What Distinguishes A Horse Deer From A Blacktail?

According to the Mule Deer Foundation, the species hemionus, which means” half-mule,” refers to mules and black-tailed deer( collectively referred to as” must-deer”) because of their unusually large ears resembling those of an emulation.

They typically have colored to white coats with obvious cream or pale rumps. Child mule deer usually weigh between 125 and 300 pounds and are 3.3 feet high at the shoulder. From Alaska’s coastal islands to southern Baja Mexico, from the far north of the Mexican state of Zacatecas, through the northern Great Plains to the American counties of Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the southern Yukon Territory, mule deer can be found all over western North America. Mule elk differ slightly depending on where they live. Mule elk have been divided into up to 11 different species.

Black-tailed deer are a subspecies of mule deer found in the coastal regions of northwestern North America from California to Alaska. Black-tailed deer are categorized by two common mule deer subspecies: Columbian black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus) and Sitka black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus sitkensis) ³. Columbian blacktails can be found in the coastal areas of northern California, Oregon, Washington, and southern British Columbia, whereas the Sitka subspecies are found on coastal areas of northern British Columbia and southeastern Alaska. Black-tailed deer are differentiated by their body and antler size, color, geographical distribution, habitat preference, and even their DNA. Aptly named, the tail of black-tailed deer is black from tip to rump.