White tail questions...

[22Plinker]

I haven't gone deer hunting in about 24 years so what I am about to ask I may have known at one time but forgot, not sure.

 

Q)  Is there a particular reason some white tail have an obnoxiously white tuft of hair while some are more aged yellow/brownish?  Is it just dirty or is it a sign of age?

 

Q)  Is there a particular reason why some deer have tails that are straight up and some lean back more?

 

Q)  At this time of year (beginning of March), when deer move in packs are they often the same gender or mixed? 

 

Q)  how long do Fawns stick with the doe?

 

I ask these because while I was out today shed hunting and also looking to pick up a few more red squirrel tails for jig tying, i saw a group of 5 cross my path.  The last one in line had a massive obnoxiously white tail that stood out like a sign screaming "LOOK AT ME!"

[NFA-ADK]

Q1 Color can vary even in the same herd.  Time of year can affect this when they shed winter coats.

2 Just like people tails can vary, but usually a straight up tail is from a fleeing or alert deer.  The tail makes it simple for the other doe or fawns to follow or become alerted to danger.

3 They can be mixed this time of the year, some bucks might still hold antlers for another month but most have dropped by now.  Not to say that it can't be a group of doe or possibly bucks but the possibility is good it could be mixed.  Many factors.

4 Fawns typically will stay with the doe mom for 1 to 2.5 years, doe fawns typically stay within moms home range if food source is available and will overlap the moms range where as the buck fawn will roam for miles to set up a new home.

[22Plinker]

Thank you very much for that quick response.

[wildcat junkie]

I haven't gone deer hunting in about 24 years so what I am about to ask I may have known at one time but forgot, not sure.

 

 

Q)  how long do Fawns stick with the doe?

 

I ask these because while I was out today shed hunting and also looking to pick up a few more red squirrel tails for jig tying, i saw a group of 5 cross my path.  The last one in line had a massive obnoxiously white tail that stood out like a sign screaming "LOOK AT ME!"

The whitetail herd is a "matriarchal" society. Small herds are usually comprised of a mature doe & her female offspring. Doe fawns, except when actual breeding is taking place, will stay with the older doe for life. Male fawns are usually run off by bucks in their 1st autumn but may return to the heard until they reach sexual maturity in their 2nd autumn. Once they reach sexual maturity, the mother will no longer tolerate their presence.

 

The dumbest thing on 4 legs is a button buck that has been separated from its mother.

 

The last doe in the group that was flagging" was probably the mature leader of the herd. She was warning all the other deer in the area. In my experience the "lead doe" is usually either the 1st or the last doe in the group to emerge, depending on the situation.

[wolc123]

I do some jig-tying, and it definitely seems like certain colors are more prevalent in some areas when it comes to the hair on the front side of deer tails.  I prefer "brown" for a crawfish pattern jig, for use on my favorite fish, the smallmouth bass.  Most of the deer in my neck of the woods have more black than brown.   I make a minnow pattern jig from those, using the black for the top and white for the bottom.   Those work well on walleyes, northern pike, and lake trout, especially when tipped with a live minnow.   I have never noticed any difference in the coloration of the white hair on the back of the tails, I suspect the yellow ones might just be piss-stained.  

 

I also plan to tie up a few squirrel-tail versions of my minnow pattern, for use on lake trout up at my in-laws Adirondack camp.   The trout up there are mighty finicky, not falling for the bucktail version, which works well up on lake Ontario.  After years of trying on the open water, the only one I even had a bite from up there was a 12 pounder pulled thru a hole in 12" of ice a few weeks ago, on a jigging rapala tipped with a minnow head.  I am thinking the softer squirrel hair might fool those lakers in that gin-clear water when the ice is gone.      

 

As far as the tail position of deer, I have noted three primary ones:  Straight up means they are scared, down means relaxed, straight back means horny and ready for some action.  In between positions occur when they have not yet made up their minds between those three.  They use the tail as a flag to communicate with others of their kind.  The tail up is their primary visual signal of danger, while the snort is their primary audio signal.  The fawns learn pretty quick what those mean: time to "high tail" it to safety.   I usually see buck fawns with does for about 6 months, but doe fawns stick around for another year or more, until they have fawns of their own.         

[22Plinker]

Thank you wildcat and wolc, both comments have been very helpful.

 

Wolc-  Yeah I use squirrel for all of my trout flies and spinner tails.  I tried using bucktail for a couple deep nymphs and never got a single strike.  Similar color patterns but different action in the water.  Now bucktail jigs i've had amazing luck with walleye but never tried using squirrel for them, primarily because the hair just isn't long enough for what I use them for (with exception of a couple monster fox squirrels I've seen).

 

As for the white color honestly I don't think I ever really paid much attention until the other day.  This one that followed up the pack was so bright white it was all I could do to NOT stare at the tail.  Noticeably whiter than the four in front of it.  My first guess was just dirty from laying down in the dirt and leaves but that last one... I'm telling you it was just obnoxiously white.