What to put in my feeder?
05-11-2010, 05:46 AM
#6
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Comance county, OK
Posts: 11,408
Noticed that the once abundant quail nearly disappered at one of our places despite the fact that they are not hunted there. I started asking folks why. Turns out that much of the deer corn is infected with a fungus called aflatoxin. Aflatoxin is a known quail killer. Corn containing in excess of 20 parts per billion of aflatoxin cannot be legally fed to cattle. So it ends up as deer corn.
We have switched to using black eyed peas exclusively at that place. We buy blackeyed peas by the ton and they are cheaper than corn. We will use blackeyed peas at our other places as soon as we have something to store it in there.
A good article on the subject:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/outdoors/stories/020710dnsposassercol.3b0db39.html
We have switched to using black eyed peas exclusively at that place. We buy blackeyed peas by the ton and they are cheaper than corn. We will use blackeyed peas at our other places as soon as we have something to store it in there.
A good article on the subject:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/outdoors/stories/020710dnsposassercol.3b0db39.html
The poison that Cox refers to is aflatoxin, a substance produced by fungi that grow on corn and other food staples. Aflatoxin rates in wildlife corn caused a stir in the 1990s when biologists became concerned about potential damage to deer and other wildlife.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not allow grain that tests more than 20 parts per billion of aflatoxin to be fed to dairy cattle or used for human consumption. It winds up as wildlife feed. Several studies have indicated aflatoxin can weaken and even kill wildlife.
West Texas quail guru Dale Rollins said he's more concerned with secondary effects of aflatoxin. Diminished immunity means the birds are more susceptible to disease. Feeding the birds tends to congregate them, so disease spreads more quickly.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not allow grain that tests more than 20 parts per billion of aflatoxin to be fed to dairy cattle or used for human consumption. It winds up as wildlife feed. Several studies have indicated aflatoxin can weaken and even kill wildlife.
West Texas quail guru Dale Rollins said he's more concerned with secondary effects of aflatoxin. Diminished immunity means the birds are more susceptible to disease. Feeding the birds tends to congregate them, so disease spreads more quickly.
05-13-2010, 12:57 AM
#7
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Lake County, Florida
Posts: 3,313
we don't use feeders JUST to attract deer, so feeding corn is out of the question for us. we feed straight protein pellets (Antlers Plus or Record Rack) out of our feeders. doing this benefits the overall health of the herd unlike feeding corn.
