September 2023 - 12

INSPIRE A KID
Mule vs. white-tailed deer
Wyoming is full of big animals - we even
have two kinds of deer! Both mule and whitetailed
deer can be found across the state. You
may have seen both species out and about,
but they might have been hard to identify.
There are a few key differences and ways
to tell them apart. One of the easiest ways
is by looking at the antlers. Mule deer have
antlers that branch, forming a forked-Y shape
each time they split, creating two new points,
or tines, with every split. White-tailed deer
antler tines split off individually from one
main beam, which ends up looking similar
to a comb.
While not all deer have antlers, they all have
ears, and you can spot differences between
Wyoming's two deer species with this distinct
feature. Mule deer were named for their ears,
which are large, pointed and angled away from
each other similar to mules. White-tailed deer
have smaller and more rounded ears.
The hardest part about identifying deer is
often by the time you see one, it's running
away from you. Luckily, deer always have
something other than their ears - butts!
Looking at the rear of a deer is a great way to
tell mule and white-tailed deer apart because
they have very different tails. When a whitetailed
deer is alert, they raise their tail and
reveal a large, snow-white patch of hair underneath
to warn other deer of potential danger.
Mule deer also have a lot of white fur around
their rears, but a distinct, black tip at the end
of their tail is a " tip-off " to recognizing a mule
deer. Every mule deer will have that black tip,
and no white-tailed deer will.
Whether you're hunting, hiking or riding
Mule deer, left, have large, pointed ears and a black tip at the end
of their tails. White-tailed deer, right, have snow-white fur on the
underside of their tails. (Illustration by Emalee Roth/WGFD)
around in the car, you'll be ready to spot and
identify any deer you see - even if you only
see it from behind!
Mule deer ecology
Mule deer are main characters of the
Wyoming landscape. We often see them
munching on plants, lying with their herd
or frolicking in a field, but usually we only
observe them for a few minutes. Mule deer
have whole lives outside of what we see.
The life cycle of mule deer is tied to the
seasons. In September, mule deer across
Wyoming are prepping for their annual fall
migration. They're bulking up on yummy
forbs, grasses, sagebrush and other native
plants in their summer range. Where they
live depends on the herd, but each herd
spends summer in the same place every year.
In October, the deer begin their journey to
the grounds where they'll spend the winter.
Along the way, the deer continue to eat
as much as they can to gain weight before
winter. In November, buck mule deer fight
12 | September 2023
to attract the attention of does. This period
is called the rut. Once the deer reach their
winter range and the rut ends, they hunker
down for the winter. Bucks shed their antlers,
pregnant does grow their fawns and all the
deer use their built-up fat reserves to make
it through the season.
In April when the weather starts to warm
up, the deer begin to make the same long
journey they made in the fall, except this
time they move out of their winter range and
travel back to their summer grounds. Spring
brings regrowth of all the plants deer love
to eat and bucks regrow their antlers. This
is why deer antlers look fuzzy in the spring.
This fuzzy outer coating is called velvet, and
it's what helps the antlers to grow back bigger
every year. Once June rolls around, all the
pregnant does give birth within a few weeks
When buck mule deer are growing their antlers in the summer
months, their antlers are covered in fuzzy hairs called velvet.
(Photo by Chris Martin/WGFD)
of each other. This period is called the fawning
season. As summer progresses, the bucks
and does and new fawns eat and grow and
get ready for the whole process to start again.
https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Get-Involved/Inspire-a-Kid
September 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of September 2023
