During winter, the distribution of deer at various elevations is influenced by changing snow depth. During extreme snow accumulation, many deer congregate in heavily timbered stands at lower elevations, and some may even move onto the beach. Spring is a critical period for deer, and if winter snows are deep and persistent many deer die of starvation. As snow melts in mid- to late spring deer begin to disperse, and by late spring and early summer they start rebuilding some of the fat reserves lost during winter. Summer and winter home range areas vary from 30 to 1,200 acres and average about 200 acres for radio-collared deer on Admiralty Island.
Migratory deer have larger annual home ranges than resident deer.
The average distance between summer and winter home ranges is five miles for migratory deer and half a mile for resident deer. Movement of deer between watersheds appears to be minimal during winter. During winter, they are restricted to evergreen forbs and woody browse. When snow is not a problem, evergreen forbs such as bunchberry and trailing bramble are preferred. During periods of deep snow, woody browse such as blueberry, yellow cedar and hemlock, and arboreal lichens are used.