He Lived!

January 2014: the camera traps above the house photographed an injured white-tail buck that may have been wounded during deer season or hit by a vehicle. His left front leg seemed to be broken; he had trouble walking and was apparently unable to put much weight on the leg. Photos and a video from January 2014 were posted here and here.

Between last winter’s low temperatures and fairly deep snow we assumed that the buck probably wouldn’t survive and that he’d end up feeding the scavengers: bears, fox, coyotes, ravens, crows, vultures and insects. That opinion seemed to be confirmed when we didn’t see the deer again nor did the camera traps get any photographs of him during the following year.

That is until February 2^nd of this year when the camera traps again photographed the buck a few times over several days. He limped into the cameras’ fields of view and it’s obvious from the photographs that walking is still difficult –

Where had he been, how far had he wandered, how did he fare during last fall's rut? Questions, questions.

In a head-on photo the places where his recently shed antlers were attached (the pedicles) are easily seen. The pedicles would have been bright red and raw looking when the antlers first dropped. By the time he appeared in front of the cameras the pedicles were scabbed over.

When the deer walked past one camera the old wound was clearly visible on his left leg, just below the elbow –

In another photo the wound is even more clearly seen –

He lived!  And has survived for over a year in spite of a significant injury that resulted in limited mobility – they’re tough!