Columbian black-tailed deer

The coastal rainforest subspecies of mule deer, common on foggy meadow edges from Olympic to Redwood, easy to tell apart by its all-black tail.

Columbian black-tailed deer at a glance

Odocoileus hemionus columbianus kuh-LUM-bee-un black-tailed deer; Odocoileus hemionus columbianus is oh-doh-KOY-lee-us he-mee-OH-nus kuh-lum-bee-AY-nus

Type
Mammal · deer
Diet
Herbivore
Size
A doe stands about waist-high on a grown-up and weighs about as much as a large dog (90 to 130 pounds / 41 to 59 kg); a buck can weigh as much as two large dogs (140 to 200 pounds / 64 to 91 kg).
Lifespan
Around 9 to 10 years in the wild.
Conservation
Least concern (as mule deer, Odocoileus hemionus)

Eats grasses, lichens, berries, leafy plants, young tree buds

Black-tailed deer graze mountain meadows and forest edges at dawn and dusk, browsing grasses, lichens, and the buds of young trees. They favor the edge between open meadow and forest cover, where food and hiding places sit close together.

Should you worry?

Usually calm around people, but they are wild animals, not park mascots. Deer that have been fed can bite or kick, and a buck defending a doe during the November rut can charge. Watch from a distance, never offer food, and give a mother with a fawn extra room.

Fog sits in the meadow at dawn, and a doe steps out of the treeline to graze the wet grass at its edge, close enough to the trees to duck back in two bounds. That edge, half meadow and half forest, is where a Columbian black-tailed deer spends most of its life: food in the open, cover a few steps away. The tail gives it away when it lifts and turns to look at you: solid black on top, no white tip, unlike the mule deer and white-tailed deer it’s related to.

Startle one and it doesn’t simply run. It stots: all four legs push off the ground together and the deer goes up and forward in a stiff, bouncing arc, lands on all four feet at once, and does it again, again, bounding away in a rhythm that looks more like a toy on a spring than an animal fleeing danger. Researchers who study the gait think it may work as an honest warning to a predator, something closer to “I’ve already seen you, and you can’t catch me anyway” than blind panic.

A black-tailed doe usually raises one fawn her first year and twins after that, each born with a scatter of white spots that fades by about four months old. Watch the meadow edge long enough at dawn or dusk and you’ll likely see the whole small drama: a doe grazing, a head lifting at a sound, then that stiff-legged bounce carrying her back into the fog.

Did you know?

  • Its tail is solid black on top, which is the easiest way to tell it apart from a mule deer's white-tipped tail or a white-tailed deer's brown-and-white one.
  • A doe usually has one fawn her first time and twins after that; the fawns are born with white spots that fade by around four months old.
  • Bucks grow a new set of antlers every year and drop them in winter, usually between January and March, after the November rut.

Common questions

Is a black-tailed deer the same as a mule deer?

It's a subspecies of mule deer, the coastal, rainforest version. It shares the big ears and forked antlers, but its tail is solid black rather than white-tipped.

Why does a deer bounce like that when it runs?

That stiff-legged bounce, called stotting, happens when all four feet push off together. Scientists think it may tell a predator the deer has already spotted it and is too strong to catch.

Are black-tailed deer dangerous?

Mostly calm, but wild. One that's used to being fed by people can bite or kick, and a buck can be aggressive during the November rut. Keep your distance and never offer food.

Where's the best place to see one?

Along the edge between a meadow and the forest, at dawn or dusk, especially in subalpine meadows at Olympic or the low river valleys near Redwood.

Where it lives

Where we got this