Fawns - Tis the Season
Whitetail Deer
Tis the season for newborn fawns, let's see some pix...
Didn’t get a pic of him, but as I pulled into the neighbor’s yard, yesterday morning, a wobbly legged fawn ran right in front of my truck. The neighbor’s wife was mowing some tall grass and kicked him up. Couldn’t have been more than a couple of hours old. Glad she didn’t hit him!
Came across quadruplets a few years ago.
Maybe they weren't quads.... I've seen does birth together. One time I watched a Whitetail and a Mule deer doe giving birth within feet of each otherwhile another Whitetail and Mule deer doe (daughters?) stood watch. I could see two brand new fawns and the birthing does were still in labor. Co-incidence? Purposeful congregation?
Got pix of two very-soon-now does on Friday. Could be dropped or dropping now. Year-old on the left, not sure about the one in the brush.
No pics. But I saw a fawn nursing on a doe in the field beside our house a couple of days ago.
Dana that can’t be Massachusetts. There’s 4 deer right there. Soon to be 6-8 hahaha
I almost ran this one over with my rider last May. Nothing yet this year.
This little guy was only about 40 yards from my house two years ago. Taken on June 9, so it should be soon around here.
New kid on the block this morning.
Ridge I can tell that is going to be a booner in 2027.
Seen a couple day old antelope fawn yesterday here in NC Nebraska
Last weekend I saw a single and a set of twins that looked to be 2-3 weeks old. My wife saw the first fawn of the season about 2 weeks before that.
Wow Hawkeye quads, cool...
Good gravy, is she carrying quints?
She hefty
She hefty
First for me here in CT
First for me here in CT
Taken today. This is the entrance to my pole building off of the parking area for the house.
Just got my first fawn photo
The spotted ones aren't ripe yet.
In the orchard now. Against a Apple tree. It won't be long it will be eating there too.
Just hatched this morning, about 40 yds from the house. They were both pretty wobbly. Probably less than an hour or two old.
Had one partially eaten, gut section only, this week looked about 3 weeks old, in back yard. Fox maybe do that?
Just watched a doe drop a fawn that was literally 5 feet off of a quiet country road this morning......
20 minutes ago. Watched the doe leave her next to my Ohio house. Watched her nurse and then decided to say hello. Don't worry, I snapped the pic and backed out quietly. It never moved.
Yeah, way cool Pat...
Should have put a sheep ear tag on it to recognize it as it grew...8^) That would be cool though if a little buck, watch it grow to maturity, then kill it...8^)
What an amazing time of the year!
Great pics!
Ive only got two on trail cams thus far in WC MN.
Mark
Sorry Pat. That was dumb and uncalled for. You got lucky. The little guy could just as easily have gotten up and tried to run off. If you spook them, saying "oops" doesn't help much. It's not worth it just to get a dumb selfie for social media.
As if a doe wouldn't be able to locate a fawn that moved a few yards
The virtue signaling didn’t take long.
I watched the doe come back and nurse her right in my yard an hour later. If she doesn’t want anyone to take a pic then don’t put the fawn next to the house!
Of course, the doe puts her there to dissuade predators. It’s brilliant, actually.
Pat, I saw a fawn right up against the foundation in some weeds and bushes at the in laws house in NY a few years ago.
Had read they'll lay still when approached the first couple days of their lives but will usually spook and run after they're about 3 or 4 days old...
That whole thing about touching them and mother abandoning them is pure MYTH... Pat just confirmed that... A wild mammal mother is not going to abandon her baby/babies even if smells a slight human scent... She'll likely lick it off...
Am sure most have seen video of bears in Yellowstone grabbing elk calves and the mother assisting in the calf getting away.... Predator scent on her baby is not going to make her abandon her calf... Same on the Serengeti...
I have picked up fawns many times doing my job. I have actually handed them to the mothers with no issues. You can also move them pretty far and the mother will find them. No harm Pat, don’t hang yourself. Your touch is a lot more gentle than a bear, coyote or a bobcats touch. Now if I see you with a bottle in your hand like me then you’re at the point of no return
Handling them is not the issue. Nor is the fact that you got away with it. If the fawn had got up and moved any distance, or if the doe got nervous enough to move it, it would have left a scent trail, negating the survival behavior that allowed you to get that close...this time. You also have no idea if you stressed the fawn or doe. All for a stupid picture. The first rule in wildlife encounters and in wildlife photography is to not interfere with their natural behavior.
There is a lot more resilience built in then you are giving this animal credit for or wildlife in general. That picture wasn’t stupid either I liked it.
Ahhhhhh, Pat just said he watched the mother nurse it an hour later, doesn't sound like it was spooked or stressed.... Geez... In some states (PA comes to mind) wildlife officials with volunteers will grid an area to catch them to radio collar them for research...
Curious Pat, how many times were you fortunate to watch it nurse, and if so how much time between intervals?
Slate - That one is about perfect size to make a cool looking back quiver...8^))) (that was a joke folks...8^))
No worries the coyotes got it anyway.
Think of this, been keeping notes for years and last week and this week (I call this time Memorial Day week) has always been peak fawning season in my area... Many deerfarmers count 200 day gestation (google indicates 201), so the first sighting posted on this thread was by t-roy for May 21st... 200 days from that date was October 27th... Fawns have been dropping like flies this past week just from the photos on this thread, and probably many more to come this week... Pat seen his Memorial Day, May 29 when probably a day old, so figure born May 28th and likely conceived around November 3rd... Add another week, is November 10th, and every year is a big debate/discussion on peak rut dates... Have said it for years, first week of November annually is always peak rut around here... Newborn fawns confirm that and one reason I started this thread...
Also the earliest posted over on the Ohio forum dead fawn parts found on May 18th, so conception would have been around October 24th... I think more does are bred in October than most think...
MAPA - Dana took that pic east of 495, where there are 273 deer per square mile. Immediately upon crossing that road we are down to 2/sq mi.
This is an awesome thread, super fun to see all the awesome fawn pics!
So let me get this right. Most of you would recommend that everyone who sees a newborn deer, elk, etc., try to sneak up on it to take a picture petting it? Maybe, have teachers lead kids on forays to try it, you know for educational purposes. Or we could have a contest to see who can get the most fawn petting photos. Is it a good idea for people who should, and I believe actually do, know better, post that type of photo on line, to give those who don't know any better an excuse/reason to do it? Pat's hand in the photo added NOTHING worthy to it.
Yup that’s exactly what we are recommending. :-)
Go eat a friggen Snickers, Ziek!
So let me understand this: my single touch (didn’t pet it) freaked it out, causing stress and potential abandonment of its mother despite her dropping it in my yard.
But mowing 20 acres of hay the day before, or my neighbor spraying 325 acres of winter wheat has less impact?
Got it.
I’ll try harder to be a better person. Thank you for your guidance.
Crap. Just realized I’ve been accused of inappropriate touching.
8^))) Too funny Pat...8^)))
He!!, I probably would have got down next to it and took a selfie with it in frame...8^)
If it makes you feel any better Ziek, I bet he took pictures without the hand...8^)
I saw a story on here once about something much more extreme. A guy climbed in a tree, waited for hours then shot a deer with a bow and arrow. Then ate it.
Pretty sure that deer didn't make it. Pretty sure Pat's did.
Will, I hate to tell you but that pic was taken in Ham******* County - as was this one on Friday
I thought this was a great photo a LeatherWaller shared over on Stickbow... Said photo was taken 2nd week of May...
One of the Labs guarding a fawn at the lake house last weekend
Dana, impossible! Not out there. No deer there. ha ha ha!
The fawn at the lake house with the pup guard is awesome RK
Will
She stayed with that fawn until we took her in to feed her. Then Mom came to get her
Pic taken from the second story
Pat, last time I got caught touching Fawn inappropriately it cost me a house and half of my stuff! You got off lucky with Ziek!
I about stepped on this one this morning when I was out turkey hunting.
Have a small rye patch behind the house, actually it's more weeds than rye but anyhow hadn't yet had a chance to mow it this year and it was near waste high and watched a doe doing circles in it last week acting like she was looking for something so suspect she had fawn/fawns nearby... I didn't approach the area, so when I mowed it Thursday thought maybe I'd come across one, but not so, but seen a couple fawns with mothers from the road yesterday...
Here's video of fawn rescued from soccer net:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/video/animals/police-rescue-baby-deer-tangled-in-soccer-net/vi-AA1c2zLj?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=15f3024652c34c11bb33db1dc0895a08&ei=17
Yeah RK that’s pretty cool. Labs are the best dogs.
