Understanding Deer Herd Dynamics.

Bob Collyer with a 29-1/2 " Mule Deer

Here is the short answer as to why we see more does than we see bucks.
Mama says,"Females are cautious and careful while males are reckless and stupid".
Okay, that might be over simplifying it, but it might not be.
Biologists tend to complicate simple matters into evolutionary necessity statements like; "an over abundance of females is essential for the survival of the species". It is true that 52% of fawns born are male, but even before the first year is up that ratio will become extremely lopsided in the favor of the does.
Let’s talk about mortality rates and how they effect population dynamics even in herds that receive little or no hunting pressure. Out of a group of buck fawns 50% will die before they become yearlings. Of the surviving bucks, 50% of those deer will die of natural causes (disease, predators, broken legs, etc.) before they reach age two. This pattern continues until around age 4 and then the bucks seem to become bullet proof.
Does on the other hand have a much higher survival rate. We will only lose about 25% of a group of doe fawns annually before they become bullet proof.
Let’s do a little math. If we had a group of 20 buck fawns and 20 doe fawns. By the end of the first year we would have 10 bucks and 15 does. By the second year we have 5 bucks and 12 does. Not bad, but it real falls off from here on out. In year 3 we have 2 bucks and 9 does and 1 buck to 7 does by the fourth year. Yikes! It looks like Mama might have been right. "Females are cautious and careful and males are reckless and stupid."
But the real problem as to why females live longer than males is, of course, the effect females have on males of any species. Now, the buck knows that hanging around the does can be dangerous, but at certain times of the year he will risk everything just to stand next to the fire.
Take the buck pictured above, my brother Bob and I put this buck and his two companions (a fork horn and a 3 X 3) to bed one morning. Later, while trying to relocate the bucks, I bumped a couple of does who ran right through the middle of the bucks like fluzzies out for an autumn stroll. Of course, the younger bucks jumped up and followed the does. This type of behavior has led to the demise of many a young buck.
The big buck stayed put as is common behavior for mature deer. Bob stalked him and killed him at 20 yards while he was still laying in his bed. It seems like I’m forever hearing complaints about hunters seeing only little deer. The big bucks are there, they just prefer to do their courting after dark.
As much as I hate anthropomorphizing bucks, it sometimes makes things easier to understand. Young bucks, like young boys, are eager to rush in and get the job done as quickly as possible. While the old boys have learned to appreciate the satisfaction and pleasure of a job done purposefully and slowly.
Good Luck and Good Hunting,
Jim