"KING OF THE CASTLE"

Mule Deer (Male) - 7 Photos

These two male Mule Deer were quite content just hanging out together under a fir tree (Photo #1) until the less dominant male (the lower of the two) decided to literally get above his station and manoeuvered himself so that he was on the hill just above the dominant deer. 

And that deer was certainly not having any of that and so began a chase (Photo #2 through Photo #4) (dominant deer now below) and a subsequent challenge (Photo #5 through Photo #7).

I am not sure if "dominant" had already won a selection of females, as there were no does around but it definitely was a matter of who's who in the pecking order. However, it was definitely getting late in the mating season & although there was some locking of antlers and pushing up & down the hill, it did appear half-hearted. 

Believe it was all about making a statement & with the outcomes of challenges having been long decided, there was no point in risking further injuries.

So having successfully pushed the challenger back into his place, both went back to grazing but with the slightly larger & dominant deer back as "King of the Castle".

PHOTO #1

PHOTO #2

PHOTO #3

PHOTO #4

PHOTO #5

PHOTO #6

PHOTO #7