January 23, 2015
Tracking Deer
Last week’s Good Natured photo showed a typical tracking scenario: a well-used trail in a suburban park. But hidden in plain sight amid all the foot traffic was the track of a white-tailed deer, above. The strategically placed lip balm serves as a guide to relative size.
Walking along a woodland edge recently, I couldn’t help but notice how the tips of so many low branches—on shrubs and trees alike—looked really ragged. Frayed. Shredded, even.
The damage was consistent, beginning at the base of the plants and continuing up almost as high as my head. As I surveyed the scene, my brain played a little trick on me. What first came to me as the thought “Oh dear,” slowly morphed into the realization, “Oh! Deer!”
These chewed—or, more accurately, torn off—twigs are a distinctive sign known as deer browse. Because white-tailed deer, the native ungulate, or hooved mammal, we have in our area, have no upper incisors, they grab and pull as they forage. The result is vegetation that, at best, looks like it got a bad haircut, and, at worst, dies from the abuse.
Other top signs our resident deer leave behind:
Tracks—Deer have “cloven,” or split, hooves, and leave behind prints that are vaguely heart-shaped, but with a ridge down the middle. The “pointy” part of the heart is the front of the foot, where the two crescent-shaped halves come together, but don’t actually meet. These “points” indicate the direction of travel.
However, just as we can spread our toes, so too can deer. Depending on substrate and other factors, like gait, deer can splay their hooves and leave behind tracks that are V-shaped, with the “pointy” part of the V indicating the rear of the track.
When tracking a deer in very soft substrate, like wet sand or mud, look for imprints of the animal’s dew claws—the two other toes of a deer’s foot. They will appear as large dots behind the hoofprint.
Print size varies, depending on the age and sex of the deer, from around 3 in. for young fawns to more than 5 in. in length for large bucks. Also, you may notice that the same deer leaves two different-sized hoofprints. Because the front legs bear more of the animal’s weight, the front hoofprints will be larger and deeper than those of the rear.
Scat—Depending on diet, deer scat can appear as piles of individual, acorn- or oblong-shaped pellets (typical in winter, when food is low in moisture) or soft clumps (in spring and summer, when vegetation is lush).
Trails and paths—Long, straight paths form in areas that deer visit frequently. Vegetation will appear trampled and stunted and paths will become worn into the substrate. These thoroughfares may start out narrow, but as more animals—and humans—discover them, they grow wider. Depending on location, they may become part of a park’s system of trails.
Rubs—Each autumn, at the onset of the whitetail mating season, or rut, bucks will vigorously rub their heads and antlers against saplings. This action, which for the deer serves as a means of marking territory, for humans provides an easily observable sign: long strips of frayed bark and exposed sapwood, typically at heights between two and four feet above the ground.
Antlers—These bony structures, which basically are extensions of a buck’s skull, emerge each spring and are shed each winter—usually in December and January in our area. Now is a great time to spot recently shed antlers. However, please remember that it is unlawful to remove any natural objects, including antlers, from parks and forest preserves. And if you go hunting for sheds on private property, make sure you first obtain the landowner’s permission.
Left on the ground, shed antlers serve as an important source of calcium for a number of woodland creatures, including mice, voles, chipmunks and squirrels. Older sheds will often bear the marks of the gnawing action of these animals’ constantly growing incisors.
Where find deer sign
Look for places that have steady food sources and good hiding places and you’ll probably find signs of deer–maybe even the animals themselves. Bear in mind though that deer are crepuscular, which means they are most active at dawn and dusk. Open woodlands (those that have been maintained via prescribed burns and invasive brush removal), cornfields and even yards—especially those with birdfeeders–in exurban and rural areas all are likely to support somewhere between several and many whitetails. Within the St. Charles Park District, Norris Woods, Delnor Woods, Persimmon Woods and the Hickory Knolls Natural Area all are good spots to put your newfound deer-tracking knowledge to use.
Pam Erickson Otto is the manager of nature programs and interpretive services at the Hickory Knolls Discovery Center, a facility of the St. Charles Park District. She can be reached at 630-513-4346 or potto@stcparks.org.