Pictures are not always what they seem – I’ll explain that in a minute.  Last week I shared some images of this fawn when it was about a day old.  This week’s images are when the fawn was about a month old.  The fawn is always accompanied by two does, one of which is her mom, and I’m assuming the other is her sister?  The mom is clearly older looking, and while the other doe is full grown, it seems to act less mature (super spookable and gets the zoomies regularly) and has a younger looking appearance.  I don’t know anything about deer social structures, but based solely on how close the trio seem, I’m assuming they’re related somehow.  I typically have to stare at the adults for a second to work out which is which, and evidently I’m not the only one who can’t tell them apart!

As I was photographing the fawn, it was hanging around both its mom and the other doe pretty closely.  It would wonder off for a second a few yards away, but then when come right back to the side of one of the deer.  Well as I was snapping away, the baby went to nurse, and right as I was taking the photo above, the doe lowered its head into what looked like a very affectionate pose.  That’s not what happened though!  Turns out, this was the other doe – not its momma – and the deer put its nose under the fawns belly as a means to scoop it away from her!  The pair then got the zoomies and ran around the yard before the baby figured out which one was actually its mother, and then rejoined her side.  It was a pretty funny exchange, and even with the added context I still love the photo above.  It is not what it appears, but its still adorable I think!

Well that’s all from my backyard for now.  Next week we’ll return to the night so I can share my most recent collection of night images from Joshua Tree and the surrounding area.

More next week!

–Dan Thompson