Young Deer Fawn Trying To Keep Up With Mother

I got a chance to watch this mother deer and her fawn for about 15 minutes. It was a real pleasure.
Deer fawns are born in late spring—typically May or June—and they’re nature’s little masters of hide-and-seek. At birth, they weigh just 4 to 9 pounds and can stand and walk within an hour. Their spotted coats help them blend into dappled sunlight on the forest floor, and for the first few weeks, they spend most of their time lying still and alone. This isn’t abandonment—it’s a survival strategy. The mother, or doe, stays away to avoid attracting predators, returning only briefly to nurse and relocate them.
Fawns go through distinct phases: the bed phase, where they lie motionless even if approached; the flush phase, when they start to bolt if startled; and the active phase, when they begin following their mother more regularly. If you ever stumble upon one curled up in the grass, the best thing to do is admire from a distance and leave it be—the doe is likely nearby, keeping a watchful eye.