black-tailed deer

[ blak-teyld ]

noun

1. a variety of mule deer, Odocoileus hemionus columbianus, of the western slope of the Rocky Mountains, having a tail that is black above.

Word History and Origins

Origin of black-tailed deer¹

An Americanism dating back to 1800–10

Example Sentences

In Western Washington, some groups of black-tailed deer migrate from summer ranges high in the Cascade and Olympic mountains to spend the winter in lower elevation forests and valleys.

From Seattle Times

“I’ve responded to several other ‘elk’ on the island, and it’s been a black-tailed deer,” he says.

From Seattle Times

The wolves quickly decimated the island’s black-tailed deer population.

From Science Magazine

Off the trails, we surprise animals—a gray fox, black-tailed deer.

From Literature

In November, he hunted black-tailed deer and caught shrimp in Alaska and then white-tailed deer in Nebraska; in December, he shot ducks in Louisiana.

From New York Times