Meat of a game animal is considered one of the healthiest and delicious kinds of meat. Deer feast on foods that are high in nutritional value. This is why they like to live in regions with freshly changed landscapes. Sometimes, there can be a change in their habitat owing to conditions like logging or forest fire.

Under such circumstances, they move to another region that’s ideal for their survival. However, there’s always a possibility of them coming back to the place they had abandoned. This happens when there’s a growth of fresh and nutritious vegetation in those areas.

The difference between whitetail, mule, and blacktail deer

There are close relatives of the caribou, moose, and elk on the other side of the Pacific. It’s almost impossible to distinguish between the East Siberian moose and the Alaska moose. They can be considered the same sub-species. Although close enough, there’s still a little bit of difference between the North American elk and Siberian wapiti. The Caribou can be found across the whole of Arctic.

The whitetail and mule deer don’t have their close relatives in the European or Asian countries. They’re more American. The relationship between these deer species is rather complicated. According to the regular classification, whitetail and mule deer are considered separate species. A blacktail deer is mule deer’s sub-species, but the genetic tests present a more complicated picture.

Some historical facts about these species

The mitochondrial DNA is a piece of genome. An organism inherits it from its mother. From the analysis of the mitochondrial DNA of these deer species, certain historical facts have come to light. The whitetail deer evolved about 3.5 million years ago, which makes it the oldest among the deer species. Later, a part of its population evolved into blacktail deer on the Pacific coast.

Then the blacktail deer started colonizing the continent. When they met the whitetail deer, it led to hybridization. As a result, the hybrids evolved into the mule deer. So, the fact that one should consider mule deer as a sub-species of blacktail is true to a great extent. Of course, this is more of a speculation. The reason is that it’s based on a study of one piece of gene.

This is not often sufficient to explain everything. It’s a known fact that blacktail deer and mule mate readily. One doesn’t always come across instances of whitetail and mule deer hybrids mating in the wild. Further studies done in this regard might tell a different story. Until then, the mule, blacktail, and whitetail remain the three main deer species in North America.

Physical features of these deer species

Hunters might encounter the whitetail and mule deer, but can legally hunt only one of them. So, it becomes necessary for them to know the difference between them. These two deer species inhabit most parts of Mexico, the United States, and Canada. One good thing about them is that it’s relatively easy to identify them. You can identify these deer on the basis of their physical features.

The biggest difference that’s apparent is the color of the tail. A deer raises its tail while escaping. So, the bright white fur color acts as a signal to the other deer. Mule deer have more beige or creamy color on the underside of their tails. A mule deer’s tail is narrower and longer than a whitetail deer’s tail and has a black tip.

Parts of the head and face

One can recognize the mule deer from its large ears. It’s these ears that gave them their name, as they resembled those of a mule. The face of a mule deer has more of the white color than its whitetail counterpart. Both these types of deer also have a difference in their antlers.

There’s one main beam in the antlers of whitetail deer. It resembles a hair comb in the formation of a typical antler. In mule deer, the antlers have each beam divided into two points of equal size. Each of these points branches again.

Behavior

Whitetail deer prefer to move around in the forest, while mule deer enjoy more open spaces. A certain section of their population might display a different behavior. They mostly don’t like to inter-breed in the wild. One of the distinguishing factors in these species is the ‘slot’ in mule deer.

This is its particular way of walking that gives the observer the impression that it’s jumping. While in the slot, a mule deer uses all its four legs at the same time. On the other hand, blacktail deer are smaller. You’ll find them mostly on the Pacific coast, but their behavior is quite similar to that of the mule deer.

Inter-breeding is common among them in the wild. The only differentiating factor that’s readily visible in them is their tail. A mule deer’s tail has a black tip, while a blacktail deer has a completely black tail.

The family’s other members

It can be said that the whitetail, blacktail, and mule deer are the species commonly found in North America. Of course, there are others who are a part of the family. Among them are the moose and the caribou. In Mexico, there are a few other species, such as brocket deer. It is small in size and the males have antlers that are short and without branches.

Together with the mule and whitetail deer, they come under the subfamily called ‘Capreolinae’. The only exception here would be the elk. It has a close association with the red deer of Europe. The elk belongs to the sub-family Cervinae together with the sambar, barasingha, and sika deer. It is believed to have crossed the continental divide between Canada, the United States, and Alaska.

This happened about 10,000 years ago. Despite this ‘immigrant’ status, it’s listed as an American deer. So, we can say that there are six kinds of deer in North America. Many consider mule and blacktail deer as one species. The rest are whitetail deer, brocket, elk, caribou, and moose.

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However, most of the experienced deer hunters would agree that this is not an easy task. It needs some thoughtful preparation, so that you’re ready for the challenges that may come your way. So, let’s take a look at some of the essential items that you’d need for your deer hunting trip:

1. Hunting Day Pack

This is not like your regular backpack. A hunting day pack is made from a camo-colored fabric that keeps you from alerting the deer. In a way, a reliable hunting day pack would make your deer-hunting trip hassle-free. All the other essentials that you need for the trip can be transported in it safely. As it has a lightweight body, your trek through any terrain will be much easier.

2. Binoculars

This is among the most essential items for deer hunting. Binoculars help in amplifying your vision and is thus an effective tool during such trips. You can plan your next move with the help of the enhanced vision that binoculars provide. You can get much stronger visuals with this tool, whether you’re close or far from your game.

3. Hunting Knife

A hunting knife can be useful for simple as well as tough tasks. Some of them are removing a deer hide and cutting a rope. Having an appropriate hunting knife is absolutely necessary when you’re going out on a hunt. Make sure that the knife you’re carrying has an excellent grip. This ensures the safety of your hands even under the most extreme conditions.

4. Rifle Scope

It’s extremely difficult to identify your target at a distance when using your rifle. A rifle scope increases the shooting accuracy by magnifying your view. Choose a weatherproof rifle scope to mount on your rifle, as it would sustain you through the toughest conditions. A scope with a red laser and adjustable brightness would be even more powerful.

5. Scent Killer

There are certain scents that linger on our bodies and the deer can sense your presence with them. If you’re using a scentless deodorant for your body odor while hunting in the woods, it won’t be enough. What you really need in such conditions is a scent killer. It improves your chances of success by keeping you odorless.

6. Trail Camera

This camera helps you to spot the deer irrespective of the prevailing conditions. It is, in a way, the second set of eyes that you can have. You can actively identify and track the deer with the help of a trail camera. One can use it both as a camera and an effective gadget for shooting HD videos.

This camera is compact and quite easy to set up, which makes it a great addition to your hunting pack. You can also use a waterproof trail camera with night vision for the best results.

7. LED Flashlight

When moving around quietly after dark in the forest areas, you’ll certainly need a reliable source of light. An LED flashlight keeps you on your path and aids your vision. It can assist you in several tasks even when you’re not on a hunting expedition. Make sure that you buy an LED flashlight that’s water-resistant and durable.

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They might also seem like observations at times that the expert hunters have made during their hunting expeditions. Many of these facts have been put together in some of the intriguing books on deer hunting. You’ll find such books useful, whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned hunter. So, here we present the best three among them:

1. Blacktail Trophy Tactics

Author Boyd Iverson covers everything from ethics of hunters to the best hunting calibers in this book. It has been written specifically about the blacktail deer. The book also contains a section dedicated to still hunting, which is something that many hunters need to improve on.

Boyd inspires you to leave your usual fast-paced life behind and enter the slow-paced life of the forests. He also suggests that blacktail deer hunters must follow the natural pattern of movement that the animal makes. You also get to learn that the hunter must never move faster than an undisturbed deer’s pace.

Blacktail Trophy Tactics also contains valuable tracking tips, stand hunting strategies, and the choice of weapons. The author also gives excellent information on optic choice and how climatic conditions affect your chances of success.

2. Mapping Trophy Bucks

This is one book that’ll completely change the way you perceive deer hunting. Author Brad Herndon describes how to use topographic maps and aerial photos in this book. These are the tools that would improve your chances of success while hunting deer. You’ll be completely in awe upon learning how powerful maps can be.

There are things in this book you’ll never be able to figure out even after years of deer hunting. This book helps new hunters in understanding how to read topographic maps. It goes on to provide details on several aspects such as when and how to hunt deer. If you truly wish to improve your chances of success in the woods, you must definitely get this book.

3. Field and Stream The Total Deer Hunter Manual

Upon reading this book, you’ll get plenty of tips on hunting deer. Authors Dave Hurteau and Scott Bestul provide an excellent overview on hunting deer and how to become a better hunter. The subtitle of this book reads ‘301 essential skills’. All these skills have been explained wonderfully in the pages of this book.

You don’t need to have a significant level of hunting experience in order to understand the book’s content. In fact, every hunter will find something to learn from Field and Stream The Total Deer Hunter Manual. Some of the topics that this book cover include scouting, field dressing, food plots, behavioral studies, and scrapes.

This book is probably one of the most well-rounded books on hunting deer you might’ve ever read. It will be a fantastic guide to those individuals who don’t have an expert hunting mentor. Beginners will find answers to many of their questions in this book that they’re embarrassed to ask.

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