Based on personal experience I wish to reinforce the advice that if you find a small fawn in the woods please quietly leave the area. The fawn has not been abandoned and probably is not an orphan.

We have been privileged to have a doe give birth to twin fawns close to our house at Lac Le Jeune. We were able to observe them closely on a daily basis.

We were amazed to see how little time the mother spent with her newborn fawns. At first she appeared several times during the day. She knew where they were hidden. She stood nearby and watched for quite a long while. The fawns watched her but didn't come out of hiding.

When it was safe she must have made some sort of signal because they would suddenly go to her to nurse and be groomed. She spent no more than a half hour at a time with them. She would then wander off and they hid themselves in the bushes and waited for her return. We did not see her between visits.

In total she spent no more than one or two hours per day with them. Some days she only visited them twice. They were alone for 12 hours between feedings. They got stronger and more agile every day but only moved around when they were with their mother. Most of the time they stayed quietly in their hiding places under the bushes or in the tall grass. Only when they were older did they spend more time with their mother.

If you find a fawn alone in the bush it is definitely not abandoned. You may not see the mother but she is in the area. It may be many hours before the mother comes back and she may not approach the fawns to feed them if she senses someone nearby.

E. STRAND

Lac Le Jeune