Mother and I happened to be driving northbound on Mount Auburn Rd. just about dusk a couple of nights ago. When we cleared the Hopper Road light, I looked over at a small clearing and spotted a small deer in the grass. Even though we lived “out in the country” when we moved in 50+ years ago and had cattle grazing the field behind our house, we never saw wild animals bigger than racoons, possums and the rare woodchuck in the neighborhood. It’s only been in the last 10 or 15 years, with development eating up all the countryside, that she has had deer show up in the yard.
When I drove past there at about the same time Saturday night, the deer was in the same place. I thought he might be stuffed until I saw his white tail move.
Does Missouri use decoy deer?
Still not convinced that it was a live deer, I went home and asked Brother Mark if Missouri ever used fake deer to catch hunters shooting where they weren’t supposed to. He said he thought they did, but wasn’t sure.
I asked Mother if she’d like to see if the deer was real or fake. The deer was still there when we pulled into the parking lot of the Ford & Sons Funeral Home on the other side of the street. I got off a couple of shots of the deer and was convinced that it WAS real.
Cars have the right of way
I was walking across the street for a closer shot when the light changed a block away. From the speed the cars were coming, it was clear that cars, not pedestrians, have the right of way on Cape streets. Realizing that walkers were divided into two groups: the quick and the dead, I broke into a run. That spooked not just one deer, but two.
It wasn’t until I looked at the first frame enlarged on the computer that I realized that both of them were visible in the original shot.
Bunny rabbits in front of Franklin School a week ago; deer on Mount Auburn Road on Saturday. Cape’s getting to be a wild town.
Yes the deer are along Hopper Road. We lived on the part of Hopper on the way to Twin Lakes and had many deer were followed by coyotes.
One year when I was home I saw an albino deer in that area.
It’s not actually the develement in town, it’s the success of the MO conservation dept. and MO hunters efforts to increase the population of deer in the state. Also, wouldn’t you go to a location where there is plenty of food and fewer predators? :).
Deer hunting didn’t begin officially until middle to 2/3 through the last century.
Conservation dept could be a good part of it. Here in Charlotte NC and Mecklenburg county there is no hunting. So guess who comes to visit? So we see alot and certain times of the year you’ll see more deer hit on the major roadways around here than anything else.
I remember going thru the Union County State Conservation Area when working back in the mid 70s and seeing herds of deer there, it was a safe place.
Your pics of the deer made me want to ask when armadillo became part of the wildlife in the Cape area.Evary time I’ve been home there have been so many on the highway.
Whitetail deer are long-eared varmints that destroy farm crops and are a menace to bicyclists. At least here in SW Michigan they are.
Also, they are exceedingly clumsy. Recently I saw one dart across the road in front of my bicycle and crash into one on the other side, which got them both confused. I’ve seen the lead deer slip and fall on the pavement when I yelled at a herd preparing to cross the road in front of me.
But I would probably be clumsy like that, too, if I traveled the woods, fields, and roadways in hard, pointy, high-heeled shoes. Even if I had four legs for added stability, I would probably be clumsy just the same.
John,
Before you make fun of deer, haven’t you seen a gaggle of go-fast riders in their walk-like-a-duck cleats trying to negotiate a tile convenience store floor?
Actually, I haven’t seen that. It’s probably because go-fast riders would not to be seen anywhere a go-slow rider like myself would stop. But it’s not hard to imagine the similarity to the whitetail deer I’ve seen.
I’m surprised our friend Jan hasn’t chimed in with her story about hitting a deer on the way back from the Glades and it wrecked her car. Locals heard about it on the cop scanner and were waiting to salvage the meat. (I hope they rinsed off the brake fluid first).
Deer and their larger cousins elk ARE smart enough to hang out where there’s plenty of food and no hunters are around. I saw a couple of elk in a vacant lot in downtown Banff.
Three more hot spots for deer are Silver Springs east of St. Francis, North Sprigg St. East of the SEMO ball fields, and Old Sprigg Street Road. Deer, dox, and doyote are all over town, in addition to critters like possum, coon, and groundhogs.
I’ve cruised out on Old Sprigg several times looking for deer, but must have missed them.
I meant fox and coyote….it’s early.