GREAT OUTDOORS: Deer fawning season leads to predictable issues

Fawning season for deer is upon us and with it comes a couple of predictable side effects that involve our collective safety. Encounters with the species, including another period with increased deer-vehicle collisions are occurring. Does are on the move, seeking secluded locations to deliver their fawns in peace, which can mean venturing into unfamiliar territory. This forces them to use what may be considered odd places to us but make sense to her at the time as a safe place to hideoffspring. People may discover tiny fawns in flower beds, tall grass fields and other areas that are sometimes surprisingly close to homes in a doe's attempts to get away from other deer. To help ensure that at least some of the fawns escape discovery by predators, they are spaced as far as hundreds of yards apart and tended to separately until they are able to follow their mother. Normal deer habits include leaving fawns alone between nursing sessions, spaced 6-8 hours apart to as long as 23 hours, to avoid discovery by predators, namely coyotes in this region. Fawn predation by coyotes varies by location, ranging from virtually none to as much as 80% of the annual crop in some Southern states. Trail cameras in Ohio have produced documentation of coyotes carrying fawns during the spring. A fawn's first 5-8 days are called the bed phase, where they will remain perfectly still when approached to try to escape detection. White spots act as camouflage on their brown coat, and their habit of remaining still when perceived threats approach helpsthem avoid detection before running from danger is possible. The flush phase goes from about day 8 to 30 when fawns remain motionless until perceived threats appear imminent, then race away to a new spot to bed down and hide. While not completely scent-free, young animals have not yet developed the glands that older deer possess. After 30 days, the young deer are nimble enough to attempt fleeing at signs of danger and are often seen wandering around with their siblings and mother as she feeds. When fawns are discovered by people in their back yards, people commonly mistake them as being abandoned. Those that are in an obvious path of danger, such as too close to a road or in the path of mowing or crop harvest can be moved a short distance away without worrying that the mother will reject her fawns that have human scent on them. The worst thing someone can do is to "rescue" the fawn as the doe is usually nearby while watching her offspring being kidnapped. It is best to leave a fawn alone, even if it follows you, by quickly walking away and departing the immediate area. Exceptions that justify intervention include fawns that bawl for more than a day; are lying on their side, unable to right themselves; have exposed bones or open wounds indicating a serious injury; or have visible fly eggs or maggots attached to the body. The wildlife agencies in several states are increasingly reluctant to foster "orphan" deer because of fears of releasing deer that have potentially been exposed to Chronic Wasting Disease to new areas. Raising a fawn is not a job for the average "do-it-yourselfer" as their nutritional needs cannot be met with cow or even goat milk and feeding deer wrong foods is a death sentence. There is no off-season for being diligent for deer crossing roads. In addition to does moving into new territory, displaced yearlings that have been driven away by their mothers prior to her giving birth wander day and night. They are forced for the first time to decide where to live and find new deer to hang out with while their mother tends to new offspring. Once new social groups are settled, peak deer activity returns to dusk-to-dawn periods, especially during hot weather.