Everything you Knew or thought you knew about the Muley
Mule Deer Vital Satistics
Courtesy of the Smithsonian Institute
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Class: Mammilla Order: Artiodactyls Family: Cervidae Sub Family: Capreolinae Genus: Odocoileus Species: Hemionus |
Mature Weight: 125-450 Lbs. Length: 45 to 80 Inches (tail not included) Shoulder Height: 36 to 44 inches Sexual maturity: 24 months Mating Season: October – November Gestation Period: 195 to 210 days Birth Intervals: 12 Months Normal Life span: 10 Years Diet: Vegetation (adapted by location) Maximum Speed: 35 MPH |
General Description
A medium-size deer. Stocky body, with long, slim, sturdy legs. In summer, reddish brown or yellowish brown above; in winter, grayish above. Throat patch, rump patch, insides of ears, and insides of legs are white; lower parts cream to tan. Large ears. Buck’s antlers are branched equally, each a separate beam forking into 2 tines; antler spread to 4’. 2 major types: Mule Deer, the more common, has tail white above and tipped with black. "Black-tailed Deer," found only along Pacific Coast, has tail blackish or brown above. Juvenile spotted. Ht 3’–3’5"; L 3’10"–7’6" ; T 4 1/2–9"; E 4 3/4–6"; Wt male 110–475 lb, female 70–160 lb.
Social Activites
Mule deer prefer "edge" habitats where the trees meet the grass, and their populations tend to move up or down with those of their preferred foods. Mule deer rarely travel far from water or forage, and tend to bed down within easy walking distance of both. Young mule deer tend to forage together in family groups while bucks tend to travel alone or with other bucks. Most actively foraging around dawn and dusk, they tend to bed down in protected areas mid-day, but will also forage at night in more open agricultural areas or when pressured by hunters. Repeated beds will often be scratched level, about the size of a washtub. Temporary beds will seem little more than flattened grassy grounds