Whitetail Deer Bedding - The Chillest Deer Ever

 I decided to go to the eagle's nest in Southborough on February 26th. I had almost gotten to my usual parking spot when I noticed a dark shape in the snow, with it's ears perked up. I slowed down to get a closer look. About 30 feet from the side of the road was a whitetail deer. I expected it to stand up, show it's fluffy, white tail, and stride into the bushes the moment it saw me, but it didn't. I really didn't want to flush it, so I drove down the road to park, out of sight, and then i crossed the road to be on the opposite side of the road from the deer. I walked until I had a good line of sight through the trees, and started taking photos. It stared at me, and kept it's ears erect, but It didn't go anywhere.

I walked right up to the side of the road, using the high snow bank as cover. The deer was still completely relaxed. I was very surprised to see this kind of behavior since deer in my experience are always very skittish. I wasn't sure how close it would let me get, so I was still very cautious.

I can't tell whether this is a doe or a buck. Whitetail bucks shed their antlers in early winter, so neither sex would have antlers at this time of year. The top of the deer's head is slightly rounded, and there are no antler stubs, so I'm leaning towards doe, but not sure.

I started to head back after photographing it for a few minutes. I walked much slower this time, along the water. As I approached the area where I photograph the bald eagles, I noticed a flock of buffleheads close to shore. Four male buffleheads were following a female, hoping to mate with her.

...And one of the eagles was on the island, perched in the same snag that they always roost on. I was there at around noon, so this was both the deer's and the eagle's least active time of the day. Both the deer and eagle were waiting for the sun to begin to set so they will get active again. 

I headed back to my car. I really wanted to get even closer to the deer without spooking it. I decided to use my car as a blind, and pull up right next to it, taking photos out of my window.

This deer is likely so comfortable around humans because it lives in an area where hunting is illegal, meaning humans are no threat to it, and because there are a lot of photographers in the area, who only further habituate it to humans. By not flushing it, I reinforced the calmness it feels towards humans.