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Mating season in Minnesota for white-tailed deer can start as early as late October and can <br />continue as late as early December. Female deer (doe) come to sexual maturity between one and <br />two years of age. Each doe can produce one to three offspring usually in May or June of the <br />following year. The gestation period for white-tailed deer is seven months. Fawns have white - <br />spotted coats and nurse for three to four months. Female offspring will stay with the doe for up <br />to two years, whereas male offspring typically leave after one year. Male deer grow and shed <br />their antlers annually. Antlers are used in fights over mating territories (Minnesota Department <br />of Natural Resources, 2012). <br />White-tailed deer are herbivores equipped with a four-chambered stomach that allow them to eat <br />a wide variety of vegetation. Deer are known to graze on grasses, leaves, twigs, fruits, nuts, corn, <br />alfalfa, lichens, fungi, and many other commonly <br />planted ornamental plants (National Geographic, <br />2012). In Minnesota, white-tailed deer are known <br />to favor white pine seedlings and northern white <br />cedar or arborvitae. <br />White-tailed deer can be seen during daylight <br />hours, but are most active during dusk and dawn <br />after feeding during the night. Natural deer <br />predators include bobcats, mountain lions, <br />Fi.-ure 2 Grazing (leer <br />coyotes, and lynx. Deer can sprint at speeds of up <br />to 30 miles per hour, are capable of leaping 10 feet vertically, and horizontally jumping over 30 <br />feet. Their lifespan is 6 to 14 years or age (National Geographic, 2012). <br />Carrying capacity is the maximum species population that can be <br />supported indefiriftely in a specific environment. Carrying capacities <br />vary greatly not only by species, but also by the environment the <br />species inhabits. The biological carrying capacity for white-tailed <br />deer will vary based on available food sources and shelter. Some <br />carrying capacity estimates are I deer for every 20 acres, habitat <br />permitting. There are currently estimated between 900,000 and <br />1,000,000 deer in the state of Minnesota (USDA APHIS, 2012). <br />Ma <br />E <br />I deer per every <br />20 acres <br />However, in an urban area the carrying capacity will be considerably less. <br />3 1 P a e <br />