Because White-tailed deer have such high metabolisms, they require very large amounts of food. "A deer weighing 100 to 150 pounds needs four to six pounds (6,300 to 9,900 calories) of high qua

The shifting of the seasons throughout the year affects many different forms of life. During these seasonal changes, white-tailed deer exhibit many changes of their own. As the seasons change, so do the eating habits of deer. Different food sources are available during the different seasons. Because the deer is able to alter its diet to work with the available food sources, it is able obtain sufficient energy and nutrients. When food is plentiful, they eat with voracious appetites in order to build up their fat supply. When food is sparse, they rely on their fat reserves to get them through the harsh times.

Beneficial changes also occur in a deer's pelage. A deer can be found in either of two coats. A winter coat provides insulation, which protects the deer from the cold. The summer coat enables the deer to be protected yet not overheated. If two coats were not utilized, then the deer population would be confined to geographical areas with more constant temperatures.

When the fall and winter seasons approach, the deer's sources of food change. Whitetails switch from eating leaves and grass to eating nuts and fruits. Also, deer eat cultivated crops such as apples, corn, and soybeans, which are plentiful during this time of year. Falling leaves and acorns also make up a large percent of a deer's diet. "Finding a good supply of acorns allows a deer to put on its winter fat in a few days, building up a reservoir of energy that is stored until it is needed" (Hiller 21). This fat reserve is imperative for a deer about to battle the harsh winter. "As winter progresses and food becomes more difficult to find, such fat reservoirs may keep the deer from starving during this stressful time" (Hiller 21). The fatty foods that a deer eats before winter not only help put on a food reserve for the winter, but also put on a thin layer of fat under the skin. This thin layer acts as an insulator from the cold, which, in the end, helps conserve energy. Because such little food is available during the winter, a deer must eat heartily during the summer and fall while food is readily available. During these months, a deer's main goal is to eat enough fatty foods that will enable it to survive through the brutal winter months ahead.

Like all growing things in the spring, antlers develop very rapidly. "By April, nubs of new antlers begin growing from each pedicle. Developing antlers are full of blood vessels and nerves, and they're covered with frizzy skin called velvet" (Nelson 31). The antlers grow at an astonishing rate of up to a half-inch per day and are fully developed by August. The velvet is actually a modification of the deer's regular skin. It serves two purposes: one, the oil that seeps out of the hair follicle contains a type of insect repellant that reduces the amount of blood the deer loses, and two, the velvet contains numerous nerve endings that stand on end and act as sensory receptors (Rue 77-78). The nerves in the velvet allow the deer to "feel" obstacles that may damage the soft tips. "Even after the velvet has been shed, the buck may retain a memory of precisely where his antler tips are in relation to the obstacles" (Rue 78). A buck loses the velvet on his antlers during the fall because the blood supply is cut off. "In September the buck's complex hormone balance changes...the blood supply to his antlers is shut down and the so

Some common words found in the essay are:
Diet White-tailed, Antlers Species, Coat/Fur Deer, April June, South America, March Hiller, , summer coat, winter coat, white-tailed deer, food sources, deer able, deer eat, winter deer, shed antlers, winter hair, survive reproduce, deer's summer coat, winter coat summer, Hemisphere Ranging, hiller 29 summer, food sources available, coat summer coat,
Approximate Word count = 2288
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)