Journal of the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies

A basic understanding of White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are an important economic and recreational resource in population dynamics is essential to ensure sound management, but baseline information in Louisiana is lacking. Our objectives were to estimate space use, survival, and causes of mortality for a managed white-tailed deer population in southern Louisiana. We radio-marked 11 yearling (1.5 yr old) and 26 adult males (≥2.5 yr old) during 2007-2008. Home ranges (95%) for adult males during spring, summer, and fall were 153.9, 70.4, and 118.0 ha, respectively, and were 119% and 68% larger during spring and fall than summer. Yearling males used 169% larger home ranges during spring (231.6 ha) than summer (86.1 ha), and maintained 50% larger home ranges than adults in spring. Survival estimates for adult males during spring, summer, and fall were 100%, 95%, and 55%, respectively. Mean annual survival for adult males was 53%.

We observed 111 male white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) responses to four antler rattling sequences performed 171 times during 1992-1995. Thirty-three additional sessions were performed within 200 m of 18 radio-transmittered males during 1994-96. The four sequences, short and quiet (n = 43), short and loud (n = 45), long and quiet (n = 43), and long and loud (n = 40), varied by rattling duration and volume. Sequences were randomly chosen and performed near 17 observation towers to test which attracted the greatest number of males. Loud rattling attracted nearly three times as many males as quiet rattling, but duration of rattling did not differ. Greatest response rate was during rut and lowest during prerut. Most responses occurred during the first 10-min rattling segment.

: Few studies have investigated the impacts of predators on white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) recruitment in the Southeast. We inferred predation impacts by comparing fawn-to-doe ratios before and after an intensive predator removal on an 800- ha study site in northeast Alabama. We estimated fawn-to-doe ratios pre-removal using camera surveys in September 2006 and February 2007, hunter observations, and web based cameras (n =11) mounted over foodplots (October through January). We removed 22 coyotes (Canis latrans) and 10 bobcats (Lynx rufus) during February through July 2007. Predator populations, as indexed using scat deposition rates and scent station surveys, declined to near zero just prior to fawning season. The September fawn-to-doe ratio increased from 0.18 to 0.24 and the February ratio increased from 0.41 to 1.20 in the year following predator removal.

We assessed the efficacy of predator removal as a tool for increasing white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) recruitment at the Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center in southwestern Georgia, an area with a low-density (2-6 deer/km2) deer herd. We partitioned our 11,736-ha study area into predator removal (approximately 4,200 ha) and non-removal (approximately 2,800 ha) zones with a 4,500-ha buffer between them. We removed 23 coyotes (Canis latrans) and 3 bobcats (Lynx rufus) from the removal zone between January and August 2008. Most of these (14 coyotes and 1 bobcat) were removed during the fawning period (June-August 2008). Pre-hunting season camera surveys conducted during September 2008 indicated a difference in fawn:doe ratios between the two zones (0.68 in the removal zone; 0.07 in the non-removal zone). Post-hunting season surveys conducted during February suggested a fawn:doe ratio of 0.97 in the removal zone and 0.45 in the non-removal zone.

Acorn production is variable from year to year and among species. Weather, insect damage, and genetics are primary causes for variation. Silvicultural techniques have been recommended to improve acorn production; however, those recommendations primarily address variation among red oaks (Quercus rubra). Variability among individual white oaks (Quercus alba) has not been well documented and is an important consideration for forest and wildlife managers. We measured acorn production among 200 white oaks on two sites—one in east Tennessee and one in western North Carolina, 2006-2008. Acorn production varied by site and year, and acorn yield was highly variable among individuals, as one-third of the trees produced approximately 75% of the acorns collected at both sites. Approximately one-half of the trees at both sites were poor producers and yielded only 10% of the acorns collected.

Private landowners and conservation are essential to wildlife management. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission recognized the importance of these landowners and sought to improve their private lands programs through direct landowner input. We collected data on private lands wildlife management, participation in private lands management programs, and landowner demographics through a mail survey. Our results indicated 58% of landowners actively manage for wildlife and 68% believe their regular land management practices benefit wildlife. Demographics and land use varied across Florida, but similarities allowed us to group landowners into three regions for comparisons. Landowners in South Florida had greater incomes, larger parcels, more agriculture, grasslands and rangelands, and managed for upland game birds. Landowners in Central Florida had lesser incomes, moderately-sized parcels, and a mixture of grasslands and forests.

Monitoring abundance of the endangered Key Largo woodrat (Neotoma floridana smalli) is necessary to understand population responses to prescribed management actions. We compared efficiency of adaptive cluster sampling (ACS) and stratified-random sampling (SRS) for estimating Key Largo woodrat abundance and compared three stratification designs using poststratification. We established 40 trapping grids using a stratified random design and adaptively sampled around grids on which at least 1 individual was captured. We captured 11 individuals on 40 random grids and an additional 22 individuals on 33 adaptive grids. Despite the increased capture rate, ACS was less efficient than SRS with an estimator variance twice as large with equal sample sizes. Although poststratification effectively lowered estimator variance, our data suggest that attaining the required sample sizes to reliably estimate abundance likely will be cost-prohibitive.

Flooding harvested rice fields in winter provides important ecological services, including benefits to waterfowl, other waterbirds, agronomics, and soil and water conservation. We conducted experiments in six rice fields in Arkansas during winters 2004-2006 to evaluate effects of different post-harvest stubble-management practices and flooding on abundance of dabbling ducks, geese, and waste rice. During both winters, rolled rice paddies attracted the greatest diurnal density of mallards (Anas platyrhynchos; x− = 4.18 birds/ha/survey, SE = 0.36). Burned paddies attracted the greatest densities of other dabbling duck species (x− = 2.29 birds/ha/survey, SE = 0.46) and geese (x− = 2.88 birds/ha/survey, SE = 0.97). Paddies with standing stubble contained the most waste rice in late November 2004 (x− = 96.83 kg/ha, SE = 17.99), but geese may have depleted fields of waste rice by late December 2004. Nonetheless, waterfowl continued using rice fields during winter.