Biology And Management Of White-tailed Deer In Alabama

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ANTLER DEVELOPMENT Deer have antlers, not horns. Unlike horns, antlers are shed and regrown each year. Antlers grow from button-like structures called pedicles located on the frontal bones of the skull. Growing antlers are comprised primarily of protein, while hardened antlers are essentially bone—comprised primarily of calcium and phosphorous. Male whitetails grow antlers each year. However, on occasion a doe may grow a set of antlers. This phenomenon is generally the result of abnormally high testosterone levels in a female deer. The secretion of several hormones, primarily testosterone, ini- Whitetail bucks grow a new set of antlers each spring/summer. In late winter, the hardened antlers are cast and the process begins anew. Photos by Harry Jacobson. 8
tiates antler growth. The secretion of these hormones is triggered by photoperiod (day-length). There are two phases in the antler cycle. First is the antler genesis, or growth period, in which the antlers are growing, living structures encased by a soft covering called “velvet”. The second phase is the death, or hardening, of the antlers. In this phase, the antlers ossify and the buck rubs off the velvet covering. Antlers typically begin growing in April and mature by September. In late winter and early spring, in response to dropping hormone levels, antlers are shed and the whole process begins anew. Mature bucks use their antlers as a sexual display to receptive females and, to a lesser extent, to defend themselves against predators. They also use them to create rubs associated with breeding and to fight and spar with other bucks. Antler size is dependent upon nutrition, age, and genetics. Healthy bucks with access to good nutrition will grow a larger set of antlers than bucks on lesser quality diets each year until they reach their prime (5-1/2 to 7-1/2 years of age). While antler volume may increase with age, the number of points may not. There is little correlation between antler points and age in most regions. Other measures, such as main antler beam length, antler spread, and antler circumference, usually are better indicators of a buck’s age. The debate continues among deer biologists, managers, and hunters as to whether spike antlers in yearling bucks are an indicator of poor antler potential. This controversy stems from research conducted with captive deer in Texas suggesting antler quality is primarily governed by genetics (Harmel 1982). Based on this research, the removal of spike antlered bucks is commonly practiced throughout much of Texas. Removing all spikes is not an appropriate management strat- 9
Page 1: Biology and Management of White-tai
Page 5 and 6: Table of Contents PREFACE .........
Page 7 and 8: JAWBONE EXTRACTION ................
Page 9 and 10: ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors gratefu
Page 11 and 12: PREFACE White-tailed deer (Odocoile
Page 13 and 14: TAXONOMY The white-tailed deer is o
Page 15 and 16: darker winter coat. Fawns are born
Page 17: Deer have many glands that are used
Page 21 and 22: DEER BEHAVIOR VOCALIZATION AND COMM
Page 23 and 24: Among bucks, two males of equal sta
Page 25 and 26: out the Southeast have reported dis
Page 27 and 28: check their scrapes regularly to de
Page 29 and 30: The sex ratio of fawns at birth is
Page 31 and 32: (midges) are highest. To date there
Page 33 and 34: is extremely unlikely to fall prey
Page 35 and 36: and even fawn production—will be,
Page 37 and 38: and living body tissue. Many of the
Page 39 and 40: trace elements are important to a d
Page 41 and 42: are compatible with other objective
Page 43 and 44: tural crops may be used heavily as
Page 45 and 46: providing nutritious cool-season fo
Page 47 and 48: SPATIAL ARRANGEMENT OF HABITAT COMP
Page 49 and 50: Soil quality has a significant impa
Page 51 and 52: Determining CC for deer habitat can
Page 53 and 54: cycle of poor deer herd and habitat
Page 55 and 56: dam and her new fawns later in the
Page 57 and 58: POPULATION DENSITY The number of an
Page 59 and 60: determining exactly how many indivi
Page 61 and 62: searching for breeding opportunitie
Page 63 and 64: comes intense with improved buck ag
Page 65 and 66: the 1960s, deer were restocked in m
Page 67 and 68: sive quality deer management progra
Page 69 and 70:
factors such as reproductive succes
Page 71 and 72:
egulation of deer populations ensur
Page 73 and 74:
The above graphs represent the hypo
Page 75 and 76:
acceptable hunting satisfaction bec
Page 77 and 78:
proportioned. Clearly, all the elem
Page 79 and 80:
hunters to see numbers of deer whil
Page 81 and 82:
In suboptimal habitats, body weight
Page 83 and 84:
changes occur in herd structure and
Page 85 and 86:
product of QDM and not a major goal
Page 87 and 88:
offset the influences of dispersal
Page 89 and 90:
Two controversial questions related
Page 91 and 92:
It appears removing spike antlered
Page 93 and 94:
guarantee the superior bucks hunter
Page 95 and 96:
Perhaps the most common cause of di
Page 97 and 98:
tivity of the property (Woods 1999b
Page 99 and 100:
may justify a modification of the d
Page 101 and 102:
ces and make management recommendat
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A method for removing jawbones that
Page 105 and 106:
extractor towards the deer’s nose
Page 107 and 108:
spread, basal circumference, and ma
Page 109 and 110:
LACTATION Checking a doe for the pr
Page 111 and 112:
deer seen into more specific classi
Page 113 and 114:
and harvest recommendations for the
Page 115 and 116:
of the year as a comparable type fo
Page 117 and 118:
during the spring and summer, but t
Page 119 and 120:
HERBICIDE TREATMENT Another techniq
Page 121 and 122:
TIMBER HARVEST Periodic removal of
Page 123 and 124:
foods in any area. Fertilizer incre
Page 125 and 126:
WILDLIFE OPENINGS Of all the manage
Page 127 and 128:
areas. Very few of the crops common
Page 129 and 130:
samples. These boxes are usually av
Page 131 and 132:
ag of fertilizer, while soil test r
Page 133 and 134:
Applying the Seed Seed should be ap
Page 135 and 136:
cult. Many of these new crops show
Page 137 and 138:
acre), and wheat (one bushel per ac
Page 139 and 140:
using small portions of the opening
Page 141 and 142:
able weight loss at the conclusion
Page 143 and 144:
trace minerals. Another considerati
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Number 8. P-R Project W-35, Alabama
Page 147 and 148:
Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Volume 2, Page
Page 149 and 150:
ings of the Role of Genetics in Whi
Page 151 and 152:
APPENDICES 141
Page 153 and 154:
Appendix 1: AVERAGE BODY WEIGHT, AN
Page 155 and 156:
Appendix 3: AGING DEER USING TOOTH
Page 157 and 158:
Appendix 3: AGING DEER USING TOOTH
Page 159 and 160:
Appendix 4: SELECTIVE ANTLERLESS DE
Page 161 and 162:
Appendix 5: GUIDELINES FOR AGING LI
Page 163 and 164:
Appendix 5: GUIDELINES FOR AGING LI
Page 165 and 166:
Appendix 7: FIELD OBSERVATION FORM
Page 167 and 168:
Appendix 9: COOL-SEASON PLANTING GU
Page 169 and 170:
CRIMSON CLOVER Planting Date: Septe
Page 171 and 172:
RAPE Planting Date: August 15 - Nov
Page 173 and 174:
SUBTERRANEAN CLOVER Planting Date:
Page 175 and 176:
Appendix 10: WARM-SEASON PLANTING G
Page 177 and 178:
COWPEAS Planting Date: May 1 - July
Page 179 and 180:
RAPE Planting Date: April 15 - June
Page 181 and 182:
Appendix 11: CONTACT INFORMATION FO
Page 183 and 184:
Appendix 12: SUGGESTED READING AND
Page 185:
ABOUT THE AUTHORS Chris Cook receiv
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Biology And Management Of White-tailed Deer In Alabama

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