There are moments when we encounter nature in a way that we never expected. While more and more of the population moves into a more urbanized setting, we expect these encounters to go down. Despite our insulation, Mother Nature has a way of surprising us.
One little girl had an encounter with nature that her family will always remember!
Of all nature’s creatures, few are more skittish than deer. Despite being one of the most numerous animals in the continental US, deer are some of the hardest to see!
The total U.S.deer population in 2017 was about 33.5 million, up from a recent low of about 32.2 million in 2014, down from the recent peak in 2000 of about 38.1 million deer. The whitetail population fell from about 33.5 million in 2000 to 28.6 million in 2014, recovering to about 29.5 million in 2017. – Deer Friendly
Why are deer so skittish?
Well, that’s a complicated question! The most likely answer is that deer NEED to be skittish. If only the skittish deer run when they see a human, the non-skittish ones probably won’t last long anywhere hunting is legal. If you want to survive as a deer in the US, you better learn to avoid humans!
Videos like this show us that it may just be a learned behavior.
In Florence, Nebraska, one little girl was caught on camera interacting with nature in quite a surprising way. A fawn had wandered into this family’s backyard and was hanging out in the grass! You can tell the deer was young from its markings:
A newborn fawn will be reddish-brown all over. They will have a series of white spots in two rows running down each side of their back. As the fawn matures, the white spots will gradually disappear. The reddish-brown will also fade away to a grayish, thicker winter coat. – WikiHow
What the deer didn’t immediately realize was that it wasn’t alone in that yard.
Gently grazing and minding its own business, the fawn suddenly noticed that it wasn’t by itself – a little girl and her mom were out back! This is when the crazy part happens. Instead of bolting away faster than a toupee on a windy day, however, the little fawn waited around. It lifted it’s head and watched the stumbling little girl walk up to it.
10-feet…5-feet…
Closer and closer the girl got until she was right up next to the fawn. Suddenly, the fawn hopped to the side and faced the strange pink deer in front of it. Lowering its head, it reached out and the two touched! You would have thought that the little fawn was a household pet from the way it stood there!
Since the fawn was so little, it probably wasn’t taught to fear humans.
Like a modern-day Bambi, this little creature of the forest created a magical moment that was captured on camera. There must have been some connection between two of nature’s most innocent creatures – a spotted fawn and a little girl. Maybe they are still friends today!
Check out the video below!
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