Fawns and Flash Heros
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Spoiler Alert.
Full disclosure here - I’m not great at surprises - as soon as Kory mentions that he has a surprise for me - I’m all over him badgering him to tell me what it is. I hate the suspense of not knowing. While I’m at it I’ll just ‘fess up to hating scary movies or movies with intense scenes - I’ve honestly never made it through the movie American Werewolf in London and it took me a whole weekend to watch Aliens. Maybe it’s a defect or it’s an internal protection against being blindsided or startled.
That’s a long prelude to letting you know - no fawns were injured - it will make sense shortly.
Jack our resident jackrabbit. (EXIF data f4.5, 1/1250s, 840mm, ISO200)
We’ve come to believe that we live in a mini version of The Wild Kingdom because in the year that we’ve lived here we’ve seen such a variety of wildlife from deer, coyotes, moose, black bear, skunk, jackrabbits and ring necked pheasants to name a few. There have been surprise visitors in pretty well every month and we love that about this property.
Moose on the Loose
About a month ago we were having a BBQ with friends and with the warm weather we decided to sit out on the back deck. The deck overlooks the backyard and there are steps leading down to some lush gardens that were overgrown with Bergenia - a hardy large leafed plant with pink/purple flowers.
As we were chatting away with our friends - we suddenly saw two moose appear and they headed straight for the patch of Bergenia - about 8 feet below us. Without a “howdy” or a “do you mind if we munch out on your plants” - they proceeded to help themselves - totally oblivious to our presence.
Moose feasting on the Bergenia plants. (EXIF data iPhone image)
They looked to be yearlings and one even had the audacity to lay down while he feasted - plucking leaves off of plants and even pulling some plants out by the roots.
The only saving grace was that I was intending to thin that patch of Bergenia, but I didn’t envision having help from my ungulate friends. I’m happy to report that the Bergenia recovered nicely and even flowered a couple of weeks later. The plants that were uprooted got transplanted to another bed and they seem to be doing ok after the initial shock. Now on to the main story of this blog….
The Fawn Story
A couple of evenings ago Kory and I were sitting in our downstairs family room looking out the window at the view of the yard and the forest beyond. It’s a great time of evening as the light is golden and there is usually some animal or bird activity. As we sat there we saw a doe wander along the edge of the grass/forested area and she was clearly either pregnant or had recently given birth. She was munching on the grass and suddenly she made a beeline for the house gardens - heading straight towards us.
Nursing doe heading to the Bergenia plant patch (a popular feasting site). (EXIF data f5.6, 1/400s, 250mm, ISO1600 noise reduction)
We don’t often get to see the deer this close, but it was a real treat and we were happy to watch her feast on grass and leaves. I had my camera handy and was taking some photos of her making her way around the yard.
We were curious about where her fawn was, so we did the obvious and googled white tailed deer to find out that they often leave their young hidden while they find food - returning to nurse their young. The fawns are moved frequently and if there are more than one born then the doe keeps them hidden in separate spots. All fascinating information that explained what we were seeing. We figured the fawn was close by, but had no idea how close.
She seemed quite content though frequently scanned the area with ears perked to hear any noises or disturbances. Eventually she wandered to another area of the yard and we thought nothing more of the encounter.
Coyote peering into the forested area behind our backyard seconds before heading in and snatching the fawn. (EXIF data f6/3, 1/400s, 800mm, ISO12800 noise reduction applied)
That is until a few minutes later when we suddenly saw a very healthy looking coyote stalking along the edge of the grass/forest where the doe had just been. The coyote kept stopping and peering into the woods before continuing on. I was a little slow to make a connection, but Kory suddenly jumped up and put on his shoes as the coyote stopped directly opposite us and headed into the forest to come out seconds later with a fawn dangling from its jaws.
High Intensity Action
Before I had chance to fully react to what I was seeing Kory was out the door brandishing a large flashlight and yelling at the coyote. I can imagine that it was shocked to be confronted by such a menacing sight and with this fawn almost as large as he was - he froze for a second and then dropped the fawn and ran.
Almost at the same moment the doe came running back, but she too was startled by the sight and sound of the flashlight brandishing man - and she took off in the opposite direction to the coyote.
Fawn - shortly after the attack - laying still and in shock. (EXIF data f6.0, 1/400s, 370mm, ISO5000 noise reduction applied)
We were left with a very frightened fawn laying in the grass - motionless. As Kory chased after the coyote to make sure it wasn’t coming back - I headed over to see if the fawn was alive or injured. As I said at the beginning of this post - he was not injured - just in shock.
What happened next….
Now we are usually not ones to interfere with nature - we don’t feed the animals visiting our yard or encourage them to change their behaviours in any way. I believe there is an ecological balance to nature that humans can really mess up when they try to intervene. However, I draw the line at our backyard - it is a designated No Kill Zone in our minds.
When I went to look at the fawn I could see that it was breathing and there were no signs of bleeding or wounds - he just looked very frightened - and not more than a few days old - so very vulnerable laying on the grass.
I stood guard nearby - looking for the doe and waiting for Kory to return and let me know that the coyote was not in the area anymore. I started thinking of Kory as Flash the Superhero - saving fawns by brandishing flashlights.
Fawn starting to recover and move his head. (EXIF data f6.3, 1/400s, 800mm, ISO4000 noise reduction applied to image)
Fawn trying to get to its feet. (EXIF data f6.3, 1/400s, 800mm, ISO4000 noise reduction applied to image)
We decided to move back to the house and watch over the fawn from a distance while we waited for its mama to return.
Within about 5 minutes the fawn seemed to recover its senses a bit and it started flicking its ears and then lifting and shaking its head.
A Bit of a Shaky Recovery
Fawn struggling to his feet. (EXIF data f6.3, 1/400s, 800mm, ISO5000 noise reduction applied to image)
A couple of more minutes and the fawn was struggling to its feet - the gangly shape of its legs and awkward way of rising really showcased how young, uncoordinated and vulnerable this fawn was.
The fawn started to make his way into the forest and under cover. (EXIF data f6.3, 1/400s, 800mm, ISO6400 noise reduction applied to image)
It took a few tentative steps forward and then headed to the edge of the forest and back to its cover. Its mama was still nowhere to be seen, so we continued to stand guard from a distance hoping that she would return soon.
Happy Ending
Doe reunited with her fawn and standing guard. (EXIF data f6.3, 1/200s, 800mm, ISO12800 noise reduction applied to image)
A few minutes later we saw the doe return and after peering down into the forest she continued her patrolling of the edge of the forest before settling herself down amongst the tall grass and peering out around the backyard.
We have dubbed the young fawn Lucky as he surely was lucky that night. We haven’t seen the doe or the fawn since that night, but it’s likely the doe moved the fawn to a more secure and hidden location. We’re hoping to see Lucky again and watch him grow up, but we also realize that life in the wild is harsh with lots of predators needing to survive also.
I’m just curious whether you would have taken action to save the fawn or would you have let the scene play out without intervening? I don’t personally feel there is necessarily a right or wrong answer to this, but I’m curious about people’s thoughts and views. Please let me know your thoughts in the comments below or drop me a note directly by clicking on the Connect With Me button.
Lucky the very fortunate fawn who made a very lucky escape from a coyote’s jaws. (EXIF data f6.3, 1/100s, 800mm, ISO7500 noise reduction applied to image)
I hope you’ll come back soon, share a cuppa, relax and enjoy more of my musings.
