Why are deer so much more active at night?

Submitted by Web Master on October 28, 2010

A deer's eyes are positioned on the side of their head. This provides advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are that deer are able to view 310 degrees. This wide view allows the deer to be completely aware of the surroundings, even when it is staring straight ahead.
The disadvantages are that deer cannot focus on one location with both eyes. If the deer were to look at one object with both eyes, it would have poor depth perception. Deer also see at a lower resolution than humans, and are believed to be color blind.

Deer are nocturnal animals. Nocturnal means that deer can see at night, which is one of the reasons they are more active at night. Deer have more light-detecting cells in their eyes than humans, which aids their nocturnal vision. Like other nocturnal animals, their eyes shine when exposed to light at night. This is due to a reflection off a special membrane in their eye.

It is believed that deer can also see in the ultraviolet light range, which is abundant during the earlier morning and late afternoon. This ability to see better, in early morning and late afternoon, helps to explain why deer are more active during these time periods.