We have heard that there is a special type of deer called Key Deer that live only in the Keys and most particularly in the Key Deer Preserve. It’s a type of white tailed deer but it is tiny. Nicknamed ‘toy deer’ they average 24 - 32 inches in height and does weigh 45 - 65 lbs while bucks weigh 55 - 80 lbs. At birth fawns weigh 2 - 4 lbs. Cute little things - or so I’ve heard. A 13-yr old Spanish sailor, captured by Key natives, held for 18 years and later freed, wrote about the Key deer when he got back to Spain. This was the first documented mention of them. Being so small they were easy to hunt down and were a food supply for native tribes, passing sailors, and early settlers. Hunting them was banned in 1939, but as more and more people moved to the Keys, their habitat was destroyed and they were killed by cars passing through. Finally in 1967, The National Key Deer Refuge, a federally administered National Wildlife Refuge was established.
In 1955 it was estimated that only 25 Key deer existed. Today, with the Preserve, estimates put the population at 700 - 800.
You know when you drive along the highway when you’re in Key deer territory - the mileage signs say 35 at night at 45 during the day.
I have heard that they are so prevalent on this island that the locals complain that they eat all their shrubs that they plant around their homes. They walk through streets and yards like they own them. They are so prevalent that 168 were killed on the roads last year. None so far this year. At least that’s what the numbers were on a sign near the entrance to the town. Can’t prove it by me. Our first day in the Keys we went out in search of the Key deer. We walked and walked and drove and drove but came up with a big 0, nada, nil, zilch. No Key Deer.
Time to try again since our visit to the Keys is just about over. I had talked with some ‘kids’ (2 24-yr old couples) on the Dry Tortugas ferry and they had told me where they had found the deer and this time we headed over to No Name Island. We drove down the road and parked near a trail head for a trail through the Wildlife Preserve. I got out and, almost at my door was a small Key deer.
Wow, that was fast. Another one was just up the road a bit. Friendly little critters - well, yeah, they expected food since they have been fed before. They come right up to me and nuzzled my knee as I knelt down. Then, when they realized that I had no food, they turned their noses up and walked away.
We then walked down a short road and found several groups just waiting for some new tourists with food. Cute little things and they are so short. You have to kneel down to really see them.
OK, the quest is now fulfilled, time to hike. We found a trail into the Preserve and took it. Pretty well defined trail and it was on the trail GPS maps that we had.
We turned east and found a large piece of equipment near a small lake. We figure that they used this to mine out the limestone layer under the lake and land in these parts. We kept following the trail and were getting ready to head back north to where we had left the car on the road when - the trail was covered by water. Not just a little bit but a wide section. We lost the trail but found a smaller trail heading our direction. Through brush, through thick stands of trees and on. But it kinda seemed to be a trail and it was kinda heading the direction we wanted to go.
Sometimes the trees were thick and we had to bushwhack. Sometimes we hit large sections of water and had to detour around them. Soon we realized that our trail had disappeared but we bushwacked on. By this time we had gone on this path for so long that we could never find our way back to the actual trail if we wanted to, nor did we want to backtrack - if we could. (note how low the shadows are here - we were so involved in trying to find the trail that we really didn’t notice this.)
Notice in this picture how long the shadows are. We knew it was getting late but we had other concerns weighing heavily - like finding out way out.
I looked up and saw a passing car. Oh, we were close to the road. Then Gary saw a bike. Really close. So close but yet so far. We could actually see the road - through a mangrove swamp. Mangrove swamp? Hmmm. What’s in a mangrove swamp? Besides the trees? I’ve always wondered if one could walk from root to root in a mangrove swamp and get across it. Here’s our chance to test that theory. What if the roots break under our weight? What if we slip on a root? What if we make a misstep? INTO THE SWAMP. Hey, it’s not too deep. We’ll just get wet. Oh, yecch. And, did I mention the snakes and alligators?
But, hey, we can see the road. I’m game, let’s go. And here Gary is making his way through the roots of the mangrove swamp to the road. Balanced on skinny tree roots, hovering over water, he carefully makes his way to the other side with me right after him.
Whew. made it. Easy-peasy. It wan’t pretty but we got to the road. And, to congratulate us, this buck sidled up to our car. He looks pretty concerned, doesn’t he? He must know we aren’t going to give him any food.
However, 15 minutes after we had emerged from the mangrove swamp - it was dark. Whew. We had no water, no light, no extra clothing, no food - we had only what we had hiked in with. Stupid? Well, we had a trail and we had our GPS which was marking out trail so we knew where the car was and where we had to return. We hadn’t gone far and had made a circle so we knew we were close to the road and the car. But, we were certainly lucky that we had moved along as fast as we had. I’d hate to be trying to bushwhack and root jump in the dark without a light.
Quest for the Key deer fulfilled. Theory about mangrove swamps answered. Time to head back to the RV.
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