White-Tailed Deer — Susan Kirby

White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) can be seen in so many parks on Staten Island and also in Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx. There is much debate over whether there are too many (they are frequently hit by cars, the deer ticks are dangerous to humans) and whether they should be sterilized (the males are receiving vasectomies in a program on Staten Island).

*Mr. 1772 shows off his ear tags, indicating he’s had a vasectomy, at Mount Loretto Unique Area, Staten Island, June 1, 2021.*

*One of the males shed an antler near the church of Mount Loretto on Staten Island, seen on January 10, 2023.*

*White-tailed deer, Long Pond Park, Staten Island, July 7, 2019*

*White-tailed deer at dusk, Mt. Loretto Unique Area, Staten Island, May 22, 2019*

*White-tailed deer, Mt. Loretto Unique Area, Staten Island, April 2, 2019*

*White-tailed deer, Hunter Island, Pelham Bay Park, January 9, 2019*

*White-tailed deer interrupted while dining, Mount Loretto Unique Area, August 21, 2018*

The deer in this slideshow were seen at Mt. Loretto Unique Area on Staten Island on April 2, 2019.

I was able to film these beautiful herbivores on August 11, 2017, at Mt. Loretto Unique Area, and then again in the new Brookfield Park on January 26, 2018.

*White-tailed deer, Brookfield Park, January 26, 2018*

*White-tailed deer, Mt. Loretto Unique Area, Staten Island, August 11, 2017*

I set the video to Debussy's Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, performed by Columbia University Orchestra and obtained from MusOpen.org, a royalty-free music source. It's not the most original choice, but it seems to work!

These photos were taken on August 11, 2017, at Mt. Loretto Unique Area on Staten Island.

These photos were taken on January 26, 2018, at the new Brookfield Park, a landfill that has been repurposed as a park.