Every year, around Halloween, it is nice to take a break from our regular historic content and examine something a little more fun. Things like ghost stories, urban legends and monster myths. Michigan in particular seems to have an abundance of such things. Those of you who were around last year may remember my article on the “Nain Rouge,” also known as the “Demon of the Strait,” a little red dwarf whose presence generally foretells some disaster. This year, I would like to discuss something a little further off the beaten path: the not-deer.
The myth of the not-deer is relatively new, and it seems to have originated in the Appalachian area but certainly extends up into Michigan. To describe it in the simplest way possible, a not-deer is any deer that maybe gives you the heebie-jeebies. At first, it seems normal, but upon closer inspection, or maybe when you think about the encounter afterwards, something seems a little… off. It gives the impression that maybe what you are looking at isn’t actually a deer, but instead something masquerading as one. Some descriptions of not-deer include things such as dead-looking or forward-facing eyes, unusually sharp teeth or bent and misshapen body parts. In terms of their behavior, they are often described as being unafraid of humans. Normal deer behavior would be to freeze and then bolt, but a not-deer does not run. They will simply stand there and stare out at you, and even your attempts to shoo them away will have no effect. Some claim that a not-deer can even stand on two legs, and it has often been said they lack the grace of typical deer, instead moving in jerky and unnatural-looking ways.
This myth quickly inflamed the minds of cryptozoologists. Hand-drawn artwork and Photoshopped photos of the not-deer are readily found all over the internet, not to mention the slew of “first-hand accounts” that are all over Reddit. Personally, I had never heard of the not-deer until I moved to Michigan. I came from Florida, where deer are not as plentiful. Since being here, I have heard a few different discussions about it, with some people taking the myth more seriously than others.
It is worth mentioning that this myth and the deer population have grown hand in hand. Estimates in 2022 state Michigan’s deer population had grown by about 300,000 in the previous 10 years. Current estimations put the population of deer at about 2 million. This problem is not unique to Michigan either. With a lack of natural predators, such as wolves, and less and less young people taking up hunting, the deer population can grow largely unchecked. Even countries as far away as Japan have experienced similar issues. With more deer in the woods, the odds get higher and higher that someone will see a deer that is diseased or otherwise unwell, which may result in unusual behavior.
The myth of the not-deer may also share some DNA with American folklore. It bears a striking resemblance to the wendigo, a creature from Algonquian legends, or it could be inspired by any of the shapeshifting myths from the first nations. Many Michiganders are familiar with the Skinwalkers. But, regardless of whether or not you believe in it, it makes for a good campfire story if you want to scare your friends this Halloween.
