Despite a healthy population of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) on Cape Cod, and seeing considerable signs of their presence out in the forest (e.g., scat, tracks, hairs that had fallen off where the deer bedded down, etc.) this was the first deer I’ve seen on my trail camera after having it out and about for almost 3 months. To be fair, however, I was targeting coyotes with this particular location, and for that I have been relatively successful in catching glimpses of them regularly (there will coyote-focused post coming soon). Perhaps the lack of regular deer in this area is due to the presence of the resident coyote pack? 

While they are relatively large animals, a group of eastern coyotes can hunt down and kill a deer, although young, old, sick or weak deer are obviously more vulnerable. Although they lack defensive “weapons”, deer are not without adaptations to protect themselves. First, their eyes are located on the sides of their head, providing them with a wide field of vision for spotting predators. Second, their large ears can swivel around like a satellite dish to help amplify noises and pinpoint the source of a sound. Finally, they are swift runners, capable of traveling up to 30 miles per hour and of leaping up to 30 feet in a single bound to evade danger if threatened.

Although deer are usually seen in small groups in the winter, they are relatively solitary as we move into spring and summer. So while it wouldn’t be unusual for this individual to be alone at this time, it’s also entirely possible that there were one or more just off camera.