Very little research has been done with wildlife species in relation to the consequences of suboptimal nutrition conditions on estrous cyclicity and reproductive capability. White-tailed deer in Texas ideal for such research due to the reproductive seasonality and common reproductive failure when food quality and quantity is low. A research study out of Texas A&M University – Kingsville is studying the effects of reduced food intake on white-tailed deer estrous cyclicity through the evaluation of several specific nutritional measurements.
In the first year of the study, mature whitetail does were fed “all they could eat” on a high nutritional diet and bred. In the second year, doe diet was restricted from September through November and even up into mid-January and bred. Continue reading “Effects of Food Availability on White-tailed Deer Reproduction”