Description

An adult Key Deer buck on Big Pine Key in the Florida Keys. This sub-species of the White-tailed Deer is a diminutive animal, endangered now. At one point the population was down to an estimated 25, but has rebounded now to an estimated 7-800. The major mortality is from hits from autos that are usually 30-40 per year. The National Key Deer Refuge has encompassed several thousand acres, but human encroachment continues to be an issue.