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Big surprise this morning, 11 March 2023
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<blockquote data-quote="BSK" data-source="post: 5583076" data-attributes="member: 17"><p>As for very odd breeding timing, some will certainly be individual doe genetics. That is how Nature works - through Natural Selection. And in some locations, a very odd timing is actually beneficial. However, for deer to acclimate to this better timing, they must have variability of breeding timing in the population. If they do not, Natural Selection has nothing to select against. But thankfully, MOST populations of whitetails have individuals who display a fairly wide variety of breeding dates, especially in the South. This allows Natural Selection to favor those animals with a genetic breeding timing that best suits the local conditions. For example, in the endless standing water of the Everglades, water levels are lowest during the winter months (January through March). This favorable time for fawn survival (less chance of drowning as a newborn) has led Natural Selection to favor females with a breeding timing in July and August. After many generations of selection, deer in this region now have a peak rut in July and August.</p><p></p><p>This is also how the very odd peak breeding timings in the Deep South have developed. The trick with those pockets of odd timing is figuring out why those odd times are beneficial. I worked just north of Columbus Georgia on a big project. We clearly established that peak breeding in this area was late October and early November. However, two counties away in Alabama, peak times were in January. <strong>Why</strong> these very diffeent dates so close together would develop (why they are beneficial) is still a mystery.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="BSK, post: 5583076, member: 17"] As for very odd breeding timing, some will certainly be individual doe genetics. That is how Nature works - through Natural Selection. And in some locations, a very odd timing is actually beneficial. However, for deer to acclimate to this better timing, they must have variability of breeding timing in the population. If they do not, Natural Selection has nothing to select against. But thankfully, MOST populations of whitetails have individuals who display a fairly wide variety of breeding dates, especially in the South. This allows Natural Selection to favor those animals with a genetic breeding timing that best suits the local conditions. For example, in the endless standing water of the Everglades, water levels are lowest during the winter months (January through March). This favorable time for fawn survival (less chance of drowning as a newborn) has led Natural Selection to favor females with a breeding timing in July and August. After many generations of selection, deer in this region now have a peak rut in July and August. This is also how the very odd peak breeding timings in the Deep South have developed. The trick with those pockets of odd timing is figuring out why those odd times are beneficial. I worked just north of Columbus Georgia on a big project. We clearly established that peak breeding in this area was late October and early November. However, two counties away in Alabama, peak times were in January. [B]Why[/B] these very diffeent dates so close together would develop (why they are beneficial) is still a mystery. [/QUOTE]
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Big surprise this morning, 11 March 2023
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