White-tail deer

I tend to let my mind wander on the morning and evening constitutionals w/ the dog.  This morning I  noticed we must have scared a deer in the tall grass.  All I could see of it was the white tail as it bounded toward the woods.  It was a small one since it barely cleared the top of the grass and seemed to have a slight issue when it came to a patch of blackberry.  Got me to wondering why it lifted it's tail.  I'd kinda thought the lifted white tail was to warn other deer that there was danger in the area.  However, I only saw this one deer.  Who was it warning?  In fact, I probably wouldn't have noticed it at all if it hadn't been for the flash of white tail.  Wouldn't it be better if the deer wasn't so noticeable?  When Whip and I got back, I checked on-line about why white-tail deer lift their tail when frightened.  Turns out it isn't as simple a question as I thought.  The raised white tail is a signal to the rest of the herd of danger but it also makes it easier for fawns to follow their mothers.  Plus a bunch of bouncing raised white tails can be confusing to a predator.  What I didn't realize was bucks don't flash their tail anywhere near as often as the does.  Instead they tuck it in and just take off.  So the females are altruistic and the males think about their own survival.  Something for me to consider on the evening constitutional.