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Project Noah Nature School
Odocoileus virginianus
A young (2 1/2 to 3 1/2-year-old) White-tailed buck making his first appearance to us, dubbed Corkey aka Cornelius.
Prairie grasses surrounded by woods and farm fields
Corkey came in with another buck still wearing antlers that I believe to be either Pretty Boy or his brother. The presence of both bucks created quite a stir within the herd. The does either ran away into the woods or wearily wandered off with their approach. The accepted or regular bucks gave them a wide birth in general and kept a close eye on them. I'm not sure whether this behavior was due to these two being "new" to the group or if it had more to do with these two still having antlers, while the others (except one-Blondie) had already shed theirs. Corkey appeared quite calm and confident in the herd however, he chased off either a buck without antlers or a doe (hard to tell from a distance) at one point and spent time sniffing the distant brush before returning. The reaction of the does and fawns was similar to what I'd seen early this fall with the fawns, when the normal or regular bucks started showing up during the rut. The fawns (born earlier this spring) acted like the bucks were alien beings. They were extremely curious about them, sniffing the air around them and watching them closely however, their mothers didn't act afraid of them so the fawns followed suit. This time, the does showed signs of fear or weariness so all but one fawn followed suit.
Spotted on Jan 16, 2013
Submitted on Jan 19, 2013
7 Comments
Sachin Zaveri-Thank you! :-)))
outdooreducation42-Thank you! He had a decent-sized rack but his immature body still isn't a match to Leroy, Daddy or Gramps...He may never be hulking and may end up more tall and lean than stocky, like Leroy. I've had a number of hulks in the past but they don't seem to last as long as the taller, leaner bucks. Not sure if hunters are preying on them more because of their size or if they size/weight slows them down long enough for hunters to shoot them but either way, they're definitely not as long-lived unfortunately.
Lovely Series,
YukoChartraw-Thank you! His face just screams sweetness to me. I've never had a "new" deer let alone a new buck take to or accept me as quickly as this handsome young fellow, which endeared him to me all the more. :-)
Carol Milne-Thank you so much! Me too...obviously. "-) I swear I would gladly live amongst them, if I could. :-)
Priceless!
Awesome again! I love the deer!