Deer Ecology & Management Lab (2024)

FAQs

What were the results of the Mississippi State deer Study? ›

Results in the MSU Deer Lab study showed that external factors can affect the expression of genetic potential. A young buck fawn's development relies heavily on its mother's ability to produce enough quality milk. Her ability to find and select a quality habitat for her young buck also affects his future well-being.

Projections indicated that the white-tailed deer population will decline by an average of 4.0% annually under current conditions, and only scenarios that incorporated both antlerless harvest restrictions and improved fawn survival will lead to positive population growth.

Deer management is a customary tool for good stewardship of our natural areas, both in protecting the habitat of other species which call our preserves home and also protecting hikers to our lands by potentially reducing the number of ticks found on the property.

For the 2019-2020 season, the bag limit for does was increased, but the statewide harvest of deer only increased to 221,000 — a far cry from the mid-1990s when annual harvest estimates were regularly over 300,000 deer. McKinley said those reduced harvests have led to an increase in the overall population.

Killing Deer Out of Season

If a person is convicted of killing any deer out of season, that person may be fined not less than $100 and his license may be revoked for a year by the Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks.

But thanks to the birth and evolution of modern wildlife management, things changed dramatically for the white-tailed deer. Now there are about 100 times more deer, some 30 MILLION that now inhabit North America. Think about that for a moment… 100 times more deer than 100 years ago.

Deer populations are no longer held in check by their natural predators, and humans are creating perfect deer habitat in yards, parks, and golf courses and along highways. And we are feeding them well with a huge variety of domestic and agricultural plants.

With hunting restrictions, their population has rebounded to where it was before Europeans arrived. Adaptable, deer evolved in forests and meadows but thrive in human-shaped habitats—the edges of roadways and forests, parks, suburban yards.

Yes, landowners in many states raise fenced-in deer as domestic livestock. The reasons for raising deer in large pens are primarily financial. Farmers sell everything from antlers, velvet, urine, and venison to controlled hunts and breeding stock. Bucks with trophy antlers can fetch prices in six figures.

Do deer serve any purpose? ›

Deer serve several important functions in the ecosystem including keeping populations of producers in check, dispersing seeds, and serving as prey for secondary and tertiary consumers. Deer are grazers, primarily feeding on grasses and shrubs.

Harvesting female deer decreases the population, while satisfying hunters by increasing the nutritional value of the land and the age at which bucks are harvested, therefore increasing its trophy buck potential.

So, before you venture out into the woods, you might be wondering: does the buck to doe ratio really matter? You can have a successful season no matter what the ratio is, but an “ideal” ratio is as close to a 1:1 ratio as possible. The importance of the ratio of bucks to does can also depend on where you live.

Freshly Cut Alfalfa or Clover Fields

You need to have an area with light pressure for these spots to pan out, since older bucks are wary of entering large fields in daylight after hunting pressure starts to build. But if you have such a setup, fields of these legumes can be great spots for an early-season hunt.

In general, you can produce about three to four 3½-year-old and older bucks for every 500 acres of high-quality habitat. I have helped manage lands where this number of bucks was difficult to reach and others with twice that harvest rate.

shot with bow and arrow in Grand Traverse County on Nov. 13, 1998 has been made public. At the time Rompola killed the buck with exceptionally wide, typical 12-point antlers they were the highest scoring on record for North America with a net score of 216 5⁄8 and gross score of 220 6⁄8.

The older doe population would likely be negatively affected by flooding. Flooding can lead to a decrease in food availability, as it may wash away plants that the deer depend on for their diet. Additionally, flooding can disrupt the habitat and shelter of the deer, making them more vulnerable to predation.

What changes did the deer in the park most likely experience since 1920? The deer population likely reached its carrying capacity and ceased growth due to a lack of food.