25 Deer Facts For Kids – Learn More About Deer

Facts about Deer for Kids

Deer are very beautiful animals, but they also have some other interesting characteristics. For example, deer shed their antlers every year. There are over 30 species of deer in the world today!

Where Deer Live

Deer can be found in regions across the entire world. The largest populations of deer are located in North America and Asia. Deers live in areas where they can find shelter, fresh water and food.

How Long Deer Live For

Depending on their species, deer live for between 10 and 15 years or longer. This is a relatively long lifespan for an animal. Deer are also long-lived relative to many other animals in the same families.

How Deer Grew

Deer grow quickly when they are young, but they grow at a moderate rate for a few years after that. Like humans, deer have different ages for each kind of deer. The largest male deer tend to be the oldest ones and the largest females tend to be the youngest ones. They can’t stand up on their hind legs until they are about 10 months old. When they reach maturity, they will start using their antlers to look around by using their front legs only while balancing themselves on the ground with their back legs.

Physical Features

Deer are small animals that weigh between 40 and 100 pounds. Their bodies are covered with fur (which keeps them warm in the winter) and their legs have hooves ( which help them to run swiftly). Deer have strong muscles and large necks. Their antlers help them to look like a giraffe. Deer
are covered in fur, which makes it difficult for predators to see their blood if they are wounded.

Behavior

Deers live in complex social groups. They live and roam in groups that consist of a few to a hundred animals. These groups are called herds. Herds are made up of females, their young, and sometimes one or two males.

Their behavior varies depending on where they live. Most deer live in groups, but some deer are solitary. Solitary deer leave the protection of their herd during the winter to find food in areas that are harder for predators to reach.

Endangered Species

There are around 40 different species of deer in the world today, but many of them are endangered due to hunting and habitat destruction. Hunting Deer
Hunting deer can be dangerous and it is illegal for hunters to hunt any deer species over six months old, except by permit authorized by the governor of their state.

Get to know more about these amazing animals with these fun facts.

1. Deer can run at speeds up to 30 miles per hour and jump a distance of 12 feet!

2. Deers like to eat the leaves and twigs of plants that grow near water sources such as ponds and lakes.

3. The male deer is called a buck or stag, while the female is called a doe or hind.

4. Deers live in forests, swamps, prairies and even around suburban areas if there is enough food available nearby.

5. Deers also live in group families called “herd,” and they raise their young together.

6. Deers are usually herbivorous, meaning that they eat plants.

7. When deer are born, their antlers are soft and white. As the deer grows, it sheds its antlers after 4-5 years of age. The shed antlers fall off naturally and don’t grow back!

8. Deer can eat 15-20 pounds of food/day and drink up to 900 gallons of water a day. They use these extra resources to help them stay warm in the wintertime.

9. When it is cold, a group of deer huddle together to keep warm.

10. The fringed ears of a deer allow you to know where the sound is coming from.

11. Deers have an excellent sense of smell that allows them to detect danger from predators and food sources at long distances.

12. Deers are very fast runners and jumpers but they can’t swim well. They are also very good climbers.

13. Male deer grow antlers every year, while female deer do not.

14. Sometimes deer get “caught in the headlights” when they are startled by a car’s headlights. They freeze because they can’t tell if what they’re seeing is a real danger or not.

15. Deers have large eyes for better vision, and their eyes change color depending on the season. In the summer, deer’s eyes are brown so that he can see better in bright sunlight. In the winter, their eyes turn a bright beautiful yellow color to help them see better in the dark of night.

16. The white-tailed deer has been put on the endangered species list because there are too many people hunting and destroying their habitat.

17. There are over 30 species of deer in the world today!

18. Deers have a keen sense of hearing to help them detect danger from predators.

19. The females usually give birth to one or two baby deer called fawns in the spring.

20. Bucks can weigh from 90-300 pounds, while does can weigh up to 130 pounds.

21. Deer have a brown or cream-colored coat that helps it blend into its surroundings so other animals can’t see it easily and predators will have a hard time finding it.

22. Most male deer grow antlers every year, while female deer do not.

23. In the wild, red deer live in small family groups called herds and live mainly in forests. White-tailed deer live in big herds in open spaces where there is lots of food available nearby, such as prairies.

24. Deers usually live for about 10-12 years in the wild, but they can live for up to 20 years in captivity.

25. Deers like to eat plants from forests, swamps, prairies and even around suburban areas if there is enough food available nearby.