Originally Posted by
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I am not sure what you're talking about. These deer are not being pushed into an area like this by any human "expansion." There isn't a large city or area of human population within 60 miles of this place. Have you ever been to any of the Rocky Mountain states? Whitetails have always been there,Teddy Roosevelt killed a whitetail buck by Kremmling, CO more than 100 years ago. But seeing them this high is unusual, that's the point.
yes I have been to many western/rocky MT states(even the rocky's in Canada too) and hunted many of them as well as just visited or spent time in them doing other things(Snowmobiled in most of them as fact)
my point is,many things move critters, humans, being one and FOOD, and predators
if there up HIGH something is making them go there and its as you already know, NOT whitetail deer normal range!
what about this didn;t you understand as my point here??
I see deer in many places they normally are NOT, like on /in coal fields, with NOTHING but rocks and old slag piles, heck, I see them on top of 300-500+ ft piles of the stuff often, and there isn;t a single thing for them to eat or drink, or a reasons to be there!
some times I think they just like being up HIGH to look around!
another reason MAYBE and same for why you seen them is SAFETY< like it or not, some deer, like to be in more remote places and have more privacy, reclusive so to speak!
so, whitetails up high, like some mule deer do, NOT all that much a surprise to me, add in the fact its proven, BOTH species cross breed at times, and well, why wouldn;t they go high too at some point or just a few of them ??
you might not think hum,an expansion is there, but the deer might feel other wise
ain;'t NO place I know, less crowded NOW>< as it was 20 yrs ago!
national parks, and federal lands, in many western places get pounded by public land hunters, as to a few decades ago!!