Which Deers Have Antlers? Antlered Species Guide (2024)

FAQs

Which Deers Have Antlers? Antlered Species Guide? ›

Fact 1: Elk, caribou, moose, white-tailed deer and mule deer are among the species native to North America that have antlers. Adult males in all these species have antlers. Most female caribou have antlers, too. Biologically, all of these species belong to the Cervidae family of mammals.

Both male and female reindeer grow antlers, while in most other deer species, only the males have antlers. Compared to their body size, reindeer have the largest and heaviest antlers of all living deer species.

Antlers are found on all members of the deer family (Cervidae) in North America including deer, elk, caribou, and moose. Caribou are the only species in which antlers are typically found on females in addition to males. Antlers are often called “horns” by deer hunters, but they are not.

Male mule deer, called bucks, have forked antlers which they use as weapons to fight off competitors for mates during the breeding season or "rut". Females do not have antlers. A mule deer buck grazes among grasses, forbs and shrubs.

Mule deer usually have lighter fur that covers from their eyes to their noses, while whitetails have rings of light fur around their eyes and nose but darker fur on the rest of their faces. Both species have white patches on their throats, but the darker fur above the eyes of most mule deer can be a good tell.

Typically, only male deer grow antlers. Female deer have been documented to grow antlers when experiencing issues with regulation of the hormone testosterone, which happens very rarely. Caribou are the only deer in which females regularly grow antlers.

Antlers vs Horns

All male members of the deer family in North America shed their antlers annually, including Moose, Whitetail Deer, Blacktail Deer, Sitka Deer, Couse Deer, Reindeer, and Caribou. Reindeer and Caribou are the only deer species in which the female also grow antlers!

The caribou is the only member of the deer family where both males and females grow antlers. The antlers of the female are smaller than those of the male, but they are carried for a longer period of time. Male caribou shed their antlers in November or December, after mating.

The pedicels that young male fawns grow at a couple months of age are not antlers. Young deer grow their first set of true antlers the first spring after they are born, at 10 to 12 months of age.

Antlers, which are made of bone, grow quickly. They are one of the fastest-growing tissues in all of the animal kingdom. A white-tailed deer's antlers can grow as much as a quarter-inch per day, according to Popular Science(Opens in a new window). But that's nothing compared to elk and moose.

Can a doe deer have antlers? ›

On rare occasions whitetail does can develop antlers. This is most likely due to an abnormally high level of testosterone. This four year old antlered doe has produced twin fawns for the past two years.

Antlers are bony structures, distinct from horns, unique to deer and carried by the males of most species – exceptions include the Chinese water deer (Hydropotes inermis) and the Musk deer (Moschus sp.), neither of which possess antlers, and the reindeer or caribou (Rangifer tarandus) in which both sexes grow antlers.

Males, known as bulls, are known for their massive antlers, which are some of the largest in respect to body size in the world. Bulls have huge bodies, weighing up to 650 lbs. or more and standing 4-5 feet at the shoulder. Females, called cows, do not have antlers but are also noticeably large animals.

Females (does) have a small 'tush' or tuft of hair similar to a tail at the base of the rump patch during the winter. Roe deer have large black eyes, noses, and mouths surrounded by white/pale areas. They have large ears. Males (bucks) have small antlers, which have three points each when fully grown.

Shed Bucks are often harvested late in the season. These are bucks that have dropped their antlers and only the pedicel or bony base is left on the skull and is usually flush with the hairline. A shed buck is an antlerless deer and is tagged with an either-sex deer tag or an antlerless deer tag.

Piebald deer are deer that have blotches of white coloration on portions of their hide that are usually dark in color. Albino deer are deer that lack pigmentation and have a completely white hide and pink eyes, nose and hooves.

Hermaphrodidic deer are a bit more complicated. They have both male and female sex organs and can present as either bucks or does, with antlers or without.

Here, we studied a European roe deer with an intersex phenotype that was consistent with a XY genotype with incomplete male-determination. Whole genome sequencing and quantitative real-time PCR analyses revealed a triple dose of the SOX9 gene, allowing insights into a new genetic defect in a wild animal.

Caribou (also known as reindeer) use their antlers to scrape away snow and soil to find food, as well as to defend themselves. Both male and female caribou have antlers, making them the only deer species in which females have antlers!