Table of Contents
The Wildlife Management Institute’s comprehensive “White-Tailed Deer Ecology and Management” tells us that there are 38 subspecies of whitetails with a natural range extending from the treeline of northern Canada (60 degrees north latitude) to sub-equatorial South America (15 degrees south latitude).
What is the largest subspecies of whitetail deer?
16) Odocoileus virginianus borealis is most likely the largest of the whitetail subspecies and occupies lands from central to eastern Canada south through Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois.
How many subspecies of deer are there in the US?
As you can see, there are 3 kinds of “deer” in general, 6 members of the deer family, 58 officially recognized subspecies of deer, and 80 trophy categories of deer in North America.
How many different types of whitetail deer are there?
White-tailed deer/Lower classifications.
What is the smallest subspecies of whitetail deer?
Sometimes called the “toy deer,” the Key deer is the smallest subspecies of white-tailed deer.
Do white bucks exist?
Albino deer, which lack only the pigment melanin, have pink eyes and are extremely rare. The Seneca White Deer interbreed freely with the brown deer in the former Depot and share the habitat equally. Some white bucks show a flattening, or palmation, of the antlers, but are physiologically similar in most other ways.
Why are Michigan Bucks so small?
Small antlers in bucks is something that’s hotly debated by deer hunters. Some hunters believe it is purely related to nutrition, while others believe it is purely related to minerals (or lack thereof) in local soils. Social stress is a huge factor in why young bucks don’t manifest larger antler configurations.
What species is a whitetail deer?
White-tailed Deer Kingdom Animalia Order Artiodactyla Family Cervidae Genus Odocoileus Species O. virginianus.
How many subspecies of mule deer are there?
There have been 11 subspecies of black-tailed and mule deer named. Mule deer have adapted to a wide range of conditions and some geographic differencesmay be important to recognize for conservation purposes.
How many whitetail deer are in North America?
How Many Deer Are In the United States? In 1930, there were 300,000 deer scattered throughout the United States. Today, there are approximately 30 million white-tailed deer and other cervid family members roaming the country; and they are causing billions of dollars in crop damage on landscapes along the way.
What are 3 types of deer?
3 Common Deer Species in North America … and How to Hunt Them White-tailed Deer. Depending on where you’re hunting, your strategy for harvesting white-tailed deer will vary greatly. Mule Deer. Black-tailed Deer. Meal Prep.
What’s the lifespan of a whitetail deer?
Most white-tailed deer live about 2 to 3 years. Maximum life span in the wild is 20 years but few live past 10 years old.
Is it illegal to pet a Key deer?
The deer and their habitat are protected by numerous regulations established by the National Key Deer Refuge. Do not feed, harass, touch, capture, or kill key deer.
What is the Key deer population?
The current Key deer population is estimated to be 700 to 800 deer, with the greatest concentrations on Big Pine Key and No Name Key. While its population is considered stable for now, the Key deer remains listed as a federally endangered species.
What eats Key deer?
A: The primary predators of Key deer fawns are American alligators and American crocodiles. On occasion, residents will report an alligator or crocodile having eaten an adult deer, but it is thought to be a rare occurrence. Adult Key deer do not have other natural predators, with the exception of the human-driven car.
Can deer be leucistic?
White Deer: Known as Leucistic, lack body pigment over all or part of their bodies. Mixed brown and white deer are often called piebald. The nose and eyes are still colored. Albino Deer: Absent of body pigment, is solid white with pink eyes, nose, and hooves.
How rare is a black deer?
Melanistic deer have been reported from 29 states, but they are never common. In one region of Texas, Texas Tech University found that melanistic deer make up about 8.5 percent of the population, by far the biggest concentration of these animals known.
Do albino deer have blue eyes?
As a result, albino deer often die at a much earlier age than normal whitetails. According to deer researchers, a true albino white-tailed deer will have pink or blue eyes and white hooves.
How old is a 10 point buck?
To provide parameters, a ten-point buck is considered mature around three and a half to fours of age and in its prime from six years and older. In heavily hunted areas it is rare to find the buck in the eight-year-old age group but it is possible.
Will an 8 point buck always be an 8 point?
Will an 8-point buck always be an 8-point? – Quora. No. A whitetail buck doesn’t reach it’s maturity until 4–5 years. Most bucks in the wild don’t live that long.
Should you shoot a 6 point buck?
When to Shoot By all means shoot the first legal buck you see. Hopefully it’s a big 8- or 10-point, but if it’s a small 6 or even a spike that’s okay. Doesn’t matter, let him or her shoot any legal buck.
What are the seven classification of a deer?
The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer (caribou), white-tailed deer, the roe deer, and the moose.
What is the species of a deer?
deer, (family Cervidae), any of 43 species of hoofed ruminants in the order Artiodactyla, notable for having two large and two small hooves on each foot and also for having antlers in the males of most species and in the females of one species.
What is the oldest species of deer?
The white-tailed deer predates the Ice Ages and is the oldest extant deer species. It became abundant only after the last glaciation when the indigenous Ice Age fauna of the Americas became extinct and competitive and predation pressures were lifted.
