Survey/Deer Density

[brokeno]

If your not going to do what the biologist recommends why use a biologist.

[Chuckfu]

If your not going to do what the biologist recommends why use a biologist.

Never said we weren’t going to do what the biologists recommended. I just wanted to plead my case.

I may disagree but I do respect the owners and wouldn’t go against the recommendations.

I’m not a biologists but it doesn’t take one to see what a deer herd can be when given maximum nutrition. Several threads here are a testament to that.
And since we as a group do not have an endless protein budget and food plots are not an option, reducing the population to the lands natural carrying capacity is the only way I can see giving them that. The biologist said himself if we were to cut the protein off we’d have to kill a lot of animals.

[Chuckfu]

The Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute in Kingsville, in addition to de-bunking culling on LF, recently completed a 7 year study under several thousand acres HF. They captured bucks in helicopters, aged them, measured them, then euthanized those who didn't make the culling criteria. I thought this was a bit extreme giving it couldn't be reproduced through legal hunting. I don't know when that will be published and don't want to steal their thunder, but the only statistically significant finding was that it's a highly effective means of greatly reducing your buck herd.

You can't eliminate the bell shaped curve, but you can bend the average a little by simply allowing bucks to get good and old. Depending on subjectivity, 10% is lofty but reasonable.

https://www.ckwri.tamuk.edu/news-events/research-shows-feed-improves-dynamics-deer-population

This is a pretty informative article. It’s worth the read.

The study showed that density did not have an overall effect on b&c scores while increasing density. It did find that pretty much everything else suffered like fawn survival and weights.

[stickbow]

your numbers aren't bad if your feeding hard 1 to 15-20 it typical in south texas i like 15 if your are feeding because you see more and get to shoot more. the harvest number seems low to me, I would think 20 does and 20 bucks since your ratio is good.

[Chuckfu]

Well we made our first trip down this year.
Zero white wings In Hebbronville for us. Didn’t even stay for the hunt Sunday.
After pulling cameras the majority of our big deer we let walk last year have all declined. Splits and kickers seem to be down. Tine lengths seem to be down overall.
Riding and Corning we only seen one fawn out of the 30 or so does we watched.
Our protein consumption was half it was last year. We had a good spring and summer. But things are really dry now.

[kyle1974]

PM sent chuck

[Chuckfu]

It has me wondering if we were too conservative in our first year with ages and have let some of these big deer start to decline.

[Encinal]

Well we made our first trip down this year.
Zero white wings In Hebbronville for us. Didn’t even stay for the hunt Sunday.
After pulling cameras the majority of our big deer we let walk last year have all declined. Splits and kickers seem to be down. Tine lengths seem to be down overall.
Riding and Corning we only seen one fawn out of the 30 or so does we watched.
Our protein consumption was half it was last year. We had a good spring and summer. But things are really dry now.

Are you the one filling the feeders or do you have someone doing it for you?

[Chuckfu]

Are you the one filling the feeders or do you have someone doing it for you?

The LO is filling them for us. They stay full. The deer are fat and seem healthy but the growth is way down.

[Encinal]

I hate to be this guy, but are you going down and checking to see if they are full?

As to antlers, even with feed, some years are way better than others.

[Chuckfu]

I hate to be this guy, but are you going down and checking to see if they are full?

As to antlers, even with feed, some years are way better than others.

I hear what you’re saying. I don’t think any of that is happening.
I guess I was looking for a miracle answer. Seemed odd to be down across the board.
We only put out 20 tons this year.

[Top Of Texas]

That sounds like a dry year. I checked Falfurrias Mesonet weather site. It showed 13" rain in Sep 2018, but really dry since. Only about 4" since Jan 2019. Ask around, most locals should be seeing the same as you, below average antlers and low fawn crops. Protein feed can reduce negative impacts of dry years, but doesn't overcome it. Good year to layoff top end bucks and roll dice for better weather next year.

Fill in the blanks and time frame for monthly rainfall.

https://www.texmesonet.org/HistoricalData/?station=KBKS

[Encinal]

I hear what you’re saying. I don’t think any of that is happening.
I guess I was looking for a miracle answer. Seemed odd to be down across the board.
We only put out 20 tons this year.

I would really dig into why your feed consumption went down. That’s the route of the issue.

In a dry year, with the same deer numbers, consumption should flatten or go up.

Something therefore has changed, feed palatability, feed access, or feed availability.

Run that down hard.

[Muddy Bud]

We don't have a bioligist but I can tell our numbers are down compared to lsst year and very few fawns have been seen.

The drought really got us this year. And to compound matters we only have one consistant water source on 1100 acres. We do have watering stations scattered over the ranch in 7 feed pens.

But they only really get filled when we check feeders monthly. They did hit the protein good all summer but mostly doe and small bucks.

We are in the same area. About 20 miles SW of Hebbron. But we do have white wings. Quick limits both yesterday and this evening by a couple members.

[kyle1974]

Probably too little too late but we finally got some rain this afternoon. It was like a rain forest until late may or so. July and August were horribly dry. I have no idea why this photo is so big..