Biology And Management Of White-tailed Deer In Alabama

darker winter coat. Fawns are born with spotted coats that presumably
help conceal them from predators. Fawns lose their spots when
they are approximately three to four months old—about the time of
year the summer coat is being shed for the winter coat.
Deer, like many other animals, are “counter-shaded”. They are
not one solid color. A deer’s coat is a darker color along the back, sides,
and on most of the head and legs. However, a deer’s belly, chest, throat,
and chin are white. The underside of the tail also is white. This pattern
helps to conceal deer from predators and makes them more difficult
to see—particularly at long distances.
Deer with aberrant color phases are not uncommon in Alabama.
A pure white (albino) or black (melanistic) deer is indeed rare. However,
harvest of piebald deer is fairly common throughout Alabama.
Piebald deer are characterized by having an almost all-white coat with
some brown splotches present. These abnormal color phases are genetic
in origin.
SENSES OF DEER
Eyesight plays an import role in a deer’s sensory perception.
Deer primarily depend on motion and depth perception to identify objects
by sight. With eyes located more to the sides of their heads, deer
can even detect motion behind them along their flanks. Deer are better
suited for seeing in low-light conditions than in bright sunlight. As in
human eyes, the eyes of a deer contain structures called rods and cones.
Rods enable vision in low light conditions and cones enable vision in
brightly lit conditions. Unlike humans, the eyes of deer contain more
rods than cones—thus affording excellent vision in low light. Research
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