Last week we posted a story about unusual coyote-sized whitetails reported in Texas and beyond. Due to the strong response from that story we got this amazing photo.
Gerald Stewart, whose father founded iconic Johnny Stewart Game Calls, and who served as its ambassador for years, shared this photo and story.
“One of our deer hunters sent me your article from 2019 about Micro Bucks near San Saba. That caught his eye because of a picture I shared with our group.l earlier this season. We lease a place a few miles east of San Saba.”
This ties right into the original story that got me into the micro deer topic-right down to the exact location!
My late uncle, Jackie Moore, was a man of few words — but when he told a story, you listened. And one story he told stuck with me for years.
“It crossed the road in front of us in San Saba,” he’d say. “It had a full eight-point rack… but it was half the size of a normal whitetail. It was the size of a dog.”
After he passed, I mentioned it to my dad — and what he said floored me.
“I saw one of those little bucks down there too. Same lease. Same look. Half the size of a regular deer, full rack.”
Now, in the Texas Hill Country where deer already run small, that would put this little buck at around 40 pounds — basically a micro whitetail!
That kicked off years of curiosity and research — photos, reader reports, and even strange footage from game cameras showing deer that look impossibly tiny for their age.
In our new video, Larry Weishuhn and I dig deep into this phenomenon — sharing real stories, possible explanations, and photos that might just prove these “micro whitetails” exist.
We’ll also talk about:
🦌 How these reports line up with dwarfism in wildlife
📸 The difference between true whitetails and exotic muntjac deer
📚 Rare mentions of miniature deer across North America
If you’re a hunter, wildlife enthusiast, or just love a good mystery, you won’t want to miss this one.
Have YOU ever seen a deer like this? Drop your story or photos in the comments — or email me at chester@chestermoore.com.
Because when it comes to whitetails… the truth is often stranger than fiction.
— Chester Moore