Blacktail deer are another regularly hunted deer species. So named because of the distinctive black tip on their tails, blacktail deer are usually smaller than whitetail deer, though that doesn’t mean that blacktails do not grow to have trophy potential. While many hunters don’t believe that such blacktail deer exist, the fact is that there are areas where blacktail spreads can go from 20 inches wide up to 30 inches, allowing for large trophy deer to be hunted.

Originally considered to be a subspecies of mule deer, recent DNA testing found them to be a different species altogether. They are relatives of whitetail deer and mule deer, but have definite differences from their close relations.

For example, both the mule deer and whitetail deer have antler sizes that directly relate with the body mass of the animal, but among blacktail deer, this isn’t the case.Also, the location of larger specimens of the animal differs from its cousins: when you head north, you generally find larger whitetail and mule deer, but you need to head south to find larger blacktail deer.

Blacktail deer are normally found mostly in British Columbia, western Oregon, Washington and northern California, stretching north into the Alaskan panhandle. Nevertheless, Boone and Crockett identifies the boundaries of the Columbian blacktail to extend from central British Columbia, south to Monterey Bay in California. While blacktails are located in other areas, Boone and Crockett recognizes only these boundaries because of the likelihood of cross breeding between mule deer and blacktail deer in other areas.

Anyone who has ever hunted blacktails understands how difficult this type of hunt can be. Veteran hunters sometimes even claim that blacktails can be even more complicated to hunt than whitetails, though not always because blacktails tend to be more intelligent in avoiding hunters.

One reason for the difficulty is that blacktail hunting season occurs through the months of July to October, where the temperature is high. This means that blacktail rarely move much throughout the day, which makes them even more difficult to spot, instead preferring to move at night when it’s cooler.

The heat will likely cause much discomfort to hunters, and contributes to a more difficult hunt.

Blacktail deer are one of the more commonly hunted game animals in North America. If you require more advice on hunting blacktailed deer, check out Deer-HuntingTips.com. You will find free tips and guides available there, good for deer hunting novice and veteran alike, for all types of deer as well as other game animals.