White-Tailed Deer Fossils

Odocoileus virginianus

White-Tailed Deer fossils can be found in the late Pliocene and Pleistocene Deposits of Florida. They become especially abundant in the Late Pleistocene, after the Camels and other sizable Ungulates go extinct.

It is the same species of White-Tailed Deer that lives today, Odocoileus virginianus. It is also sometimes known as the Virginia deer. The only difference might be that a number of these Pleistocene Animals were larger in size.

Typically, these artiodactyls lived in woodland and wetland environments. As might be expected, they are quick runners that can reach speeds of 35-40 Mph. Social by nature and cautious, they often move at dusk, night and in the early morning hours. These Prehistoric Deer fed on leaves and twigs of various types, while also eating acorns and grasses.

Many of the antlers shed by the males have become, at times, fossilized. Along with teeth, jaws, toe bones, tibia, radius, scapula, astragalus and calcaneus.

Today, the males usually weigh 125-220 pounds (55-100 kg), but some can get much larger. The females weigh 90-125 pounds (40-55 kg), typically.

These fossil deer belong to a group called the Ruminantia, which include six families: Deer, Elk, and Moose; Musk Deer; Pronghorn; Mouse Deer; Giraffe and Okapi; Cattle, Goats, and Antelope.

Eocoileus Gentryorum was a primitive deer first discovered, in the Florida fossil record, from the early Pliocene Period and is around 5 Million Years old. Eight other genera of Odocoileus show up during the Pleistocene Period and later, but only Odocoileus virginianus remains today.

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