond to the presence of potential predators by breathing very heavily (also called blowing) and fleeing. When they blow, the sound alerts other deer in the area. As they run, the flash of their white tails warns other deer. This especially serves to warn fawns when their mother is alarmed.[45] Most natural predators of white-tailed deer hunt by ambush, althoughcanids may engage in an extended chase, hoping to exhaust the prey.Felids typically try to suffocate the deer by biting the throat. Cougars and jaguars will initially knock the deer off balance with their powerful forelegs, whereas the smaller bobcats and lynxes will jump astride the deer to deliver a killing bite. In the case of canids and wolverines, the predators bite at the limbs and flanks, hobbling the deer, until they can reach vital organs and kill it through loss of blood. Bears, which usually target fawns, often simply knock down the prey and then start eating it while it is still alive.[46][47] Alligators snatch deer as they try to drink from or cross bodies of water, grabbing them with their powerful jaws and dragging them into the water to drown.[48]
Most primary natural predators of white-tailed deer have been essentiallyextirpated in eastern North America, with a very small number of reintroduced critically endangeredred wolves, aroundNorth Carolina and a small remnant population ofFlorida panthers, a subspecies of the cougar.Gray wolves, the leading cause of deer mortality where they overlap, co-occur with whitetails in northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and most of Canada.[45] The abundant deer population has helped play a role in the healthy recovery of the Great Lakes wolf population.[49][50] Coyotes, widespread and with a rapidly expanding population, are often the only major nonhuman predator of the species in the Eastern U.S., besides an occasionaldomestic dog.[45] In some areas,American black bears are also significant predators.[46][47] In north-central Pennsylvania, black bears were found to be nearly as common predators of fawns as coyotes.[51] Bobcats, still fairly widespread, usually only exploit deer as prey when smaller prey is scarce.[52] Discussions have occurred regarding the possible reintroduction of gray wolves and cougars to sections of the eastern United States, largely because of the apparent controlling effect they have through deer predation on local ecosystems, as has been illustrated in the reintroduction of wolves toYellowstone National Park and their controlling effect on previously overpopulatedelk.[53] However, due to the heavy urban development in much of the Eastern U.S., and fear for livestock and human lives, such ideas have ultimately been rejected by local communities and/or by government services and have not been carried through.[54][55][56]
White-tailed deer can jump very far.
White-tailed deer can run faster than their predators and have been recorded sprinting at speeds of 60 km (40 mi) per hour and sustaining speeds of 50 km (30 mi) per hour over distances of 5–6 km (3–4 mi);[57] this ranks them amongst the fastest of all deer, alongside the Eurasianroe deer. They can also jump 3 m (9 ft) high and up to 9 m (30 ft) forward. When shot at, a white-tailed deer will run at high speeds with its tail down. If frightened, the deer will hop in a zig-zag with its tail straight up. If the deer feels extremely threatened, however, it may choose to attack, charging the person or predator posing the threat, using its antlers or, if none are present, its head to fight off its target.
In certain parts of eastern North America, high deer densities have caused large reductions in plant biomass, including the density and heights of certain forest wildflowers, tree seedlings, and shrubs. Although they can be seen as a nuisance species, white-tailed deer also play an important role in biodiversity.[58][59] At the same time, increases in browse-tolerant grasses and sedges and unpalatable ferns have often accompanied intensive deer herbivory.[60] Changes to the structure of forest understories have, in turn, altered the composition and abundance of forest bird communities in some areas.[61] In regions of intermediate density, deer activity has also been shown to increase herbaceous plant diversity, particularly in disturbed areas, by reducing competitively dominant plants;[62] and to increase the growth rates of important canopy trees, perhaps by increased nutrient inputs into the soil.[63]
In northeastern hardwood forests, high-density deer populations affect plant succession, particularly following clear-cuts and patch cuts. In succession without deer, annual herbs and woody plants are followed by commercially valuable, shade-tolerant oak and maple. The shade-tolerant trees prevent the invasion of less commercial cherry and American beech, which are stronger nutrient competitors, but not as shade tolerant. Although deer eat shade-tolerant plants and acorns, this is not the only way deer can shift the balance in favor of nutrient competitors. Deer consuming earlier-succession plants allows in enough light for nutrient competitors to invade. Since slow-growing oaks need several decades to develop root systems sufficient to compete with faster-growing species, removal of the canopy prior to that point amplifies the effect of deer on succession. High-density deer populations possibly could browse eastern hemlock seedlings out of existence in northern hardwood forests;[64] however, this scenario seems unlikely, given that deer browsing is not considered the critical factor preventing hemlock re-establishment at large scales.[65]
Ecologists have also expressed concern over the facilitative effect high deer populations have on invasions of exotic plant species. In a study of eastern hemlock forests, browsing by white-tailed deer caused populations of three exotic plants to rise faster than they do in the areas which are absent of deer. Seedlings of the three invading species rose exponentially with deer density, while the most common native species fell exponentially with deer density, because deer were preferentially eating the native species. The effects of deer on the invasive and native plants were magnified in cases of canopy disturbance.[66]
The white-tailed deer population in North America has declined by several million since 2000, but as of 2017 is considered healthy and is approximately equal to the historical pre-colonization white-tailed population on the continent.[67] The species has rebounded considerably after being overhunted nearly to extinction in the late 1800s and very early 1900s.[67] By contrast, the species' closest cousins (blacktail deer andmule deer) have seen their populations cut by more than half in North America after peaking in 1960 and have never regained their pre-colonization numbers.[67] In the 21st century, the loss of natural predators has been more than offset by the ongoing loss of natural habitat to human development, and changes to logging operations.[67]
Several methods have been developed to curb the population of white-tailed deer in suburban areas where they are perceived as overabundant, and these can be separated into lethal and nonlethal strategies. Most common in the U.S. is the use of extended hunting as population control, as well as a way to provide meat for humans.[68] In Maryland and many other states, a state agency sets regulations on bag limits and hunting in the area depending on the deer population levels assessed.[69] Hunting seasons may fluctuate in duration, or restrictions may be set to affect how many deer or what type of deer can be hunted in certain regions. For the 2015–2016 white-tailed deer-hunting season, some areas allowed only the hunting of antlerless white-tailed deer. These included young bucks and females, which encouraged the culling of does, aiding in population control.[68]
A more targeted yet more expensive[70] removal strategy than public hunting is a method referred to as sharpshooting. Sharpshooting can be an option when the area inhabited by the deer is unfit for public hunting. This strategy may work in areas close to human populations, since it is done by professional marksmen, and requires a submitted plan of action to the city with details of the time and location of the action, as well as number of deer to be culled.[70] Another controversial method involves trapping the deer in a net or other trap, and then administering a chemical euthanizing agent or extermination by firearm. A main issue in questioning the humaneness of this method is the stress that the deer endure while trapped and awaiting extermination.[70]
Nonlethal methods include contraceptive injections, sterilization, and translocation of deer.[71] While lethal methods have municipal support as being the most effective in the short term, some opponents of this view suggest that extermination has no significant impact on deer populations.[72] Opponents of contraceptive methods point out that fertility control cannot provide meat and proves ineffective over time as populations in open-field systems move about. Concerns are voiced that the contraceptives have not been adequately researched for the effect they could have on humans. Fertility control also does nothing to affect the current population and the effects their grazing may be having on the forest plant make-up.[73]
Translocation has been considered overly costly for the little benefit it provides. Deer experience high stress and are at high risk of dying in the process, putting into question its humaneness.[74] Another concern regarding translocation is the possible spreading ofchronic wasting disease to unaffected deer populations and concerns about exposure to human populations.[75]
Males compete for the opportunity to breed with females, with sparring among males determining adominance hierarchy.[78] Bucks attempt to copulate with as many females as possible, gradually losing physical condition since they rarely eat or rest during the rut. The general geographical trend is for the rut to be shorter in duration at increased latitude. Many factors determine how intense the "rutting season" will be; air temperature is a major one. Any time the temperature rises above 4 °C (40 °F), the males do much less traveling looking for females, else they will be subject to overheating or dehydrating.[citation needed] Another factor for the strength of rutting activity is competition. If numerous males are in a particular area, then they compete more with the females. If fewer males or more females are present, then the selection process will not need to be as competitive.
Females enterestrus, colloquially called therut, in the autumn, normally in late October or early November, triggered mainly by the decliningphotoperiod. Sexual maturation of females depends onpopulation density, as well as the availability of food.[79] Young females often flee from an area heavily populated with males. Some does may be as young as six months when they reach sexual maturity, but the average age of maturity is 18 months.[80] Copulation consists of a brief copulatory jump.[81][82]
Females give birth to one to three spotted young, known as fawns, in mid-to-late spring, generally in May or June. Fawns lose their spots during the first summer and weigh from 20 to 35 kg (44 to 77 lb) by the first winter. Male fawns tend to be slightly larger and heavier than females. For the first four weeks, fawns are hidden in vegetation by their mothers, who nurse them four to five times a day. This strategy keeps scent levels low to avoid predators. After about a month, the fawns[83] are then able to follow their mothers on foraging trips. They are usually weaned after 8–10 weeks, but cases have been seen where mothers have continued to allow nursing long after the fawns have lost their spots (for several months, or until the end of fall) as seen by rehabilitators and other studies. Males leave their mothers after a year and females leave after two.
Bucks are generallysexually mature at 1.5 years old and begin to breed even in populations stacked with older bucks.[citation needed]
White-tailed deer have many forms of communication involving sounds, scent, body language, and marking. In addition to the blowing in the presence of danger, all white-tailed deer can produce audible noises unique to each animal. Fawns release a high-pitched squeal, known as a bleat, to call out to their mothers.[84] This bleat deepens as the fawn grows until it becomes the grunt of the mature deer, a guttural sound that attracts the attention of any other deer in the area. A doe makes maternal grunts when searching for her bedded fawns.[84] Bucks also grunt, at a pitch lower than that of the doe; this grunt deepens as the buck matures. In addition to grunting, both does and bucks also snort, a sound that often signals an imminent threat. Mature bucks also produce a grunt-snort-wheeze pattern, unique to each animal, that asserts its dominance, aggression, and hostility.[84] White-tailed deer also use "tail-flagging", a behavior where the tail is raised when they detect a threat. However, the function of this behavior is disputed, and it appears to be a signal to predators more than an intraspecific communication warning other deer.[85][86]
White-tailed deer possess manyglands that allow them to producescents, some of which are so potent they can be detected by the human nose. Four major glands are the preorbital, forehead, tarsal, and metatarsal glands. Secretions from thepreorbital glands (in front of the eye) were thought to be rubbed on tree branches, but research suggests this is not so.[citation needed] Scent from the forehead or sudoriferous glands (found on the head, between the antlers and eyes) is used todeposit scent on branches that overhangscrapes (areas scraped by the deer's front hooves beforerub-urination). The tarsal glands are found on the upper inside of the hock (middle joint) on each hind leg. The scent is deposited from these glands when deer walk through and rub against vegetation. These scrapes are used by bucks as a sort of "sign-post" by which bucks know which other bucks are in the area, and to let does know a buck is regularly passing through the area—for breeding purposes. The scent from the metatarsal glands, found on the outside of each hind leg, between the ankle and hooves, may be used as an alarm scent. The scent from the interdigital glands, which are located between the hooves of each foot, emit a yellow waxy substance with an offensive odor. Deer can be seen stomping their hooves if they sense danger through sight, sound, or smell; this action leaves an excessive amount of odor for warning other deer of possible danger.[87]
A doe rub-urinating
Throughout the year, deerrub-urinate, a process during which a deer squats while urinating so the urine will run down the insides of the deer's legs, over the tarsal glands, and onto the hair covering these glands. Bucks rub-urinate more frequently during the breeding season.[88] Secretions from thepreputial glands[89] and tarsal glands mix with the urine and bacteria to produce a strong-smelling odor.[90] During the breeding season, does release hormones and pheromones that tell bucks a doe is in heat and able to breed. Bucks also rub trees and shrubs with their antlers and heads during the breeding season, possiblytransferring scent from the forehead glands to the tree, leaving a scent other deer can detect.[91]
Sign-post marking (scrapes and rubs) is a very obvious way white-tailed deer communicate.[91] Although bucks do most of the marking, does visit these locations often. To make a rub, a buck uses his antlers to strip the bark off small-diameter trees, helping to mark his territory and polish his antlers. To mark areas they regularly pass through, bucks make scrapes. Often occurring in patterns known as scrape lines, scrapes are areas where a buck has used his front hooves to expose bare earth. They often rub-urinate into these scrapes, which are often found under twigs that have been marked with scent from the forehead glands.[citation needed]
White-tailed deer have long been hunted asgame, for puresport and for theircommodities, and is probably the most hunted native big game species in theAmericas. In Mesoamerica, white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) were hunted from very early times. Rites and rituals in preparation for deer hunting and celebration for an auspicious hunt are still practiced in the area today. Ancient hunters ask their gods for permission to hunt, and some deer rites take place in caves.[92]
Venison, or deer meat, is a nutritious form of lean animal protein.[93] In some areas where their populations are very high, white-tailed deer are considered a pest, and hunting is used as a method to control them.[94][95][96]
In 1884, one of the first hunts of white-tailed deer in Europe was conducted inOpočno andDobříš (Brdy Mountains area), in what is now theCzech Republic. In the same era, white-tailed deer were hunted to near extinction in North America, but numbers have since rebounded to approximate pre-colonization levels.[67] In theUnited States, whitetail hunting is far more popular in some states than others. The top five states for whitetail hunter concentrations are all in theNortheast andMidwest (Pennsylvania,Rhode Island,New York,Wisconsin, andOhio).[97] The Northeast in particular has twice the hunter density of the Midwest and Southeast and ten times that of the West.[97]
Hunting is a tool that can be used for controlling the whitetail deer population in areas that may not have a strong predator presence and where local ecosystems may be negatively effected by overgrazing.[68]
By the early 20th century, commercial exploitation and unregulatedhunting had severely depressed deer populations in much of their range.[99] For example, by about 1930, the U.S. population was thought to number about 300,000.[100] After an outcry by hunters andconservation ecologists, commercial exploitation of deer became illegal and conservation programs along with regulated hunting were introduced. In 2005, estimates put the deer population in the United States at around 30million.[101] Conservation practices have proved so successful, in parts of their range, the white-tailed deer populations currently far exceed their culturalcarrying capacity and the animal may be considered anuisance.[102][103] A reduction in non-human predators (which normally cull young, sick, or infirm specimens) has also contributed to locally abundant populations.
At high population densities, farmers can suffer economic damage from deer feeding on cash crops, especially incorn andorchards. It has become nearly impossible to grow some crops in some areas unless very burdensome deer-deterring measures are taken. Deer can easily jump fences, and their fear of motion and sounds meant to scare them away is soon dulled. Timber harvesting and forest clearance have historically resulted in increased deer population densities,[104][105] which in turn have slowed the rate of reforestation following logging in some areas. High densities of deer can have severe impacts on native plants and animals in parks and natural areas; however, deer browsing can also promote plant and animal diversity in some areas.[106][107] Deer can also cause substantial damage to landscape plants in suburban areas, leading to limited hunting or trapping to relocate or sterilize them. In parts of the Eastern US with high deer populations and fragmented woodlands, deer often wander into suburban and urban habitats that are less than ideal for the species.
In New Zealand, the United States, and Canada, white-tailed deer are kept aslivestock, and areextensively as well asintensively farmed for theirmeat,antlers, andpelts.[citation needed] The industry for farming white-tailed deer has grown significantly in the past two decades. In recent years,[when?] sales of white-tailed deer have generated up to $44million in revenue. They are a good business venture because they have a high fertility rate and long reproductive life, can tolerate all weather, can be raised on land that is not suitable for agriculture and offer many by-products that can be sold. The North American white-tailed deer industry is split between breeding farms and hunting ranches. While some people care about the by-products produced by the deer, some people just care for the pursuit of a hunt. In the United States alone, around 13–14 million hunting licenses are sold every year. This could be a very profitable industry, especially considering the invasiveness of this species and the rate they have shown they are able to reproduce. However, this industry could have great repercussions on the ecosystem the farms are placed in because overpopulation of deer causes damage to local fauna.[108]
Car with major damage from striking a white-tailed deer inWisconsin
Motor vehicle collisions with deer are a significant issue in many parts of their range, especially at night and during rutting season, causing injuries and fatalities among both deer and humans. Vehicular damage can be substantial in some cases.[109] In the United States, such collisions increased from 200,000 in 1980 to 500,000 in 1991.[110] By 2009, the insurance industry estimated 2.4 million deer–vehicle collisions had occurred over the past two years, estimating damage cost to be over 7 billion dollars and 300 human deaths. Despite the high rate of these accidents, the effect on deer density is still quite low. Vehicle collisions of deer were monitored for two years in Virginia, and the collective annual mortality did not surpass 20% of the estimated deer population.[111]
Many techniques have been investigated to prevent roadside mortality. Fences orroad under- or over- passes have been shown to decrease deer-vehicle collisions, but are expensive and difficult to implement on a large scale.[112][113] Roadside habitat modifications could also successfully decrease the number of collisions along roadways.[113] An essential procedure in understanding factors resulting in accidents is to quantify risks, which involves the driver's behavior in terms ofsafe speed and ability to observe the deer. Some have[who?] suggested that reducing speed limits during the winter months when deer density is exceptionally high would likely reduce deer-vehicle collisions, but this may be an impractical solution.[114]
Another issue that exists with high deer density is the spreading of infectious diseases. Increased deer populations lead to increased transmission of tick-borne diseases, which pose a threat to human health, to livestock, and to other deer. White-tailed deer are the primary host for the adultblack-legged tick (Ixodes scapularis), which transmits theLyme disease bacterium to humans.[115] Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease in the country with confirmed cases, according to 2019 CDC data, in virtually every state in the U.S. with the highest incidence levels in the states from Maine to Virginia, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. In 2019 the number of confirmed and probable cases totaled about 35,000.[116] Furthermore, the incidence of Lyme disease seems to reflect deer density in the eastern United States, which suggests a strong correlation. While deer are critical hosts for the tick life cycle, they are not susceptible to infection by the Lyme disease spirochete. Thewhite-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) is the most significant reservoir ofBorrelia burgdorferi, the etiologic agent of Lyme disease.[117][118] White-tailed deer also act as hosts for other medically significant tick vectors that transmit diseases including asRocky Mountain spotted fever,Rickettsia parkeri rickettsiosis, and human monotropic ehrlichiosis.[110][111]
Blood samples gathered byUSDA researchers in 2021 also showed that 40% of sampled white-tailed deer demonstrated evidence ofSARS-CoV-2 antibodies, with the highest percentages in Michigan, at 67%, and Pennsylvania, at 44%.[119] A later study byPenn State University and wildlife officials in Iowa showed that up to 80 percent of Iowa deer sampled from April 2020 through January 2021 had tested positive for active SARS-CoV-2 infection, rather than solely antibodies from prior infection. This data, confirmed by theNational Veterinary Services Laboratory, alerted scientists to the possibility that white-tailed deer had become anatural reservoir for the coronavirus, serving as a potential "variant factory" for eventual retransmission back into humans.[120] AnOhio State University study further showed that humans had transmitted SARS-CoV-2 to white-tailed deer on at least six separate occasions and that deer possessed six mutations that were uncommon in humans at the time of the study.[121] Infected deer can shed virus via nasal secretions and feces for five to six days and frequently engage in activities conductive to viral spread, such as sniffing food intermingled with waste, nuzzling noses, polygamy, and the sharing of salt licks.[122] Canadian researchers uncovered an entirely new SARS-CoV-2 variant within a November–December 2021 study of Ontario white-tailed deer. The new COVID variant had also infected a person who had close contact with local deer, potentially marking the first instance of deer-to-human transmission.[123][124]
Climate change is affecting the white-tailed deer by changing theirmigration patterns and increasing their population size.[131][132] This species of deer is restricted from moving northward due to cold harsh winters.[133][131][134][135] Consequently, as climate change warms up Earth, these deer are allowed to migrate further north which will result in the populations of the white-tailed deer increasing.[132][133][131] Between 1980 and 2000 in a study by Dawe and Boutin, presence of white-tailed deer inAlberta, Canada, was driven primarily by changes in the climate.[132] Populations of white-tailed deer have also moved anywhere from 50 to 250 km (31 to 155 mi) north of the eastern Alberta study site. Another study by Kennedy-Slaney, Bowman, Walpole, and Pond found that if currentCO2 emissions remained the same, global warming resulting from the increasedgreenhouse gases in the atmosphere will allow white-tailed deer to survive further and further north by 2100.[133]
Deer are vulnerable to diseases that are more prevalent in the summer.[131] Insects carrying these diseases like Lyme are usually killed during the first snowfall. However, as time goes on, they will be able to live longer than they used to meaning the deer are at higher risk of getting sick. It is possible that this will increase the deers' mortality rate from disease.[136] Examples of these diseases are hemorrhagic disease (HD),epizootic hemorrhagic disease andbluetongue viruses, which are transmitted by bitingmidges.[133] The hotter summers, longerdroughts, and more intense rains create the perfectenvironment for the midges to thrive in.[137] Ticks also thrive in warmer weather; heat results in faster development in all of their life stages.[137] 18 different species of tick infest white-tailed deer in the United States alone. Ticks parasitic to white-tailed deer transmit diseases causingirritation,anemia, andinfections.[137]
Deer are common definitive hosts of the parasiteParelaphostrongylus tenuis (also known as menigeal worm or brainworm) andFascioloides magna (also known as giant liver fluke) and contribute to the spread of these parasites among the white-tailed deer population and other cervids.[138] As the climate grows warmer and snow pack density decreases, more deer move into places like northern Minnesota, where the climate had previously been too harsh for a large population to thrive, and spread these parasites to the winter-hardymoose population.[139]
Deer can host an adult brainworm parasite for many years, showing little to no symptoms of infection.[138][140] Moose and other cervid species (likeelk) are dead-end hosts for thebrainworm parasite; where the parasite resides in the brain matter of these cervids and cause severe neurological disease.[140] This parasite eventually causes death, or contributes to an increased likelihood of mortality via predation for dead-end hosts. Factors like infected deer density, climate, and temperature determine transmission levels of this parasite. A warming climate likely increases the rate of transmission due to the migration of deer into moose habitat and favorable weather conditions for transmission occurring more frequently.[141][142] The1854 Treaty Authority monitors the density of brainworm and giant liver fluke infection within the deer population of northeastern Minnesota, and uses this information to advise theMinnesota DNR when making management decisions in the 1854 Ceded Territory.
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