This Key Deer buck was in my driveway eating the scattered berries that fell off the palm trees from last nights wind. He graciously posed for me and truly did I thank him. He probably weighs about 65 pounds and stands about thirty inches tall at the shoulder. He looks to be about four years old. His antlers are beginning to dry up and will fall off by February or March and regrows another rack bigger and stronger than the previous one by June. By August a white velvet coats the antlers. (This is the best time to photograph the males, when in velvet). In 1925 the Key Deer population was about 25 and today it is about 750,making this animal one of the most endangered species on earth.
