Signs of Fall: Deer at Play

While having my second cup of coffee, around 7 am, this was the scene outside my window: young bucks practicing their fighting skills, and a curious doe.



When I touched my camera lens to the window, the resulting sound got their attention. The males broke off their mini-duel briefly, and the doe showed more concern, but the bucks quickly returned to their contest. While the rutting season not yet fully on, because the does are not quite in estrus, it's almost here. Male female behaviour is quite interesting to watch...


Below: a close-up of the combattants. Didn't their mommy tell them about pointy things and the dangers to their eyes? Haven't seen too many blind deer... I guess the blind deer are the ones with depth perception issues and difficulty seeing incoming cars. They get picked off earlier.