White-tailed are social animals who walk in herds. Their tan coloring helps them camouflage in their woodland habitat. They are herbivores. Deer have a great sense of hearing and can move their ears to face different directions without moving their heads. Their strong sense of smell helps them to detect predators from a far distance. A deer’s eyes are on the sides of their heads giving them a large field of view and the ability to spot predators coming from any direction. They also have impressive night vision. When deer sense danger, they make a sniffing sound. If they feel threatened, they stomp with their hooves and snort. Deer are crepuscular which means they are more active at dusk and dawn. Male deer are called bucks, female does, and their young fawns. Fawns are speckled, like dappled sunlight, to provide camouflage. Only males grow antlers which they shed each winter. Deer can run up to 30 miles an hour and jump heights to eight feet. I watched them jump over my neighbor’s fence like talented hurdlers. They are also skilled swimmers.

Although I enjoy observing deer, I wish they wouldn’t eat my plants!

This is a buck’s skull. The flat teeth indicate that he eats plants. Notice the wide eye sockets.

“The deer are not crossing the road, the road is crossing the forest.”

Imogene’s Antlers is a fun fiction story to read while learning about deer.