Management Minute with David Morris!

Good reproduction is key in management and the engine that powers a program. Simply stated, the number of deer coming into the herd will determine the number YOU can take out. The reproductive rate is the number of fawns per adult (1½ and older) doe entering the fall population. Don’t confuse the number of fawns born with the number entering the fall population. A lot of fawns can die between the time they are born and the fall. Being born is easy; surviving for 5 or 6 months is not…when you’re a fawn. Nutritional stress, bad weather and predation are the main culprits in poor reproduction. Coyotes especially can be a huge factor in fawn survival.

Posted by David Morris