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Post by illinoisfisherman on Jun 21, 2024 16:38:33 GMT -5
Until the fawns are big enough and fast enough to run and keep up with mom..... The doe spends very little time with the fawn.... She stays as far away as she can. She hides the fawn, leaves to feed...... The fawns protection is to remain frozen and still.... The Doe does everything she can to not leave her scent near the fawn. Which would attract predators. Predators that the doe probably cannot fight off and the fawn cannot out run.
After the Doe Feeds... She comes back, nurses the fawn and then moves it to a new hiding spot.
Thank you. Grateful for the explanation. Never knew that. 👍
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Post by johnnybandit on Jun 21, 2024 16:54:50 GMT -5
Until the fawns are big enough and fast enough to run and keep up with mom..... The doe spends very little time with the fawn.... She stays as far away as she can. She hides the fawn, leaves to feed...... The fawns protection is to remain frozen and still.... The Doe does everything she can to not leave her scent near the fawn. Which would attract predators. Predators that the doe probably cannot fight off and the fawn cannot out run.
After the Doe Feeds... She comes back, nurses the fawn and then moves it to a new hiding spot.
Thank you. Grateful for the explanation. Never knew that. 👍
You are welcome..
I have noticed an interesting strategy that some does use on some properties I frequent in South Florida.... The area is very predator heavy. Panthers, Bobcats, alligators, Coyotes, Bears (bears are not really predators but they are not going to pass up a fawn) and sadly Pythons... Some of these lands have cattle operations on them....
So the Momma Does will walk their fawns right in among where the cattle are feeding or hanging out. And she will leave her fawn or fawns in some tall grass right up among the cattle...... The cattle are of no danger to the fawn... They are pretty much going to ignore it.....They will be able to smell it and not likely to accidentally step on it......
The cattle could care less if the fawn is there or not.... But those cattle also have calves... And those half wild woods cows that live out there with all those predators will fight a predator... willingly.... And all the cows are likely to join in..... They simply are not going to tolerate any predators around their calves.... And they are big enough and with multiple brood cows they can readily enforce that with any predator...
The first few times I saw it, I thought maybe it was a fluke or just happened to be that the cows were in a place the Momma Doe liked. But I have seen it enough now that I am sure they are doing it on purpose..... Interesting how they learned that......
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Post by illinoisfisherman on Jun 21, 2024 17:14:59 GMT -5
Actually that is amazing. But you know when you see videos of wildlife in Africa you often see many different types of hoofed animals mixed in a herd. I wonder if the weaker species mix with the stronger ones for protection?
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Post by johnnybandit on Jun 21, 2024 17:40:06 GMT -5
Actually that is amazing. But you know when you see videos of wildlife in Africa you often see many different types of hoofed animals mixed in a herd. I wonder if the weaker species mix with the stronger ones for protection? I am sure animals will stay around larger more capable animals for protection....
And I know those south Florida deer that live on land with cattle are using the cattle to protect the fawns.....
I missed the early fawn season this year because I was sick.... I was out there last weekend. Lots of nice healthy fawns... But now they are large enough they are staying with the does......
I forget it this photo was last year... I think it was 2022... I have it cropped in to show the doe and the fawn. But she was standing right in the middle of about 50 cows and calves..
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Post by bswiv on Jun 21, 2024 18:34:14 GMT -5
Thank you. Grateful for the explanation. Never knew that. 👍
You are welcome..
I have noticed an interesting strategy that some does use on some properties I frequent in South Florida.... The area is very predator heavy. Panthers, Bobcats, alligators, Coyotes, Bears (bears are not really predators but they are not going to pass up a fawn) and sadly Pythons... Some of these lands have cattle operations on them....
So the Momma Does will walk their fawns right in among where the cattle are feeding or hanging out. And she will leave her fawn or fawns in some tall grass right up among the cattle...... The cattle are of no danger to the fawn... They are pretty much going to ignore it.....They will be able to smell it and not likely to accidentally step on it......
The cattle could care less if the fawn is there or not.... But those cattle also have calves... And those half wild woods cows that live out there with all those predators will fight a predator... willingly.... And all the cows are likely to join in..... They simply are not going to tolerate any predators around their calves.... And they are big enough and with multiple brood cows they can readily enforce that with any predator...
The first few times I saw it, I thought maybe it was a fluke or just happened to be that the cows were in a place the Momma Doe liked. But I have seen it enough now that I am sure they are doing it on purpose..... Interesting how they learned that......
Could well be a holdover behavior from when Florida had buffalo......... Had twins and a single out front this evening again. The single is big enough to be about coyote/bobcat proof, the twins are getting close.
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Post by wildman on Jun 22, 2024 8:11:13 GMT -5
Big issue this time of year is that a lot of the wildlife rehab facilities get overrun with baby fawns that people find thinking they are orphaned. To make it worse, many try to feed them regular cows milk from the store, which can cause problems and even death.
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Post by slough on Jun 22, 2024 9:19:36 GMT -5
It has gotten common to see yearlings with spots as late as September here.
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Post by walkerdog on Jun 22, 2024 9:41:36 GMT -5
The term yearling is often used incorrectly. Yearlings are by definition over one year old but not yet two years old.
What you saw was actually a fawn.
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Post by slough on Jun 22, 2024 12:16:45 GMT -5
The term yearling is often used incorrectly. Yearlings are by definition over one year old but not yet two years old. What you saw was actually a fawn. Well I'm not one to argue, but around here a fawn is still nursing and a yearling is not.
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Post by walkerdog on Jun 22, 2024 12:49:57 GMT -5
Around there, I don’t doubt you. The term is commonly misused, in some circles of deer hunters.
Ask a cattleman what a yearling is. Every one of them will always call cattle that were born that year “calves” and if you call their calf a yearling, they’ll know you aren’t a cattleman.
Fawns are to deer what calves are to cattle.
Correctly used, yearling has the same meaning in both species.
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Post by johnnybandit on Jun 22, 2024 13:58:48 GMT -5
Big issue this time of year is that a lot of the wildlife rehab facilities get overrun with baby fawns that people find thinking they are orphaned. To make it worse, many try to feed them regular cows milk from the store, which can cause problems and even death. Yep..... I tell people as far and wide as I can to leave the babies alone... Not only with deer. But Fledgling birds on the ground, baby raccoons and foxes left some place.... The Momma will be back.
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Post by johnnybandit on Jun 22, 2024 14:05:44 GMT -5
Reckon they are 2nd littering? Some of the turkeys surely have as we've a range of juvenile sizes from about a quail to well over half a adult turkey. I saw two sets of hens today less than a quarter mile apart as the crow flies..... And the poults in one group was at least 6 weeks older than the poults in the other group.
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Post by TRTerror on Jun 22, 2024 15:57:04 GMT -5
My neighbor had a fawn he raised up and she would visit my hunting camp and eat treats almost daily. I bought a blaze orange collar for her and in the mornings, I'd set out hunting....DEER.. and about an hour later she'd come down my trail and spend the morning with me. I quit looking for other deer and would just watch her cause she'd know they were coming long before I would. She got hit by a car after about 3 years and that was the end of Miss June. It was really interesting to watch her grow up and her habits in the woods.
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Post by gogittum on Jun 22, 2024 17:26:17 GMT -5
Had a Mulie Fawn coming around the house with it's family about 10 years ago, but it had a serious problem:
I wish the people who operate this site would fix the goddamned picture insert feature. What a PIA. I have a pic of the Fawn with a broken leg and can't get the fool thing attached/entered/whatever. Balls. Ongoing frustration with an otherwise vg site.
Anyway, this morning I was walking the pooch down along the crick below the apt and saw a doe that I could see, even thru the brush, was walking funny.
She came across a small clearing no more than 60 or 80 ft away and I saw that the section below the lower joint of her left front leg was missing. She was obviously awkward, but it looked to be healed over and she was moving quite well. No chance for a picture.
This is a reasonably nice neighborhood and I rarely, if ever, see dogs running loose around here....prob'ly how she's survived with that injury. Loose dogs would be almost guaranteed to chase her down.
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Post by bswiv on Jun 23, 2024 5:32:50 GMT -5
Some of the turkeys surely have as we've a range of juvenile sizes from about a quail to well over half a adult turkey. I saw two sets of hens today less than a quarter mile apart as the crow flies..... And the poults in one group was at least 6 weeks older than the poults in the other group.
More than the time or two when I've wished for a good camera at the ready and the ability to use it. So many of the really amazing things, actually most of them, they are wholly unexpected and such short duration as to leave only the neural imprint, that imprint being better than never seeing or experiencing, and surely it makes it unique, but to have been able to share would be nice. Also reminds one how much WORK it is when someone goes out with a camera and gets really good pictures on a more than once in a lifetime basis.
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