Mule Deer

Taken 3-23-2026

Taken 8-30-2025

In 1900, president Theodore Roosevelt signed the Lacey Act into law. Prior to this, most of America's wildlife were hunted to the brink of extinction, including the now abundant Mule Deer. Roosevelt wasn't anti-hunting at all, as he was a hunter himself. Rather, he witnessed American settlers lay waste to the wildlife throughout the 1800s. Not only did the settlers hunt animals for food and hides, but they decimated entire populations in hopes of starving the Native Americans into leaving their land. Unfortunately, this strategy worked. 

Bison were the settlers' main target. By 1900, fewer than 300 bison remained in the entire world. Luckily, Mule deer were far more abundant in 1900, but even their populations suffered tremendously due to overhunting and the settlers' western expansion. It is estimated that there were roughly 15 million mule deer in 1800. One hundred years later, fewer than three million Muleys roamed the west. 

Theodore Roosevelt's conservation efforts drastically improved the health and populations of all of North America's wildlife and wilderness. Within 50 years of the Lacey Act being signed into law, Mule Deer numbers had jumped up to around 30 million. 

Today, Mule Deer are everywhere in Ken Caryl Valley. Due to Ken Caryl's own conservation efforts, humans and deer have learned to coexist rather well in the neighborhood. In fact, the deer seem to be a little too comfortable in Ken Caryl at times. 

To be continued...