Don Balke: Black-tailed Deer and Douglas Fir

Artist: Don Balke
1932 -
Nationality: American
Artwork Year: 1979
Image Size: 13.75 by 12 inches
Overall Size: 23 by 20.125 inches
Medium: Water Color on Water Color Paper

A Black-tailed Deer, a small cousin of the Mule Deer bounds away, his dark tail saluting the air in a graceful truce sign that displays the tail's white underside. All Black-tailed Deer can be identified by their ebony tails, dark coats and slight build. Even a mature deer usually weighs no more than one hundred fifty pounds. This artwork depicts an Oregon Black-tailed Deer browsing among towering stands of the state tree, the Douglas Fir. Ordinarily vegetarians, Black-tailed Deer feed primarily on leaves, making them one of the few families of browsers. As browsers, deer do not compete with cattle or other domestic animals for grazing land, a factor which encourages their abundant existence in the United States. At last count more than 400,000 Black-tailed Deer populated the heavily forested Pacific states. These modern deer look very different from their primitive ancestors. In ancient times, deer were only as big as domestic cats, and as weapons they used long, saber-like teeth instead of antlers. These small mammals migrated across the glacial land bridge from Asia to America during the Ice Age. When oceans later covered the land bridge, the isolated deer in North America adapted to their new environment. Today seven separate species of deer live in the United States.

This art was originally published in the limited edition collection of philatelic proofcards issued by Fleetwood® and the National Audubon Society for the Wildlife of the 50 States.

Artwork Copyright © 1979 Unicover Corporation. All Rights Reserved under United States and international copyright laws. You may not reproduce, distribute, transmit, or otherwise exploit the Artwork in any way. Images of the Artwork may be watermarked and/or digitally watermarked. Any sale of the physical original does not include or convey the Copyright or any right comprised in the copyright.

Our Stock Number (SKU): XB05792

US$ Price: $1,250.00

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