Biology And Management Of White-tailed Deer In Alabama

is extremely unlikely to fall prey to either of these predators. Instead,
these predators take the old, the sick and the newborn.
Free ranging dogs may be the most widespread deer predators
at present. In the Southeast, dogs rarely are able to catch and kill adult
deer. They may chase deer, however, to the point of injury or exhaustion.
Pregnant does close to fawning and newborn fawns are far more
susceptible to predation by dogs. In the whitetail’s northern ranges,
dogs often are efficient predators during periods of heavy snow where
deer movement may be hindered.
FEEDING HABITS AND NUTRITION
FOOD SELECTION AND FEEDING HABITS
By nature, deer are very selective feeders. They are browsers,
not grazers. Their mouths are long and pointed for picking out specific
food items, as opposed to being wide and shovel-like for consuming sheer
quantities of forage. Deer utilize the leaves, twigs, fruit, and shoots of
a variety of trees, shrubs, and vines. Deer also feed on many weeds,
grasses, agricultural plantings, and several species of fungi. Hard mast
(acorns, etc.) is highly preferred when available. Unlike cattle, deer do
not feed exclusively on a limited variety of forages. Deer are very specialized
feeders and may only eat significant quantities of a small
percentage of the total plant species occurring in their habitat. Certainly,
when deer are nutritionally stressed by overpopulation, they
will eat larger quantities of a wider variety of second and third choice
foods. Deer have no other option in such instances.
Deer hunters and managers often confuse quantity of food with
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