White-tailed Deer

The White-tailed Deer, or Whitetail Deer (Odocoileus virginianus), is the most common animal hunted in North America, and is a great one to hunt, especially for beginners. It is easily distinguished by its forward-facing antlers and white underside of its tail. This can be seen when they are running; they take bounds with their tail waving in the air like a flag. They commonly hang around areas with lots of brush, forest edges or shelter belts (lines of trees that prevent farming soil from eroding), and low-lying woodlands. White tails have one subspecies, the Coues Deer (Odocoileus virginianus couesi), which are found in the southwestern deserts (Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, etc.).

Communication
White-tailed deer have many communication styles; without knowing what they are trying to get out to others, your shot may be too late. Here are a few ways that these deer "speak".

-Tail wags - deer are calm.

-Tail flickers - something is up.

-Horizontally-pointing tail - deer will eventually take off.

-Feet-stamps - nervous.

-Upward-vertical tail - high alarm, taking off.

Signs of Whitetail Activity
-Dirt scrapes - overturned and disturbed dirt and leaves, deer also urinate in them.

-Tree rubs - mainly found on saplings (young trees), seen as bark curling and shred off the tree.