Category: White-tailed Deer

Question: “We have been trying to improve the deer hunting on our property for about four or five years now. We started some wildlife habitat management practices and have started to keep survey records of the deer we see. We have tried deer food plots during the past several years, but because of the lack of rain, they have performed poorly. They are not helping the deer if they do not grow. Now we are considering the feeding of deer. So my question is, when should we start the supplemental feeding of protein pellets and when do the bucks need most and when will they benefit from it the most during their antler growth?”

Wildlife Management Pro: Feeding protein pellets really helps the body condition (i.e. weight) of whitetail deer. Bucks with better body condition grow larger antlers. Heavier does will raise more fawns. If you want to benefit bucks the most for antler growth, to grow bigger antlers, start supplementing as soon as possible after the rut, or at least after you are through deer hunting, each year. Bucks will readily consume high quality protein foods until spring green-up, then they will use the better stuff found growing in their habitat. Continue reading Supplemental Feeding for Deer: Bigger Bucks, More Fawns

Question: “Needing some deer hunting advice. I’ve read that several hunters recommend a large round pen for spin cast feeders so the whitetail do not “trapped” and it keeps the corn in the pen and away from the feral hogs, but what about for a free -hoice protein feeder using 34-inch hog panel? It would seem that the low panels and no spinning would not require as large a feeder pen. I bought eight 16-foot hog panels, but that seems like more than may be necessary. Looking for some experience-based suggestions on deer feeder pen size. Thank you.”

Wildlife Management Pro: From my experience with deer hunting and feeder pens, if you have cattle on the place you hunt then the greater the distance between the edge of the feeder pen and the feeder the better off you will be. We use pens that are made of 10 16-foot by 34-inch hog panels with two t-posts per panel. If you have cattle on your deer lease then you might buy the 16-foot by 52-inch cattle panels and cut down a spot or two for easier deer access. The panels cost the same, or nearly, at most places as hog panels. You should be able to find these panels in the $20 range. Continue reading Deer Hunting: Feeder Pen Size?

White-tailed deer are a popular in Texas, but they are not necessarily popular with everyone. Although beautiful animals, deer should always be respected. Folks that live in the urban areas of Central Texas know this all too well. Many communities have faced the realities of urban deer management; attempts to control increasing deer populations in the face of a growing human population. Take the Georgetown area, for example:

“A white-tailed doe, grazing in a lush green yard, hears a noise. Her head pops up. She stares, turning into a momentary statue. Suddenly, she darts across the yard toward the nearest bunch of trees, leaping over the fence so graceful it seems she is flying, and disappears into oblivion. Much of the landscape in Central Texas, even urban areas, includes deer. They are fun to watch, especially for those residents moving in from places without wildlife. But Turk Jones, a Texas Parks and Wildlife game warden, cautions residents to be careful when feeding and coming in contact with urban deer, and remember to follow state
laws regarding wildlife. Continue reading Urban Deer Management: Living With Whitetail

For as long as there have been wild animals there have been diseases that plague them. And no one likes wild animals to die from disease more than hunters, especially white-tailed deer hunters. Hunters prefer that those animals be used to help sustain them and their families, but disease is one of those things that is hard to shake. Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) is widespread deer disease that covers much of the whitetail’s range. The United State’s Great Plains states have been hit hard this year, most notably Wyoming and Texas.

Wyoming Game and Fish biologists have confirmed that EHD has killed a number of white-tailed deer and some pronghorn in the Big Horn Basin, Sheridan and Casper areas this year. Samples from approximately 13 whitetail deer and four pronghorn were collected and tested for hemorrhagic disease–either epizootic hemorrhagic disease or the bluetongue virus. The test results indicated that EHD was the cause for two of the four pronghorn deaths and six of the 13 white-tailed deer. To date, bluetongue virus has not been isolated or detected. Continue reading EHD in Whitetail Deer – Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease Update

The number of wild animals rises and falls based on environmental conditions. Habitat quality, namely food and cover, determines the success of individual animals to reproduce and recruit animals into the population. Many wildlife species, such as white-tailed deer and birds, are quite active throughout the year, but animals with young must work harder to find food due to increased energy demands. Young animals are often left unattended while mother looks for suitable forage. The result is that folks in rural as well as urban environments may find themselves dealing with an abandoned fawn, abandoned bird or other wildlife species.

These young or adolescent animals appear to need human kindness. More often than not, people just want to help and care for these stranded critters. Intentionally left unattended, young animals often stray and appear to be abandoned, and some may appear listless from the heat or lack of water. What you think may be happening may not be reality. Regardless of your intentions, this is not the time to lend a well-meaning hand. Continue reading Abandoned Fawn: What Should I Do?

Wildlife management, especially towards white-tailed deer, is becoming increasingly important to private landowners. One of the biggest management issues landowners face is calculating reliable deer population estimates using traditional survey methods. One technique that has become recently popular is using game cameras to survey deer and estimate population sizes. Because of its ease of use and cost efficiency, remote photography seems to be increasing in its popularity as a tool for landowners and wildlife biologists, but does this remote survey technique work?

Game camera surveys have been used to estimate population parameters among a variety of wildlife species, including white-tailed deer. These parameters include buck to doe ratio, fawn recruitment estimates, and age-related information. However, this deer survey technique involves placing bait in front of the camera in order to capture animals more frequently, which could introduce biases in parameter estimates. From September 2008 to March 2009, researchers at Auburn University monitored cameras placed at random, along game trails, and at feed stations to determine if sex and age structure could be accurately assessed in a population of white-tailed deer. Continue reading Bias Associated With Game Cameras for Deer Surveys