Ask The Biologist

A Buck Named Lola

A Buck Named Lola

By Bob Humphrey

Can a doe really have antlers, and if so, how?

QUESTION: Last year a guy in our town shot a doe with antlers. It was in late November and they were still covered in velvet. How is this possible? — Trent H.

ANSWER: From a very young age we’re taught there is a difference between boys and girls, whether it be humans or deer. The truth of the matter is, while most individuals fall into one category or the other, there is always the possibility for anything in between.

Hormones influence growth from conception to adulthood. An extra dose of testosterone triggered by increasing daylight could cause a doe to grow antlers in the spring, but if she doesn’t get a similar surge in the fall, when the days grow shorter, those antlers may remain in velvet.

Occasionally, a buck may get too much estrogen or a lack of testosterone when it is very young. In some cases the testes do not fully develop and remain inside the body cavity. While the buck may grow antlers they remain in velvet, and the deer’s sex organs look like a doe’s.

Injury to the testes can also result in a buck retaining its velvet/antlers through the winter and possibly longer.

Copyright 2024 by Buckmasters, Ltd.

Copyright 2020 by Buckmasters, Ltd