White-tailed deer: The leaping flag-bearer of the forest

The white-tailed deer is the most common and most easily seen deer in North America. Its signature move is raising its tail high when startled to show the snowy white underside — like a little flag signalling to its companions. Let's meet it.

Its body

A white-tailed deer measures about 1.5 to 2.1 metres, with a well-proportioned body and long, slender legs. Its sense of smell and hearing are both sharp, and its eyes sit on the sides of its head, giving it a wide field of view to spot danger. In winter its coat grows thick and grey to help it through the cold.

Where it lives and what it eats

The white-tailed deer is a plant-eater, feeding on tender leaves, shoots, fruit and grass. It is active at dawn and dusk and likes to browse along forest edges and clearings. When startled and fleeing, it raises its tail to show the white underside, warning the deer behind it — and that is exactly where its name comes from. Its jumping is astonishing: it can clear a two-metre obstacle and bound eight or nine metres in a single leap.

Its family and its antlers

A newborn fawn lies frozen among the grass, its white spots working as a "camouflage suit" that hides it from predators. A buck's antlers drop off each winter and regrow in spring; they are among the fastest-growing bones in the animal kingdom.

A note for grown-ups

You could copy the white-tailed deer's "alarm" with a child: tail up, everyone run! Through such play, a child naturally remembers how animals communicate — and grows a little fonder of wildlife, too.