QDM- Effect of breeding related stress
12-27-2009 | 10:16 AM
#61
Thread Starter
Typical Buck
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 657
Likes: 0
From: SE PA
Here's exerpts from an article by Charlie Alsheimer talking about stress:
Charelie mentioned six factors of enviornmental stress that limit antler growth: enviornment, food, population, adult doe to antlered buck ratio, the rut, and predation.
To find the article do a quick google seach "charlie asheimer, stress"
Once again, I feel it was an oversight on my part to say "breeding stress" instead of "stress."
It takes four basic ingredients to produce a buck with a 170-inch rack - genetics, habitat, herd management, and age.
To see how tough it is to raise a whitetail from a fawn to a Booner, let's look at two scenarios - the real world and a controlled environment - to see how various factors affect antler growth.
The real world refers to any place in North America with free-roaming whitetails. These deer must cope with everything nature and humans throw at them. The stress heaped on them often reaches absurd levels, resulting in suppressed antler growth. I believe stress on free-ranging deer is cumulative and antler growth is suppressed in varying degrees depending on how many stress factors are placed on a herd.
Whitetails still deal with environmental stress factors even when human activity is removed from an area. For example, in remote southern locations, extreme heat and parasites heavily burden deer herds. In northern climates, whitetails have a far different problem: brutal winters with deep snow and bitter cold temperatures. Winter's stress can severely suppress antler growth, especially when it leads to substantial over-browsing of habitat.
No matter where it occurs, drought is a major suppressant of antler growth, especially if it occurs during the critical antler-growing season of April through July. Bucks need large quantities of lush nutritional food to fully realize their antler-growing potential.
Insects are another environmental stressor. Swarms of insects have been known to kill domestic animals, but they also take the lives of deer.
Bucks can grow impressive antlers when they receive a variety of highly nutritious foods. However, these food sources disappear quickly when too many deer are on a property. Therefore, bucks living on over-populated range won't always grow large racks, at least not what they are capable of. This is why it is so important to keep the whitetail population in line with the range's carrying capacity.
A region's deer population is as important as food availability in allowing a buck to reach maximum antler potential. Antler growth suffers when an area becomes too densely populated.
Dave Griffith and his brother Rick operate a state-of-the-art whitetail gene/semen collection operation in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. After years of observing antler growth in their breeder bucks, the Griffiths have reached some interesting conclusions.
"Whitetails are very sensitive to overpopulation and do poorly if there are too many deer," Dave Griffith notes. "We've found that if we leave a breeder buck with a group of does from breeding time to fawning time the buck's antlers are almost always smaller the next year. When we remove the buck from the does right after the breeding is over, antler growth doesn't suffer. Bucks - especially top-end bucks - do better when they can be alone or in bachelor groups.
"We know that if bucks are forced to be around too many deer, they'll seldom reach their full antler potential."
A deer herd's sex ratio is a significant suppressant of antler growth, and it doesn't take many deer to skew the odds against bucks. For example, antler growth suffers in areas that have more than three adult does for every antlered buck. When herds exceed this ratio, the rut stretches to a danger point for bucks, especially mature bucks. A two-to-one ratio isn't bad, but, for maximum growth potential, an area should have only one adult doe for every antlered buck.
The rut lasts about forty-five days in areas with balanced ratios. However, when the adult doe-to-antlered buck ratio exceeds three adult does for every antlered buck, the rut can last ninety days or more. This is dangerous, because in the North, it means the rut will stretch into the winter months. In turn, rutting bucks enter this critical period so worn down they cannot recover before their antlers begin to grow in April. In such instances, it is not uncommon for mature bucks to die from additional winter stress.
"To reach optimum antler growth, every white-tailed buck needs to go into a new antler-growing season with a full tank, so to speak," Dave Griffith points out. "Think of it this way - a whitetail's bone marrow system is like a fuel tank. If their bone marrow and body condition are not in top condition when the sun says 'Start growing antlers!' they can't possibly reach their full antler potential. So, body maintenance is critical when it comes to antler growth. Removing stress helps achieve the results we're looking for."
To see how tough it is to raise a whitetail from a fawn to a Booner, let's look at two scenarios - the real world and a controlled environment - to see how various factors affect antler growth.
The real world refers to any place in North America with free-roaming whitetails. These deer must cope with everything nature and humans throw at them. The stress heaped on them often reaches absurd levels, resulting in suppressed antler growth. I believe stress on free-ranging deer is cumulative and antler growth is suppressed in varying degrees depending on how many stress factors are placed on a herd.
Whitetails still deal with environmental stress factors even when human activity is removed from an area. For example, in remote southern locations, extreme heat and parasites heavily burden deer herds. In northern climates, whitetails have a far different problem: brutal winters with deep snow and bitter cold temperatures. Winter's stress can severely suppress antler growth, especially when it leads to substantial over-browsing of habitat.
No matter where it occurs, drought is a major suppressant of antler growth, especially if it occurs during the critical antler-growing season of April through July. Bucks need large quantities of lush nutritional food to fully realize their antler-growing potential.
Insects are another environmental stressor. Swarms of insects have been known to kill domestic animals, but they also take the lives of deer.
Bucks can grow impressive antlers when they receive a variety of highly nutritious foods. However, these food sources disappear quickly when too many deer are on a property. Therefore, bucks living on over-populated range won't always grow large racks, at least not what they are capable of. This is why it is so important to keep the whitetail population in line with the range's carrying capacity.
A region's deer population is as important as food availability in allowing a buck to reach maximum antler potential. Antler growth suffers when an area becomes too densely populated.
Dave Griffith and his brother Rick operate a state-of-the-art whitetail gene/semen collection operation in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. After years of observing antler growth in their breeder bucks, the Griffiths have reached some interesting conclusions.
"Whitetails are very sensitive to overpopulation and do poorly if there are too many deer," Dave Griffith notes. "We've found that if we leave a breeder buck with a group of does from breeding time to fawning time the buck's antlers are almost always smaller the next year. When we remove the buck from the does right after the breeding is over, antler growth doesn't suffer. Bucks - especially top-end bucks - do better when they can be alone or in bachelor groups.
"We know that if bucks are forced to be around too many deer, they'll seldom reach their full antler potential."
A deer herd's sex ratio is a significant suppressant of antler growth, and it doesn't take many deer to skew the odds against bucks. For example, antler growth suffers in areas that have more than three adult does for every antlered buck. When herds exceed this ratio, the rut stretches to a danger point for bucks, especially mature bucks. A two-to-one ratio isn't bad, but, for maximum growth potential, an area should have only one adult doe for every antlered buck.
The rut lasts about forty-five days in areas with balanced ratios. However, when the adult doe-to-antlered buck ratio exceeds three adult does for every antlered buck, the rut can last ninety days or more. This is dangerous, because in the North, it means the rut will stretch into the winter months. In turn, rutting bucks enter this critical period so worn down they cannot recover before their antlers begin to grow in April. In such instances, it is not uncommon for mature bucks to die from additional winter stress.
"To reach optimum antler growth, every white-tailed buck needs to go into a new antler-growing season with a full tank, so to speak," Dave Griffith points out. "Think of it this way - a whitetail's bone marrow system is like a fuel tank. If their bone marrow and body condition are not in top condition when the sun says 'Start growing antlers!' they can't possibly reach their full antler potential. So, body maintenance is critical when it comes to antler growth. Removing stress helps achieve the results we're looking for."
Charelie mentioned six factors of enviornmental stress that limit antler growth: enviornment, food, population, adult doe to antlered buck ratio, the rut, and predation.
To find the article do a quick google seach "charlie asheimer, stress"
Once again, I feel it was an oversight on my part to say "breeding stress" instead of "stress."
12-27-2009 | 12:20 PM
#62
Nontypical Buck
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 3,879
Likes: 0
There is, however, evidence proving that social stresses in an overpopulated herd reduces antler growth in bucks. So to say stress is not a factor in PA is an oversight on your part, IMO.
The simple fact is that even when we had 1.6 M deer, the bucks were not subject to enough stress to effect breeding rates, productivity, recruitment , the breeding window or rack sizes.
12-27-2009 | 12:48 PM
#63
Thread Starter
Typical Buck
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 657
Likes: 0
From: SE PA
Would you mind backing up your opinion with some facts?
What areas of the state have produced the most big racked bucks over the last 20 years? Is it the NC counties where the herd has been under control and the B/D ratio has been around 1:2, or is it the areas in the SW and SE where the PGC has not been able to control the herd and where we have the highest deer densities in the state?
The simple fact is that even when we had 1.6 M deer, the bucks were not subject to enough stress to effect breeding rates, productivity, recruitment , the breeding window or rack sizes.
12-27-2009 | 01:29 PM
#64
Nontypical Buck
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 3,879
Likes: 0
Clearly you suffer from "selective reading" when it comes to my posts. Please return to page 5 and find the excerpts from Jason Sanvely's article on Ozoga's research.
uote:
The simple fact is that even when we had 1.6 M deer, the bucks were not subject to enough stress to effect breeding rates, productivity, recruitment , the breeding window or rack sizes.
Would you mind backing up your opinion with some facts?
The simple fact is that even when we had 1.6 M deer, the bucks were not subject to enough stress to effect breeding rates, productivity, recruitment , the breeding window or rack sizes.
Would you mind backing up your opinion with some facts?
[QUOTE]I'm not sure. Even if we knew which areas the biggest bucks were coming from it would be impossible to pinpoint which factor was responsible. In NC they may have less stress but they also have less nutrition. Whereas, in SE and SW they have more stress and more nutrition.[/QUOTE
If you were as informed as I am you would know what areas are producing the most big buck and you would know it is the areas with the highest densities where bucks should be subject to the most stress according to your theories.
12-27-2009 | 01:41 PM
#65
Thread Starter
Typical Buck
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 657
Likes: 0
From: SE PA
My request was for facts from PA that supported your opinion, not the widely accepted principle that exceedingly high densities increase stress.
12-27-2009 | 01:48 PM
#67
Thread Starter
Typical Buck
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 657
Likes: 0
From: SE PA
If you were as informed as I am you would know what areas are producing the most big buck and you would know it is the areas with the highest densities where bucks should be subject to the most stress according to your theories.
12-27-2009 | 02:04 PM
#68
Nontypical Buck
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 3,879
Likes: 0
If it's a "widely accepted principle" then obviously it can be applied to PA, and obviously it supports my opinion.
What's awr stand for?
If you had a logical thought process you would have realized these bucks have access to a lot better nutrition. Also, there's a lot of hiding places in the suburbs...we have a lot of bucks reaching maturity. Not saying north central dosent, but they certainly have less than down here.
12-27-2009 | 02:28 PM
#69
Nontypical Buck
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 1,712
Likes: 0
From: Poconos, PA
high deer densities and nutrition both have effects on antler growth. maybe nutrition plays more of a role on antler growth than stress does and thats why the deer in those areas produce larger racks. just because bigger bucks are shot each year in these areas where the deer densities are higher doesnt mean stress doesnt play any role on antler growth.
Last edited by Hunt4Life23; 12-27-2009 at 02:38 PM.
12-27-2009 | 02:31 PM
#70
Thread Starter
Typical Buck
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 657
Likes: 0
From: SE PA
you are the one that claimed high densities resulted in increased stress and smaller racks. Now let's see if you can produce the data to support your claim.
I can't make it any more cut and dry than that. You say produce the data, I say open your eyes and realize I've already put forth the findings of several studies; beyond that I don't know what I can do.