H. A. Jacobson

The welfare of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) fawns orphaned during an early doe harvest is of management interest when the hunting and fawning seasons are temporally close. A 2-year study on early-weaned, captive white-tailed deer fawns was conducted to evaluate potential effects of early orphaning on growth and survival. Comparisons were made between survival of 60-day-old weaned fawns (TV = 28), 90-day-old weaned fawns (N = 21), and control fawns left with their does (N = 21). No significant differences were found between survival rates in 1994 (P = 0.68) and 1995 (P = 1.00...

Expansion of the black bear (Ursus americanus) population outside White River National Wildlife Refuge, Arkansas, has caused local citizens to request reduction of the population. An estimate of black bear population size is necessary before any management recommendations can be made. We used 2 census methods to estimate population size. Hunter surveys of bear sightings during the 2-day firearm deer hunt were used in 1994 to estimate population size with a Petersen-Lincoln estimator. The survey yielded a population estimate of 213 bears (95% CI = 129-297). We used cameras triggered by...

Black bear populations of the Mississippi Alluvial Valley (MAV) are threatened by continuing habitat destruction, necessitating development of techniques to monitor population trends. Bait station surveys have proven successful for monitoring other southeastern bear populations. We conducted experimental bait station surveys during May-August 1992 and 1993 to evaluate effect of bait type (fish, sardines, meat), sampling duration (4 and 8 days), and sampling month on bait station visitation rates by black bears. In 1992 and 1993, visitation rates by black bears were 11.4% and 27.2%,...

Bait stations have proven effective in monitoring black bear (Ursus americanus) population changes. However, little research has been conducted to investigate influences of habitat characteristics on bait station visitations. Vegetation (N = 20) and land-use (N = 3) variables were evaluated at bait stations visited (N = 27) and not visited (N = 25) by black bears on 2 islands in Arkansas. Overstory, midstory, and understory vegetation composition were assessed by nested circular plots centered on bait stations. Distance to nearest road and type and time since last timber harvest also were...

Spatial relationships of radio-monitored gray foxes (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) were examined over a 5-year period. Marginal overlap (<10%) of convex polygon home ranges of same sex adult foxes with adjacent home range boundaries provided evidence for territoriality. Extensive overlap was observed between juveniles and adults of opposite sex. Mean home range overlap of suspected mated pairs was 61% ± 13%, providing evidence of pair bonding between the sexes. Territory size (home range) may provide a useful measure of population density. Assuming 2 adult foxes inhabit the same range,...

Radio-collared white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus; 7 males, 13 females) were tracked from 1984 to 1989 on the Marion County Wildlife Management Area in southern Mississippi. Alternating halves of the study area were planted with 66 0.1-ha and 20 0.4-ha cool-season and 20 0.4-ha summer agronomic forage plots. Mean annual production and utilization (air-dry) of cool-season forages were 1,904 kg/ha (SE = 59) and 1,107 kg/ha (SE = 41), respectively. Summer forage production and utilization were 664 kg/ha (SE = 50) and 586 kg/ha (SE = 48), respectively. Annual 95% convex polygon home...

Characteristics and opinions of deer hunters using the Choctaw and Tallahala Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) were determined from a mail questionnaire. Respondents were typically white, middle-class males. Characteristics of education, occupation and community size of residence were significantly different (P < 0.05) between the WMAs. The quality of hunting and current management practices, with the exception of hunting with dogs, were favorably rated on both WMAs. Significantly more respondents from the Tallahala WMA (66%) than the Choctaw WMA (42%) favored hunting with dogs....

As part of a mail survey of Mississippi deer hunters, specific questions were addressed to participants concerning their exposure to various I & E media of the Mississippi Game and Fish Commission and their attitudes toward hunting antlerless deer. Fifty-five percent of the respondents had read the agency magazine, 83.1% had viewed the agency TV series, 78.1% had heard or seen radio or TV spots, 11.7% had attended a public hearing and 51.3% had read agency newspaper releases. Associations between exposure to the magazine, TV series and public hearings and attitude toward hunting...