Abstract
We conducted a telemetry study on Fort Chaffee, Arkansas, to estimate the extent, timing, and causes of mortality among resident adult white-tailed deer {Odocoileus virginianus). Twenty-seven deer were captured, radio-collared and monitored for 1 yr to assess seasonal mortality. Annual mortality rates differed considerably between sexes, with males exhibiting a much higher rate (86.1%) than females (5.3%). The primary causes of death among males were poaching, predation by coyotes, and legal harvest. Legal harvest by a gun-hunter accounted for the only female mortality. No mortalities were attributed to military exercises, which occurred frequently on the study area. Our results suggest that the male segment of the population would benefit from increased enforcement efforts to reduce illegal harvests and that continued liberal harvest of the female segment is advisable to maintain a balanced population sex ratio.
Recommended Citation
Humphreys, Gregory G. and Nelson, Thomas A.
(2000)
"Mortality of Adult White-Tailed Deer on Fort Chaffee, Arkansas,"
Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science: Vol. 54, Article 12.
Available at:
https://scholarworks.uark.edu/jaas/vol54/iss1/12
