EVER WONDER WHERE ALL THE DEER GO EACH YEAR?
Here’s the breakdown of total deer mortality in the U.S. not just hunting, but every major cause of deer deaths in a normal year.
Deer numbers are lowest in April (after winter losses) and highest in May–June (after fawns are born). Each year, roughly 25–35% of the entire herd disappears through normal mortality… and then rebounds again. That’s exactly how deer evolved: overproduce fawns to replace large annual losses.
WHERE DOES DEER MORTALITY ACTUALLY COME FROM?
Approximate share of total annual deaths (based on national averages):
Hunting: about 60–65% of total mortality
Roughly 6–6.5 million deer are harvested each year. Hunters are the largest single, regulated mortality source in North America.
Vehicle Collisions: about 15–20%
An estimated 1.5–2+ million deer are killed on roads annually.
Predators: about 10–15%
Coyotes, wolves, bears, and bobcats take large numbers of fawns; in many regions fawn survival is only 30–50%.
Disease: about 5–10%
EHD, parasites, winter kill, and local disease events vary year to year.
Other Causes: about 5%
Includes poaching, dogs, fences, accidents, farm equipment, old age, natural causes, etc.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE HERD?
All causes combined equal roughly 8–10 million deer deaths each year.
Despite that, the population remains stable because does produce enough fawns each spring to replace roughly one-quarter to one-third of the entire herd.