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6/07/2001
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Article/Press
Release
Responsible
Deer Management
By T.R. Michels
- Trinity
Mountain Outdoors, www.trmichels.com
Bucks
and does should be on their summer home ranges, and the does should
be fawning.
How
Social Status Affects Deer Health and The Rut
As
a result of a deer management study by Dr. Larry Marchinton between
1981 and 1986, it is now believed that the peak of the rut, or peak
breeding period, of white-tailed deer should normally occur from
mid-October to late November in many areas. It is also believed that
it is the current management and hunting practices in many areas
(which result in lower than normal buck:doe ratios) that are the
cause of the rut being delayed until late November, and continuing
into January and even February in many northern states. During
Marchinton’s study (with the emphasis on quality management) the
average number of fetuses per does over the age of 2 ½ years
increased from 1.6 in 1985 to 1.9 in 1986, and pregnancy in doe
fawns was detected in 1985. Fetal male:female sex ratios shifted
from 64:36 during 1981-83, to a more balanced 47:53 during 1984-86.
The average weights of yearling bucks increased from 90 pounds in
1982 to 110.5 pounds during the 1983-86 portion of the study. There
was a significant weight increase in the 3.5 year and older bucks in
a similar study by McKelvy. The positive results of these studies
were credited to the increased age structure of the bucks.
An
increase in the number of older dominant bucks also has a direct
suppressing effect on the testosterone levels of younger bucks,
which reduces their aggressiveness and competition for breeding
privileges. Since a low position in the breeding hierarchy results
in less reproductive behavior and lower weight loss, those young
bucks that do not breed grow to greater body size before they become
dominant. This results in an overall increase in the number of older
dominant bucks which leads to earlier fawning dates and heavier body
sizes of yearling bucks, and this leads to higher survival rates and
eventually to increased buck numbers.
If
both game managers and hunters can agree to reduce the number of
does and let the younger bucks grow, while still keeping the herds
balanced and within the carrying capacity of the habitat, there will
be an increase in the number of older bucks. There is also a good
probability that the younger non-breeding bucks, because they are
not stressed by breeding activity, will produce larger racks. The
increased number of older bucks may also shorten the length of the
rut and make it occur earlier. This could mean that hunters who
prefer to hunt during the rut might be forced to hunt a month
earlier, and they might be forced to take up archery hunting, or
game managers might be forced to change the timing of some hunts.
But, the end result of an increased number of older bucks will
create a healthier more balanced deer herd, and increase the odds of
hunters seeing more, and bigger, bucks.
T.R.
Michels is a nationally recognized big game researcher, speaker and
writer. He is the author of the Whitetail, Elk, Turkey and Goose
Addict’s Manuals; and the Deer Addict’s Manuals. T.R.’s latest
books, available for 2000, are the Deer Addict’s Manual, Volume 7:
Hunting Tactics; the Scrape Hunter’s Manual; and the
Outdoorsman’s Cookbook, Volume 2. For a catalog of books and other
hunting aids contact: T.R. Michels, Trinity Mountain Outdoors, 41267
Hwy. 56 Boulevard, Nerstrand, MN 55053. Phone: 507-789-8808
E-mail: trmichels@yahoo.com
Website: www.trmichels.com
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