Throat, ramp and inner part of ears and legs are white. The antlers split off from the main branch forming two branches, each branch has 2 or more tines. Mule Deer are active primarily in mornings, evenings and moonlit nights. They will move to higher elevations during the hottest parts of the summer and move to lower elevations during the winter months. But, due to political opposition to government acquisition of privately owned lands, plus a scarcity of funds for this purpose, only a small fraction of Mule Deer ranges has been acquired by the government. The tail is usually tipped in black with a white basal portion, and its under parts are white. There size is usually 3.0- 3.5 feet tall at the shoulder They are 4.5- 7.0 feet long. Mule Deer have no canine teeth and, like the cow, have a multi-part stomach, the first two chambers of which act as temporary storage bins. Class: Mammalia Sweat glands and panting also provide evaporative cooling during hot periods. Sign up below or read more about the DesertUSA newsletter here. According to the Cosley Zoo, deer coats adapt in two ways. All federal, state, and provincial land and wildlife management agencies recognize the fundamental need to maintain Mule Deer ranges and keep them habitable. Deep snows ultimately limit useable range to a fraction of the total. Mule Deer are active primarily in mornings, evenings and moonlit nights. It must nurse within the first hour and stand within the first 12 hours. During the summer, the coat on its upper body is yellow- or reddish-brown, while in winter more gray. Most mature bucks in good condition have lost theirs by the end of February; immature bucks generally lose them a little later. Mule Deer have large ears that move constantly and independently, from whence they get their name, "Mule" or "Burro Deer." Mule Deer are browsers and eat a great variety of vegetable matter, including fresh green leaves, twigs, lower branches of trees, and various grasses. Mule Deer is a target for various viral, bacterial, and parasitic diseases. for short periods. Mule deer live for 9-11 years in the wild. The male deer grow antlers during the summer and fall and shed them each spring. Communities are considered as they are used by mule deer for thermal cover, hiding cover, forage, fawning, and fawn rearing. Both their watchfulness and their occupancy in wide-open country are indications of their evolution. The fawn, colored reddish with white spots, weighs about 6 pounds at birth. Fawns usually stay with the doe for the first full year. Food & Hunting Mule deer evolved on a relatively similar timeline as humans; they are our familiars but where humans are experts at adaptation the mule deer is a specialist. The mating season for Mule Deer reaches its peak in November and December, as antlered stags round up females and fight for their possession. The availability of browse in forest understory is important for them. With each bound, a mule deer may jump as high as two feet and as far as 15 feet. The reverse is true in Fall and Winter. Males are larger than females. If it is an area they use often, then they will use their hooves to scratch a level depression into the earth. With its antlers and sharp hooves the male deer can sometimes kill a wolf. In 99 studies of mule deer diets, some 788 species of plants were eaten by mule deer, and their diets vary greatly depending on the season, geographic region, year, and elevation. The white-tailed deer shares some parts of its western range with its relations the black-tailed deer and the mule deer. Tail This gait offers two advantages: it allows the deer to out-distance predators in rough terrain, and to see above the thick brush. Throughout the entire western United States, including the four deserts of the American Southwest In Utah, an average of 80 percent of a mountain lion’s diet consists of mule deer. Sweat glands and panting … Feet They also are found in mountain forests, wooded hills and in chaparral. Males grow forked antlers that have 8 to 10 points and spread as much as 4 feet (1.2 m). Humans, coyote, mountain lion, eagles, bear, wolves, and bobcats. Mule deer can be found throughout desert regions as long as there is enough vegetation to hide in and to eat. Ears Fawns are born in late May or early June. The female deer are smaller than the male. Comparisons Antlers are shed after the breeding season, from mid-January to about mid-April. Two forms of black-tailed deer or blacktail deer that occupy coastal woodlands in the Pacific Northwest of North America are subspecies of the mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus).They have sometimes been treated as a species, but virtually all recent authorities maintain they are subspecies. “The mule deer is the only big game species in decline in North America,” said Charlie Stockstill, regional director of the Mule Deer Foundation, a Utah-based conservation organization whose purpose is to ensure the conservation of mule deer, black-tailed deer and their habitat. Learn more. Member of this family occupy a wide range of habitats, from arctic tundras to tropical forests, and can be found over most of the world. These deer adapt to living in the desert by being active during the warm weather at night or during the early morning hours. Mule deer have long ears that move independently and constantly, just like ears of mules. The North American Deserts Mule deer have no upper teeth, only a hard palate. In all but one genus of cervids, at least the males have antlers. Back to top Feeding. The Cervidae Family includes deer and their allies, including moose, elk, and caribou. Mule Deer in the arid southwest may migrate in response to rainfall patterns. When crossing a ridge or high spot either find a patch of trees or rocks taller than yourself to hide your outline or find a depression or saddle. Mule Deer moves between various zones from the forest edges at higher elevations to the desert floor, depending on the season. During early weeks of life, the fawn sees its mother only at mealtimes for feeding. While the Mule Deer occupies almost all types of habitat within its range, it seems to prefer arid, open areas and rocky hillsides. They have white camouflage spots and are further protected by having little or no scent. To look at some of the animal adaptations, read on. One, they are made up of hollow hairs, which insulates them in the cold. The coat colors can range from dark brown, grey to light ash-grey and reddish brown (Misuraca 1999). Also, Hoof and Mouth Disease and other diseases can be transmitted from the Deer to the livestock and vice versa.. Conservation While whitetails rely on their prodigious sense of smell to detect danger, mule deer are more reliant on their keen eyesight and sense of hearing than on their noses, adaptations that have served them well in places where they need to see and hear the approach of predators. conclusion. Adaptations These deer adapt to living in the desert by being active during the warm weather at night or during the early morning hours. Native American dependence on wildlife resources like mule deer predates European settlement by thousands of years, and historic adaptations … But in captivity live to be much older. They do not run as other deer, but have a peculiar and distinctive bounding leap (stotting) over distances up to 8 yards, with all 4 feet coming down together. Relationships of mule deer behavior and physiology to management of shrub-steppe plant communities in the Great Basin of southeastern Oregon are presented for application in land-use planning and habitat management. The throat patch, rump patch, inside ears and inside legs are white with lower portions running cream to tan. They eat so carefully they can even consume the fruit of cactus. Browsing of other trees is seldom considered an economic problem. For example, heavy amounts of gastrointestinal nematodes may cause death in Mule Deer. Mule deer have behavioral adaptations, too. For your safety, our experience has been modified. Mule deer are intermediate feeders instead of pure browsers or grazers; This deer eat a variety of vegetation. But there tail is 5.0-8.0 feet long. Deer are well-adapted to notice and meet danger. Habitat Food stored here can be digested later when the deer chews its cud. While they look like their relative, the whitetail deer, this species lives mostly in the western United States. Species: hemionus. Mule Deer are usually a dark gray-brown, with a small white rump patch and a small, black-tipped tail. A species reliant on a very specific habitat under a precise set of conditions. Order: Artiodactyla They have a sense of smell that is 1000 times the accuracy of the human sense of smell. Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) are easy to identify due to their large mule-like ears. The greatest threat to the survival of mule deer is the loss of habitat due to human activity, including habitat alteration by agricultural processes, such as cattle grazing. The annual cycle of antler growth is regulated by changes in the length of the day. When antlers start growing again in the spring, the group breaks up. This inactivity during the heat of the day is a behavioral adaptation to the desert environment that conserves water and keeps the body temperature within livable limits. You can differentiate them from their whitetail cousin by looking at their ears. A dark V-shaped mark, extending from a point between the eyes upward and laterally is characteristic of all Mule Deer but is more conspicuous in males. At the throat of the black tailed deer there is a white patch of hair (Misuraca 1999). Feeding for Mule Deer. Desert Geological Terms, Home  | About | Contact Us | Feedback | Privacy | Site Outline | Advertising on DesertUSA | Aquis Towels | Hotels. Mule deer are found throughout the entire western United States. Now you know about the the mule deers habitat, prey, predator, adaptations, and life span. Having a keen awareness of danger on ridges is a survival adaptation for all big game, but especially low country mule deer. Scientific Classification Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Order Artiodactyla Family Cervidae Subfamily Capreolinae Genus Odocoileus Species O. hemionus Scientific Name Odocoileus hemionus columbianus Quick Information Also known as Blacktail deer… Family: Cervidae They are known to eat mesquite leaves and beans, fairy duster, jojoba, cat claw, buck bush and other shrubs and grasses. They are also found in meadows, and grasslands, including alpine meadows, near forest. Take to public land bow hunting DIY backcountry mule deer. The Mule Deer large ear is gray on the outside and white on the inside. Males and females mix freely while traveling together in groups during winter months, often down to the desert floor. Safety, our experience has been modified up below or read more about the DesertUSA newsletter here of! To a fraction of the hoofs, results in a living organism that mule deer adaptations. 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