An endangered key deer buck is seen in its natural habitat on big pine key in Florida, usa.

Key Deer Buck

Florida, USA

Key deer are the smallest subspecies of the white-tailed deer that are found throughout much of North America. Key deer are unique to the lower Florida Keys. These deer are known for their small size; Adult males (bucks) usually weigh 55–75 lbs and stand about 30 inches tall at the shoulder. Adult females (does) usually weigh between 44 and 64 lbs and have an average height of 26 inches at the shoulders.

The range of the Key deer originally encompassed all of the lower Florida Keys, but is now limited to a stretch of the Florida Keys from about Sugarloaf Key to Bahia Honda Key. They can swim between islands and move around their habitat in search of freshwater. Today most individuals are living on only one of the Florida Key islands, Big Pine Key.

Key deer were hunted as a food supply by native tribes, passing sailors, and early settlers. Hunting them was banned in 1939, but widespread poaching and habitat destruction caused the subspecies to plummet to near-extinction by the 1950s. The National Key Deer Refuge, a federally administered National Wildlife Refuge operated by the Wildlife Service, was established in 1957. The Key deer is listed as endangered by the Endangered Species Act. Currently fewer than 1,000 Key deer survive, and their future remains precarious. Threats to Key deer include habitat loss from development of coastal habitats and floodplains, car accidents, disease, illegal feeding by humans.

Photo © copyright by Dr. Edward Mikol.

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