Biology And Management Of White-tailed Deer In Alabama

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Below are some common deer browse species found in Alabama: Browse Species Japanese honeysuckle strawberry bush common persimmon crabapple oaks blackberry/dewberry greenbriar (Smilax spp.) wild grape/muscadine peppervine rattan vine honey locust yellow jessamine red maple trumpet creeper American beautyberry sassafras yaupon mimosa Eastern red cedar boxelder rhododendron sparkleberry/blueberry sourwood Preference/ Usage Rating high high high high high high high high high high high medium medium medium medium medium medium medium low low low low low Season Most Utilized year-round year-round fall fall fall (acorns)/spring (leaves) year-round year-round spring year-round spring-summer spring-fall year-round spring-summer spring-fall spring-fall spring-summer fall-winter spring-fall year-round spring-fall year-round year-round spring-fall Information on fertilizing native vegetation to improve production and nutrition is found in HABITAT MANAGEMENT beginning on page 103. NUTRITIONAL REQUIREMENTS On average, deer eat four to six pounds of forage daily for each 100 pounds of body weight. An average sized deer consumes more than a ton of forage per year. Deer are ruminants (cud-chewers), and like cattle, have a compound, four-chambered stomach. However, deer have a mix of bacteria in their gut that is different from bacteria in cattle. These bacteria aid in the digestion of food and its conversion to energy 26
and living body tissue. Many of the foods that cattle can efficiently digest are unsuitable and inefficient for deer—fescue is a prime example. The daily nutrient requirements of deer are very complex and still not properly understood by researchers. Nutritional requirements of deer include water, protein, carbohydrates, lipids (fats), minerals, and vitamins. These nutritional requirements change throughout the year and also vary with age and sex of the animal. Deer need about three to six quarts of water per day (Brown 1985). Much of this water requirement is met by moisture in the food they consume. The water found in plant cells is known as “preformed water”. Deer may use “free water” from ponds, streams, and even dew. Deer also use “metabolic water” produced in their cells during metabolism. Most deer habitats in Alabama have adequate sources of free water. Rivers, streams, and drainage areas abound throughout most of the state. Deer may use puddles of accumulated rainwater during periods of rain. Protein in a deer’s diet is important for several things, including fawn production and antler development. Bucks need a diet of at least 16 percent protein for optimum antler growth. At fawning, does need increased protein levels to promote sufficient lactation (milk production). Deer are able to survive the winter months with very little protein in their diet and with reduced total food intake. Carbohydrates and fats are found in acorns and other hard mast, which allow deer to store fat reserves for the winter. This process is far less critical in Alabama than in other regions of the whitetail’s range, where harsh winter conditions require an abundance of stored body fat. Research on mineral requirements relative to antler growth has yielded conflicting reports. This may be due to small sample size and 27
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 and 18: Deer have many glands that are used
Page 19 and 20: tiates antler growth. The secretion
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 even fawn production—will be,
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
Page 103 and 104:
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
Page 145 and 146:
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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