Surprise! The deer look good!
Vermont
It's crunch time for the deer. March is when we see a lot of winter kill. What are you seeing out there? I know the farm I manage is not representative of the state, but they look great. Here's a few pics in one of the orchards.....post some recent pics if you've got some.
Haven't seen a deer in a couple of months. We have about 30" of snow on the ground here. In all honesty, I haven't been in the woods looking around either. Now that it is starting to stay above zero I will have to get out and see what's going on.
I hope the turkeys are at the local farms because it would be a tough time for them also.
Maya, is your date right on your camera. I'm surprised they all have antlers that late. They all look great.
???? Maya that can't be feb 1 and the bucks still haven't shed?? That's all the snow u have at ur place??? Where I'm at the snow pack is at least 3' deep in the woods and although I've seen a few deer the last week behind my place they have dug right down to the bottom and they look like @#$%! I've got three tom turkeys hanging around and i'm pretty sure they would rather die than see another day -30... i feel their pain but also digging a hole for them by May 1st! ha ha.
Im same as Rob, a good 30" of snow on the ground. I saw some around some houses last weekend and they looked pretty good. I think they were after birdseed and shrubbery there.
Around the corner from my place there are trails everywhere. Even using the frozen streambed as a trail system. They even stayed around my place more than usual this winter which is strange. They have been pawing on my mound system for the past couple months and eating my apple trees along my driveway where they can reach the limbs from the snowbanks.
The date on the cam was right. If bucks are healthy they keep the antlers later. 46 acres of soy beans and good mast this year on the farm. The buck I shot had the biggest layer of fat on a deer I've ever seen. Tough getting the back straps out!
Jacks we had over 35" on the ground after these pics were taken. We got pounded in Feb.
I guess I'll never figure the deer here in VT. Never have seen a defined rut here, I see fawns in August/Sept with spots still and that's way to late.
I could be wrong but from what I understand antler shedding has less to do with nutrition and more to do with hormones #testosterone...Their are some really nutritionally speaking healthy bucks in PA and they typically shed dec/jan and have seen shed bucks in late Nov. Bucks will keep their antlers as long as your doe still come into estrous and there are deer to breed...deer gestation is 7 months so your deer are probably still breeding. May explain why I see spotted fawns in August/sept and the deer herd here is completely out of whack.
Anyway no doubt feb we got pounded too man. Still snowing in fact and i'm sad to say have not seen the toms lately, they either gave up on life or the coyotes got them...bummer
Your right Jacks, I just meant that beyond the normal drop in testosterone levels, if a buck in good shape will hold his antlers longer than a stressed one. I normally see them drop here in January sometime. These pics were early Feb, so it's not way out of the norm.
I shed hunted this farm for 3 hours Sunday and found no dead dear...or sheds. :(
