Profiles login here become a HuntingNut About HuntingNuts about us contact us Member Posts read the blog dumbest things we do view profiles 2007 photos 2006 photos 2005 photos 2004 photos 2003 photos guestbook Support HuntingNuts be a sponsor HuntingNuts STORE Visit our Sponsors aNERDandaGEEK.com FlyingArrowSports.com HighlinePainting Iwaniec Chiropractic Music Lessons Tim the Gunsmith Jeff's Taxidermy Winter Homes in Lakeland, FL Capital RV & Marine Articles by You! Best Day Ever The Off Season It's below Zero Bow Shot Placement NY Public Hunting Land Non-Park Land Sportsman Sites DEC NY Score Your Antlers NRA gun safety tips Pope & Young Other Stuff food deer eat How many more days? Hourly Weather Albany Craryville East Greenbush Kinderhook Lake George Lake Placid West Coxsacki Sportsman Links NYS Big Buck Club Salerno Brothers ADK Hunter Amazon Mp3's $.89 It's Below Zero - by HuntingNut Chief Here we are in the heart of January and as I type, the exact temperature outside is seven degrees below zero. Here's the real scary part about the temp.....it's 11 am, daylight! This is not a typo...It's freezing outside! So what! Who cares? As long as there's oil in the tank, and the car agrees to start, we'll be fine. Sure, we've packed all our gear away in our "odor free" storage containers. We've cleaned our rifles, applied some oil, and put them back in the cabinet. But what happens to the deer? Newsflash! They're still outside is the frozen tundra that we call the northeast. Being somewhat inquisitive, I decided to research just how it is that these beautiful creatures are able to survive in weather that freezes snots faster than a Rodger Clemens fastball. (did I mention he's an Astro now?) The first thing that one must realize is that this is life or death for the deer. Their survival is contingent on their ability to find food, shelter, and protection from predators. Let's address them in that order. During the spring, summer, and fall an adult white tail deer needs to eat about six and a half pounds of food per day. During the winter the metabolic rate of the deer is actually slowed down. While this causes the energy level of the deer to lower, it also reduces the amount of food required for survival. During the winter months a deer can sustain itself on about two pounds of food per day. Obviously, there will be nutritional variables that will increase or decrease this amount, but as I've already indicated, I'm somewhat inquisitive. I ain't trying to become a biologist here. The next two requirements for survival are somewhat co-mingled so we'll discuss them in tandem. During the winter white tails will group together in areas that are more heavily wooded than where we tend to see them in the fall. I'm talking a serious combination of conifer, bramble, and brush. You know, the places we tend to walk by during the season and say " Yep, I'd bet my left one that Ole Mossy is standin' in there staring at me right now". We just never seem to figure out how to get in there without him getting out the other side. Anyway, enough digression. The deer will group together in very large groups in these well sheltered areas. This behavior is called Yarding. In my research, I've found numerous reasons and theories for yarding. The first, and most obvious, is that there is additional warmth in large groups. The deer will "bed down" in a close pattern that gives them all an additional degree of shelter. From a travel standpoint, because they travel and group in such large numbers, the snow along the trails that they utilize will become packed down and make travel much easier. This is advantageous from both an energy and fleeing standpoint. The most interesting reason that I came across for yarding is probably more theory than fact. It has been suggested that by congregating in large groups in one area, they have more protection from wolves and, to a lesser degree, coyotes. Wolf and coyote packs are very territorial in nature. The theory is that by staying in one packs territory, the deer are better off than if they were scattered around in the territory of multiple packs. I guess if the herd is only fattening up the belly's of a few, then there will be more deer to fatten up our belly's next year! Well that's what they're out there doing even as you read this. Seems kind of tough doesn't it? I know a lot of deer hunters like to get out during the winter and small game hunt. I know I do. Here's a thought that comes to mind when your out in the woods this winter. If you do happen to "spook" a group of yarding deer, enjoy watching them for the moment but don't put any undue pressure on them. From what I've read, they've already got a pretty tough situation on their hooves as it is.