They live in all locations except for Antarctica where it is too cold. Only one species of them lives in all of Africa. The most popular types of deer include elk, White Tail Deer, moose, and caribou. To help simplify things there are five main categories of species of deer that have been identified. Those are the ones that we will cover here. Of course you should also consider doing more research on your own to evaluate the various sub species that fall into each one of these categories.
The White Tailed Deer is considered to be small in size. It has pointy antlers and the telling sign for it is the tail with white coloring underneath it. The older males also develop white under their necks and bellies. The more they mature the larger those areas of white will be. This is one type of deer that many people are familiar with.
This is also the type that is commonly hunted due to the fact that they have such a large population. Caribou are very large types of deer. Despite having to deal with more large predators, mule deer tend to be less cautious and skittish. Mule deer are popular for hunters as well, but the season for deer in mountain states tends to be a bit shorter, ending at the end of the fall.
Bow season usually starts at the beginning of September and ends with the gun season at the end of November. Like the whitetail and mule deer, the axis deer is a medium-sized deer species. The upward weight range is pounds for females and pounds for males, though bucks weighing up to pounds have been recorded. They are completely covered in white spots, even as adults. They are native to India, where they are known as Chitals, but they were introduced to Hawaii in the s and to Texas in They have flourished in the south and central areas of Texas where the land is similar to their homeland in India.
The bucks grow and lose their antlers every year, and they are especially prized because the antlers are very long, growing over three feet in length. A behavior unique to this species is that the bucks can deposit their sent using two glands near their eyes. They often stand on their hind legs and rub their scent on the high branches of trees.
Like mule deer and whitetails, the axis bucks tend to leave their herds and fight aggressively in the rut. Axis deer can form large herds, normally of does with their fawns. The does have regular three-week estrus cycles, and whichever bucks currently have fully grown antlers are dominant, so they can breed.
The axis deer is hunted for its large antlers and for its meat. The state has several hunts for bows and modern and antique guns at the end of winter and in the spring. In Texas and other states of the South, large ranches boast herds of axis deer that you can hunt year round.
Like the axis deer, they have white spots that they keep into adulthood. They are also medium sized. The largest sika are found in Manchuria where the females reach pounds and males In the US they are smaller, ranging from pounds.
The males grow large, stout antlers of a rich beige, and during the mating season they also grow thick manes. The rut occurs in early fall and can last into the winter. During this time the males secure large territories and guard the females within them, often fighting aggressively with other males. The deer use strategies different from other species that make them more difficult to kill. For example, startled sika may squat and hide in tall grass rather than running. In the wild they are active all day, but near human population centers, they tend to be nocturnal.
The stags make excellent trophies, and the venison, though not as common as other species, is often used in culinary delicacies. For generations, the Chinese have also used the velvetted antlers for medicinal purposes. They are usually larger than American and East Asian deer species.
Like their name suggests, they have thick red coats. The fawns have spots, but these disappear in adulthood. The stags have antlers that begin growing in the spring and fall off in the winter. These antlers can grow up to 45 inches long and weigh up to 11 pounds, making this species especially valued as trophies.
Like the sika, the red deer stags also grow manes. Similar to other deer species, the red deer hinds go into estrus in the fall and have their babies in the spring. The stags are more aggressive during the rut and compete to build harems of hinds in estrus.
Unique to this species, rival stags make a roaring sound that has been adapted to travel well through their forested environment. Europeans have hunted red deer since the times of cavemen, and stags have a prominent place in cave art and ancient legend.
In the 19th Century, their numbers dropped dramatically, but thanks to preservation efforts, their populations are currently stronger than ever. Each European country has different seasons and laws, but the season usually covers the rut in early fall when the deer are most active.
Some countries have become popular destinations for hunters, such as the Czech Republic that boasts a season from August January 31 during which hunters can come stay at a plethora of private hunting chateaus. Most people are familiar with eight particularly famous reindeer, but this species actually numbers in the millions.
Also called caribou in America, they used to extend as far south as the continental US, but due to human activity, they are now functionally extinct south of the Canadian border. Reindeer are the only species of deer in which the females also grow antlers. Because they shed their antlers each year, this means they grow incredibly quickly.
A nub of velvet in March can grow more than three feet by August. This gives reindeer the second largest set of antlers after the moose and the largest relative to their size.
Females reach up to pounds. Because of their frigid environment, reindeer have a number of unique adaptations. While most species of deer are herbivores, Indian Muntjac deer are actually omnivores. In addition to grasses and plants, they will eat eggs and sometimes even carrion. Water deer are some of the most unique of their species due to their tusks. In fact, the tusks, which are upper canine teeth that grow downwards, have actually earned them the nickname of vampire deer.
When male deer decide to battle other male members, they will click their tusks and if need be, even use their tusks for combat. Water deer mostly live in Korea and parts of China. However, after some water deer were introduced to England, a few escaped and there is now a feral herd in the area. Sambar deer are quite large and can weigh up to pounds. They are mostly found in tropical and subtropical forests, and are quite densely populated in India. These deer have quite a few predators to look out for, including tigers and leopards.
They are good swimmers and will often retreat to the water to get away from bigger animals. Also known as swamp deer, Barasingha deer have long antlers with three tines instead of the characteristic two. Their hair is a yellow-brown color and is wooly in texture. Barasingha received the nickname of swamp deer because they prefer marshy areas and wetlands to graze in.
They have light-brown coats and white patches of fur around their neck, head, and tail. These deer are actually only found in the Andes Mountains, although they traverse the mountain range and can be found in Peru, Bolivia, and Chile. They prefer elevated areas that still have grassland for them to graze on. Because of their extreme habitat, herds are thinner in population and area.
Each Taruca deer needs more space to be able to find enough to eat. The smallest species of deer in the entire world are the Pudu deer. They grow to only be 12 to 17 inches at the shoulder.
When Pudu deer are born, they are incredibly fuzzy. This, combined with their petite size of only 6 inches at birth, make them very adorable. Male Pudu deer have antlers but they are just spikes. They mainly live in Chile, although their small size makes them hard to see in the wild. The name of marsh deer can be a bit confusing. Barasingha deer, which live in India, are sometimes called swamp deer, and the marsh deer, which lives in South America, can also go by the same name.
However, they are two very different species of deer. Marsh deer have very large ears with a white coloring on the inside.
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