Photo by Deane Winegar
The whitetail fawn’s coat coloration enables the animal to blend with patterns of sun and shade. Researchers counting the number of spots on fawns found them to range from 272 to 342. Spot size averages between 0.6 and 1.3 centimeters (0.24 to 0.51 inches) in diameter.

Two rows of spots occur along each side of the area of the backbone, extending from the base of the tail to the ears. Spots on the neck are two continuous white lines. The remainder of the pelage spots is restricted to the trunk of the body, over the sides and flanks. Fawns lose their spotted coats when the molt occurs in August or September.

The word pelage (pronounced pell-edge) means the hairy covering of a mammal. It refers to a mammal’s coat.