WHITE-TAILED DEER

White-tailed deer are tan or reddish-brown in the summer, and grayish-brown in the winter.

The white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virignianus) is the most widely distributed of North America’s large mammals. It can be found as far south as the southern tip of North America, and as far north as Great Slave Lake, Northwest Territories. They also spread as far east as Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia to as far west as British Columbia.

White-tailed deer are tan or reddish-brown in the summer, and grayish-brown in the winter. When sensing danger, the deer raises its tail – this is called ‘flagging.’ Showing this large white patch on the underside of the tail signals an alarm to other deer and helps a fawn follow its mother to safety.

White-tailed deer eat large amounts of food, commonly eating cultivated crops and foraging on other plants, including shoots, leaves, forbs, and grasses. Their diets vary by season and by the availability of food sources.

On average, white-tailed deer weigh approximately 100 lbs, depending on gender, season, region, age, and access to food, though in some extreme cases, mature bucks up to 200 lbs have been recorded.

Photo Credit: Frank Hildebrand

Species to Hunt in BC

ROCKY MOUNTAIN BIGHORN SHEEP

In late summer and autumn, bighorn sheep have a brown coat with a contrasting ivory-white rump patch, a white muzzle and white trim on the

MOUNTAIN GOAT

Mountain goats have the thickest and longest pelage of any North American ungulate aside from the muskox. Despite its name a mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus)

CANADA MOOSE

Moose are herbivores that need to eat up to 20 kg of vegetation a day to fuel their nearly 10,000 calorie diets. In North America,

WHITE-TAILED DEER

White-tailed deer are tan or reddish-brown in the summer, and grayish-brown in the winter. The white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virignianus) is the most widely distributed of

NORTH AMERICAN BISON

Bison can weigh more than a ton and stand up to 2 meters tall. Bison (Bison bison), also known as buffalo, are very large animals

COUGAR (MOUNTAIN LION)

The cougar mainly preys on deer, but may also prey on bighorn sheep, mountain goats, elk, moose, beaver, porcupine, mice, rabbits and birds. Cougars (Felis

MOUNTAIN CARIBOU

Mountain caribou live in areas where the snow is too deep to dig through and eat the tree lichen of old forest growth for eight

CALIFORNIA BIGHORN SHEEP

The horns of a California bighorn have more of an outward flare than those of the Rocky Mountain bighorn. California bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis sierrae)

DALL’S SHEEP

Dall’s sheep live in parts of the Yukon, Northwest Territories and the extreme northwestern corner of BC. Clinging to sheer rock faces or sedately grazing

STONE SHEEP

The Stone sheep is somewhat larger and chunkier than the Dall’s sheep, with a larger and relatively wider skull, and heavier, darker-colored horns. A mature

SHIRAS MOOSE

This huge animal has very long legs, a large hump on its shoulders, and massive palmate antlers. The Shiras moose (Alces alces shirasi) has the

MULE DEER

Mule deer are brownish-gray in color, have a white rump patch, and a small white tail with a black tip. Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) are

BLACK BEAR

Black bears can be distinguished from grizzlies by their facial profiles, shoulders, smaller size and shorter claws. Black bears (Ursus americanus) are the most widely

ROOSEVELT ELK

Roosevelt elk meat is leaner and higher in protein than both chicken and beef. Of the four subspecies of elk found in North America, two

BLACK-TAILED DEER

Black-tailed deer occur along the entire coast of British Columbia Black-tailed deer are a smaller subspecies of mule deer. Their coat is slightly darker in