Where Deer Live
Deer are native to Europe, Asia, North
America, South America, and northern
Africa. People have brought them to
Australia, New Zealand, and other areas.
Deer live in a wide variety of places,
including forests, swamps, deserts, and
tundras.
Physical Features
Deer have large ears, short tails, and
long, slender legs. On each foot they
have two small and two large hooves.
Deer usually have smooth, brown fur.
White areas often cover the chest and
throat. Some types have a shaggy coat,
especially in the cold seasons.
The smallest deer, the South American
pudu, is about 12 inches (30 centimeters)
tall at the shoulder. The largest
deer, the moose, may be more than 7
feet (2.1 meters) tall at the shoulder.
Females are usually smaller than males.
White-tailed deer live in open wooded
areas. As with most deer, only the males
grow antlers.
One of the leading designers of the Arts
and Crafts Movement was William Morris.
His designs for wallpaper often featured
flowers or leaves in complex patterns.
26 Deer BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
The males of most species grow antlers,
which are bony growths on the head.
Female reindeer also grow antlers. Male
deer use their antlers to fight other males
for a chance to mate with females. Deer
shed their antlers and grow a new set
each year.
Behavior
Deer eat only plant material—for
example, grass, twigs, and bark. They
chew their food, swallow it, and then
bring it back up from the stomach in a
form called cud. After chewing the cud,
they swallow it again.
Most deer live in small family groups,
though the males generally spend some
time alone. In warm climates deer mate
at any time of the year. In colder climates
they breed in autumn or winter.
Female deer usually give birth to one or
two young. Most deer reach adulthood
in one to three years.
Deer and Humans
Since ancient times, people have hunted
deer for their meat (called venison),
hides, and antlers. Hunting deer is still a
popular pastime in the United States
and many other places. People also use
hunting to control the number of certain
types of deer.
In many parts of the world, some types
of deer are endangered, or at risk of disappearing.
Possible causes include too
much hunting and the clearing of the
land where the deer lived.
#More to explore
Mammal • Moose • Reindeer •Wapiti
Deere, John
John Deere invented the first successful
steel plow. His invention helped make
the midwestern United States one of the
world’s great farming regions. The company
he started, Deere & Company,
became a leading maker of farm equipment.
Deere was born in Rutland, Vermont,
on February 7, 1804. As a teenager he
worked in a blacksmith’s shop. At age
21 he set up his own shop. Many of his
customers were farmers.
In 1836 Deere moved to Illinois. The
farmers of Illinois had a troublesome
problem. The soil was very good for
growing crops, but it was also very hard
to plow. It was so thick that it stuck to
their plows, which had blades made of
cast iron. Deere designed new plows
with blades of polished steel. The steel
plows worked well because the soil did
not stick to the blades.
Soon Deere began making plows in large
quantities. In 1847 he moved his factory
to Moline, Illinois, and expanded it. By
1857 he was producing 10,000 plows a
A farmer stood behind John Deere’s steel
plow and used the two handles to guide its
path.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Deere, John 27
year. In 1868 Deere’s business became
known as Deere & Company. Today
Deere & Company makes all kinds of
farm machinery.
Late in life Deere registered some of his
ideas with the U.S. government as patents.
He also served for several years as
mayor of Moline. He died there on May
17, 1886.
#More to explore
Agriculture • Steel
De Gaulle,
Charles
A military leader and statesman, Charles
de Gaulle led France through several
difficult periods. In 1959 he became
president under a new constitution that
he helped write. Throughout his career
De Gaulle was guided by his belief in
the greatness of France.
Early Life
Charles de Gaulle was born on November
22, 1890, in Lille, in northern
France. He became interested in the
military as a boy and graduated from the
Military Academy of Saint-Cyr in 1911.
Career
De Gaulle fought inWorldWar I
(1914–18). After the war he taught military
history at Saint-Cyr. He served on a
military mission to Poland and also
wrote several books on military subjects.
When Germany occupied France at the
beginning ofWorldWar II (1939–45),
De Gaulle took control of the Free
French resistance movement. He led the
movement from England.
De Gaulle returned to Paris as a national
hero in 1944 after the Germans had
retreated. He became active in politics as
the country tried to deal with many
problems. One problem was a civil war
that broke out in Algeria, which was a
French colony at the time. De Gaulle
finally became president of France in
1959.
After he became president, De Gaulle
promoted peace negotiations in Algeria.
He declared Algeria’s independence on
July 3, 1962. De Gaulle also increased
his efforts to make France a leading
world power. At his urging the French
