White-Tailed Deer spend an astounding amount of time bedded down – about 70 percent of their lives, according to researchers. The two shown here were bedded in our North Field when I got within telephoto sight of them early one morning last week; one arose immediately, both were gone in seconds:
White-Tails often groom themselves in bed and relax there while their four stomachs are digesting what they have browsed. Unlike many other grazers and browsers, they don’t sleep standing. Typically, they lay down in a semi- or full curl, with legs folded next to or under them, ready to spring up and gallop at a moment’s notice.
The studies show that the deer get their energizing “sleep” by nodding off into a light doze for short periods, often only seconds. Sometimes, they sleep with eyes closed, sometimes with them open. Their ears and nose, however, always remain in the “on” mode, sensitively tuned to pick up anything unusual nearby.
I saw this doe bedded at dawn, asleep:
She suddenly arose, apparently sensing me, although I was hidden down-wind. She apparently never saw me, but abandoned her bed and walked away briskly, making me feel guilty for having disturbed her dreams. (Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on October 26 and 28, 2022.)