How is it that we can recognize the young of almost all species?

[bilmac]

Even if you are completely unfamiliar with an animal, in some way we instinctively know whether we are looking at young or adult. What do you think are the characteristics that tip us off? This should be a good exercise for hunters who fill doe fawn licenses, but it raises an even more interesting question,  why?

Lets confine responses to what are the characteristics for this thread, and I'll start another thread with the question, why in another thread.

So how can you tell if you are looking at a baby deer; antelope; elk; coyote; bobcat; dog; house cat; cow; etc; etc?

[Conan The Librarian]

For mammals, there was an article in Scientific Americian several years ago about this. In summary, the young are cute and playful so that the adults don't kill them.  It's a survival mechanism. Or so the thinking goes. Makes sense though. Kids are a real pain at times and we probably wouldn't treat them as well if they were ugly.

For species that don't have parents to care for them, like most fish, reptiles, and amphibians; cuteness and juvenile features don't play much part in the specie.

[Conan The Librarian]

Here's a wiki on that topic.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuteness

Sometimes the concept goes wrong, as when Micheal Jackson had his surgeries to preserve the innocent look. Didn't work.

[bilmac]

Aw gee Librarian do you have to find the authority on everything? Ok then lets hear how do you know when you're glassing a hornless deer if it's a fawn or doe.

[mirage1988]

Aw gee Librarian do you have to find the authority on everything? Ok then lets hear how do you know when you're glassing a hornless deer if it's a fawn or doe.

Look at the length of the nose. A fawn has a short nose in relation to the width of the ears while a mature doe has a longer looking nose.

[powderman]

Look at the length of the nose. A fawn has a short nose in relation to the width of the ears while a mature doe has a longer looking nose.




YEP, and they're a lot bigger. POWDERMAN. 

[Pat/Rick]

And tender. Don't forget tender. 

[bilmac]

One of my professors at college said that fawns have "mickey mouse ears" which he said were short and round, but I can't see that myself, the nise is a better indicator for me.

[Pot-Bellied Stallion]

The spots kinda provide a clue for me.

[Sourdough]

OK, I'm a hunter, and I am in the woods almost every day.  I seem Moose, and Caribou all the time, and I can tell a young animal from and old one at just a glance.  Some people say it is from experience, and I have to agree.  I'll use Caribou as an example.  I often take new people out to look at or to hunt Caribou.  All Caribou have antlers after the first year.  Cows have spendly small antlers that look somewhat like a yearling Bull, but the body is differant.  I can tell at a glance a young bull from a cow by the body, but a new person can not make that call.  They look the same to them, till I point out the differance on body mass.  How the little bull has a larger chest area, and lighter rear quarters than a mature cow.

Another point:  A yearling will be jumping around, playing.  When they move while eating they will make a lot of wasted movements by dancing around from one spot to another.  While a marute animal will not waste the movements.  Another is body mass, yearlings will not weigh as much as a mature animal.  Certain parts of the body have not filled out like a mature animal has.  Their coats are smooth and unblimished from accidents or fighting for domanance.

[bilmac]

Sourdough  That is the kind of information that would be helpful, all experienced hunters do it , but a lot of us have never thought about what we see that others don't.