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HORNS OR ANTLERS?
Cattle and goats have
horns. Deer and elk have antlers. What are the differences between the two?
Horns are 1) made of bony core covered by a thin layer of keratin, the same
material as your fingernails; They are 2) slow growing and permanent; 3) they
are not shed each year; 4) they are usually grown by both sexes; and 5) usually
grow in yearly 'rings' that mark the animal's age.
Antlers are: 1) fast-growing bone that is shed each year. 2) Usually grown only
by males (both sexes of caribou grow antlers); and 3) often branched (but the
number of points does not signify age).
About Antlers
Each spring, male deer and elk begin growing antlers from bony bumps on their
skulls called pedicles. Increasing daylight elevates the level of the hormone
testosterone in the animal's blood, which triggers the growth of antlers.
Antlers begin as layer upon layer of cartilage that slowly mineralizes into
bone. They are light and easily damaged until they completely mineralize in late
summer. A soft covering called velvet helps protect the antlers and carries
blood to the growing bone tissue. If you look closely at a deer or elk antler,
you'll see grooves and ridges on it. These mark the paths of veins that carried
blood throughout the growing antlers. The blood stops flowing to the antlers in
August, the antlers finish hardening, and the velvet falls off or is rubbed off.
The hardened antlers are composed of calcium, phosphorous and as much as 50
percent water. An antler grows faster than any other kind of bone. It can grow
up to 1 inch (2.5 cm) a day during the summer. Biologists are studying antlers
in the hopes of learning the secret
ANTLER INDEX AND WHAT IT
MEANS
Of the Arkansas bucks killed in
2004-05, 45 percent were 2.5 years old. Age is one of the key factors to antler
growth. An age of 2.5 years is about when a buck’s antlers start to show their
potential.
The AGFC sums up a buck’s antler characteristics in an
"antler index." This is a numerical value that encompasses the sum of
all antler measurements, such as tine length, inside spread, outside spread and
total number of points. The average antler index statewide is 38-39, Gray said.
Typical antler index for bucks killed in the Mississippi Delta is
44 but slipped to 38.3 in 2004-2005. Long-term average in Crowley’s Ridge is
40, but rose to was 43.8. Average for the Ozarks is about 37 but last year it
was 40.5. The Ouachita Mountains (39), the Gulf Coastal Plain (37) and the
Arkansas River Valley (37) held average.
The antler index in the Ozarks may have been inflated because of
the two giant bucks taken there that qualified for the Boone & Crockett
record book. The average antler index is based on the sample size, Gray said. If
the Ozarks yielded a small number of bucks, then a couple of giants would
inflate the average. If the sample size is large, those bucks would have little
influence.
Gray said it’s important to keep the high antler index for
Crowley’s Ridge bucks in context.
"That’s such a small area," Gray said. "You’re
only talking about a few bucks." Gray said he had not closely examined the
sample sizes from each region. The increase in quality of deer in the Ouachitas
is interesting, Gray said, because it might reflect the work being done by the
U.S. Forest Service in the Ouachita National Forest. Prescribed burning and
selective timber harvest have generated a profusion of diverse food sources that
benefit deer.
"You have real shallow topsoil in the Ouachitas, but it can
grow some good vegetation; honeysuckle, things of that nature," Gray said.
"Prescribed burning is really helping to add nutrients back into the soil.
That’s why we want to promote burning in national forests."
Hunters were most successful on the opening days of the various
season segments. Bowhunters killed 987 deer on opening day of the archery season
(plus 10 percent). Hunters killed 5,744 deer (plus 31 percent) on opening day of
the muzzleloader season, and hunters killed 19,613 deer (plus 8 percent) on
opening day of the modern gun season.
Overall, 20 percent of the total kill occurred on opening days of
the muzzleloader and modern gun seasons, and 30 percent of the kill occurred on
the opening weekends of those respective seasons
TOP STATES IN
DEER KILL TOP STATES IN B&C
DEER TAKEN
1.
Alabama 535,000
1.
Wisconsin 25
2. Wisconsin
517,169
2.
Illinois
21
3.
Georgia
484,000
3.
Kentucky
15
4.
Michigan 453,000
4.
Texas
14
5.
Texas
433,387
5.
Iowa
12
* 2005 figures
MORE
WHITETAIL INFO
Top running speed of
a whitetail (40 mph); Top swimming speed of a whitetail (13 mph); Average tail
length of a whitetail (10.6 inches); Average number of pounds of vegetation a
whitetail will consume in a single day (7); Number of stomachs a whitetail has
(4); Average life span of a whitetail under unhunted conditions (10 years);
Average number of times a whitetail defecates in a 24-hour period (13).
ANTLER
COLORATION
One thing that has always intrigued me is why
antlers are fish-belly white in some areas; almost black in others. Certainly
the amount of calcium in the soil can make antlers lighter, but what makes them
darker?
This possible answer was given to me by a biologist working for the Oklahoma
Fish & Game department: in areas where there are lots of evergreens (cedars,
pines, etc) antlers may be darker. Evergreens contain resin, which is sticky and
holds dirt. Bucks which rub on those type trees will work that dirt into their
antlers while they may still be 'fresh' immediately after velvet shedding. Hence
the dirt imparts the darker color.
FIGURING
LIVE WEIGHT
On an average deer field dressing removes about 22 per cent of body mass. Thus a
field dressed carcass that weighs 110 lbs. means that animal weighed about 141
lbs. 'on the hoof'.
DEER
HUNTING BY THE NUMBERS
500,000 - whitetail
population in the United States in 1900.
34,000,000 - whitetail population in the United States today.
3,200,000 - number of whitetails in the state of Texas.
11,000,000 - the number of hunters in the United States today.
1,300,000 - number of deer hunters in Pennsylvania (most in the U.S.)
8,250 - number of deer hunters in Rhode Island (lowest in the U.S.)
256,000,000 - number of days hunters spend afield annually.
140 - gun hunting days for whitetail in South Carolina (most in U.S.)
7 - shotgun hunting days in Illinois (shortest in U.S.)
$20,900,000 - total annual hunting-related expenditures.
3,000,000 - average annual whitetail harvest in the U.S.
150,000,000 - pounds of meat - from 3,000,000 whitetails.
$40 BILLION DOLLARS - amount hunters and fishermen contribute to the annual
economy.
16 - Number of states
permitting the use of magnifying scopes on muzzleloaders.
80 - Percent of hunters reporting treestand accidents who were not wearing
safety belts.
90 - Percentage of nighttime visits to scrapes by bucks in a north Georgia
study.
4 - Number of teeth in a fawn's mouth at birth.
65,000 - Approximate number of hunter safety/education volunteers in the U.S.
today.
MORE WHITETAIL
FACTS
+The GESTATION PERIOD
of the whitetail doe is about 200 days.
+In the South, where winters are mild, many whitetails have a year-round range of
less than 1,000 acres.
+Well-nourished bucks start growing their racks in April-May. Antlers can grow
more than one-half inch per day!
+If a buck breaks his right hind leg; he is likely to grow a 'freak' left antler
the next spring. This is known as the 'contralateral effect'.
+An 'average' Dakota whitetail buck may weigh over 300 pounds/a Florida Keys buck
may weigh less than 50.
AT THE
TIMBERFEST IN SHERIDAN:
Overheard
from a man in camouflage viewing the Monster Whitetails display along with his
wife; "see hon...I told you that some of them have horns!"
DISCLAIMER
FOR THE FOLLOWING POST -
Bob Robertson
of Jonesboro is an avowed gun
nut, long-term married man, and often shares those little tidbits
of information with me about nothing in particular. With
apologies to our lady readers, and especially to Bob's wonderful
and long-suffering wife Tammy, I include Bob's latest offering:
SIX
REASONS WHY A HANDGUN IS BETTER THAN A WOMAN...
(1) You can buy a silencer for a handgun.
(2) You can trade a .44 for a .22, and probably get a little
money to boot.
(3) You can have one handgun for the home and another for travel.
(4) If you admire a friend's handgun and tell him so, he'll
probably let you try a few rounds with it.
(5) Your primary handgun doesn't mind if you have a back-up.
(6) Your handgun will stay with you, even when you're out of
ammo.
Top
10 States for Deer Collisions
Some states experience more collisions with deer than others.
According to claim statistics from State Farm -- which insures more vehicles
than any other company in the United States -- the states with the highest
number of accidents involving deer between July 1, 2005 and June 30, 2006 were:
1. Pennsylvania
2. Michigan
3. Illinois
4. Ohio
5. Georgia
6. Minnesota
7. Virginia
8. Indiana
9. Texas
10. Wisconsin
WHEN
THERE ARE NO ACORNS
White oak acorns are produced from the blooms that were formed in
the spring of the same year the acorns are produced. Red oaks
acorns are formed from the blooms that were formed in the spring
of the YEAR BEFORE. It takes red oak acorns two years to mature
vs. one year for white oaks. The number one killer of an acorn crop is a late
frost that kills the blooms in the spring. Number two is drought.
WHY WHITETAIL
ANTLERS ARE LARGER ON ONE SIDE
On virtually any whitetail deer rack one side has a tighter curl
than the other. When a buck sleeps, he lays his head on the
ground, with the weight of his head and rack resting on the
bottom antler. During summer the soft, velvet-covered antler
takes on the deformity.
Prevailing wind in that area causes deer to sleep on one side
more than the other (facing the wind); hence a tighter curl on
one side. The bottom antler of a sleeping deer is often larger
than the top one. This is due to the increased blood flow. The
top antler, on the other hand, 'falls asleep' and becomes
somewhat undernourished.
IT
MUST HAVE BEEN THE GUNS!!!
The following excerpt was taken
from a Paul Harvey commentary soon after the tragic events in Littleton, CO took
place: "For the life of me, I can't understand what could have gone wrong in
Littleton, Colo. If only the parents had kept their children away from the guns,
we wouldn't have had such a tragedy."
YES,
IT
MUST have been the guns...
IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN...because half our
children are being raised in broken homes.
IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN...because our children
get to spend an average of 30 seconds in meaningful conversation with their parents each day. After all, we give our children
'quality' time.
IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN...because we treat our
children as pets, and our pets as children.
IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN...because we place our
children in day care centers where they learn their socialization skills among
their peers, under the law of the jungle.
IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN...because we allow our
children to watch hours of television a day filled with
the glorification of sex and violence that isn't fit for
adult consumption, much less a child's.
IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN...because we allow our
children to enter into virtual game worlds in which to win one must kill as many opponents as possible, usually in the most sadistic way
imaginable.
IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN...because we have
sterilized and contracepted our families down to sizes so small that the children we do have are so spoiled with material things that they come to equate
the receiving of those material gifts with love.
IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN...because our
children, who historically have been seen as a blessing from God, are now being
viewed as either a mistake created when contraception fails, or inconveniences
that parents try to raise in their spare time.
IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN...because we teach our
children that there are no laws of morality, and that actions don't have consequences.
No, IT MUST HAVE
BEEN THE GUNS!!