Shell Shocked Outdoors/Big Game

Black Bears are Back..

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission conducts Black Bear den surveys each year deep in the heart of Arkansas' Ouachita and Ozark National Forests looking for Black Bear Cubs. Biologists go deep into the woods for the purpose of collecting information and monitoring the Black Bear population in Arkansas. This work is vital to the AGFC's effort in monitoring the state's Black population in Arkansas. This work is vital to the AGFC's effort in monitoring the state's Black Bear population. Every winter, biologist’s conduct den surveys on nearly 70 female bears, keeping very detailed records. On average tagged female bears are tracked for 10 years. AGFC takes great pride in their work with the bears, putting in countless hours doing whatever it takes to complete den surveys before the end of winter. Female bears generally begin searching for dens in early October and don't come out until mid-April.
Bears that have been tracked over the years were previously fitted with GPS tracking collars. Once the signal is picked up, the AGFC's biologists pin point the den location by looking for the make-shift mounds of dirt along the bluffs and hills. They listen for the soft humming noise coming from the den of a mother Black Bear and her cubs, a tell tale sign they are getting closer to their target. Black Bears have a unique sound and musky type odor all to their own. That humming sound one hears is that of healthy baby bears, nursing to their little heart’s content. Arkansas Game and Fish Commission biologists will then slowly and carefully move in. An angry Black Bear is hard enough to deal with, but a mother bear with cubs; well you don’t want to go there. You just never know what could happen; AGFC biologists have been charged by angry mother bears more than once. After tranquilizing the mother bear, biologists will take measurements of the cubs, logging all the details, including weight, body length, and even fur length. The AGFC doesn’t track male bears; the information is gained by the recordkeeping of the female bears and their reproductive cycles.
Mr. Myron Means is the Arkansas Game and Fish Statewide Bear Program Coordinator. The Game and Fish Wildlife Biologist in the river valley area is Shell Shocked Outdoors’ good friend, Ralph Meeker. In a conversation with Shell Shocked Outdoors last winter, Mr. Meeker informed us there were two very important parts to the management of Black Bears. You have to know what's being taken out of the Black Bear population and going back into that population to maintain a proper count on this magnificent animal. Harvest information lets the AGFC know what’s going on in the world of Black Bears.
A thriving bear population is important across the country, and especially in "The Natural State." Not many know that Arkansas used to be known as the "The Bear State." In the mid 1800s, nearly 50,000 black bear roamed Arkansas. Over the years, bear fat became a hot commodity because it could be used for so many different things. Fuel for oil lamps, insect repellent, and hair gel; this led to unregulated uncontrolled hunting of the animal. In the late 1920s, the AGFC put an end to bear hunting, but despite their efforts, the number of black bears dropped to just 50 by the late 1940s. For that reason, in about 1960, AGFC officials began the process of re-introducing Black Bears into the Ozark and Ouachita National Forests once again. They went to Minnesota and Canada, brought back more than 250 black bears, and released them into Arkansas Mountains. With careful regulation, research, and field studies over the last forty nine years, the Black Bear population began to thrive. Almost 5,000 Black Bears currently live in Arkansas. According to the AGFC, the re-introduction of Black Bears to our state is one of the most successful large carnivore re-introductions projects in American wildlife history. The bear hunting ban was lifted in 1980 under careful regulation by AGFC. Arkansas' bear season lasts from mid-September to mid-December. Arkansas State Representative Steve Breedlove stated, “The AGFC Black Bear Project has been a marvelous success, well worth the citizen’s tax dollars. Arkansas citizens are reaping the benefits of the dedication and hard work of the AGFC biologists.” The further dedication and hard work of the AGFC biologists will ensure the enjoyment of this magnificent animal for years to come. Jim “Duckie” Newcomb Shell Shocked Outdoors

A FOUR PART SERIES TO BE PRESENTED OVER THE NEXT FOUR MONTHS

The four basic components of habitat Habitat is simply the four major components that deer need to survive: food, water, cover and space. If even one of these principal habitat building blocks is missing where you hunt, it is likely that local deer will travel outside of your area at least occasionally.
Food: White-tailed deer have evolved to consume a large variety of foods, including herbaceous material (e.g., grasses, ferns, sedges, forbs), hard and soft fruits (e.g., apples, acorns, etc.), mushrooms, lichens, vines, woody browse (new woody growth and buds of trees and shrubs), and even dry, dead leaves and bark. For this reason, deer are categorized as both grazers and browsers. However, deer are highly-selective feeders and they choose foods that are the highest in quality and require the least amount of energy to find. The availability of foods preferred by deer changes with each season. In fact, during times of scarcity such as drought or severe winters, any available food, preferred or not, will be consumed by deer out of necessity. Due to regional climatic differences, the foods deer prefer in your hunting area may be different from foods available or preferred in another part of the country. Food palatability Palatability is a measure of food preference and is based on the flavor (e.g., sweet, sour, bitter) and digestibility of an individual food item. Palatability is influenced by a number of factors: Digestibility plays the largest role in determining palatability; foods that are less fibrous are easier for deer to digest and tend to have higher palatability ratings than plants with a high fiber content. Plants that are young and growing quickly are generally lower in fiber than mature plants or plant parts. Taste plays a role in palatability, but it is difficult to determine what tastes good to a deer. Biologists have found that deer possess a series of chemoreceptors in both their nose and tongue that allow them to detect the chemical composition of potential food items. These chemoreceptor’s may also allow deer to avoid toxic plants. Seasonal preferences Deer display preferences towards certain types of plants and plant parts that become palatable in different seasons. During late spring and early summer, young herbaceous plants are usually abundant and often comprise over one-half of a deer's diet. From mid- to late-summer, leaves of hardwood trees and shrubs make up a large portion of the diet. These abundant, easily digestible, and highly nutritious food sources begin to mature and become less desirable by early autumn. By mid-autumn, acorns and other hard mast are readily available and may constitute over 50% of the daily food intake of deer. Throughout the autumn and winter months, a deer's diet consists primarily of woody browse, with leaves and buds eaten more readily than twigs, and new growth eaten more than older growth. Preferred food types Regardless of the season, deer show preferences for specific food items over others. For example, Green and succulent herbaceous plants are always preferred over dormant, dry plants. Coniferous browse is less fibrous and is typically preferred over hardwood browse. Agricultural crops are usually used by deer during all seasons; the availability of these foods may significantly influence deer condition and productivity during the harshest times of year. Food plots that offer pastures of legumes, grains, and annual grasses can be important supplements to natural forages. Native fruits are usually relished by deer. Many soft, fleshy fruits (e.g., apples, rose-hips, cherries, raspberries, grapes) are good sources of protein, phosphorus and calcium. By comparison, hard mast (e.g., acorns, walnuts, pecans, beech nuts) tends to be low in protein (less than 7%) but higher in fat content (75-80%). However, because mast production varies from year to year, deer must often increase their consumption of other food sources such as browse during years with low mast availability. As an interesting note, biologists believe that a deer's upbringing may influence food selection. Fawns have been known to mimic specific food selections of their mother; therefore, food preferences may be passed down from one generation of deer to the next. How much food do deer require? The amount of food a deer eats each day depends on the season and the sex and age of the deer. However, as a general rule, biologists estimate that deer require enough food to equal 2-4% of their live body weight daily (e.g., a 150 pound deer will consume 3-6 pounds of food daily). Food consumption by bucks Mature bucks consume the most food during mid-to late-spring (4.4-6.4 pounds/day). During this time, bucks are in their poorest physical condition of the year, having lost as much as 15-30% of their body weight over winter (mostly in the form of fat). As summer begins, bucks slightly decrease their food consumption. Once velvet is shed in early autumn, food consumption increases again until the rigors of the rut are in full swing. During the rut, bucks eat less and lose weight as they concentrate most of their energy on breeding. Food consumption may increase dramatically for a brief period immediately following the rut as bucks attempt to regain fat depleted during breeding. During the winter, bucks reduce their activity and rely primarily on body fat to sustain them through March. As a result, the amount of food eaten by bucks during winter may be 50% less than that eaten in spring and summer. Food consumption by does For does, daily food intake is highest in the two months just prior to the breeding season (3.0-3.5 pounds/day), then food consumption decreases steadily through autumn. Food consumption by does is lowest in mid-winter, a time when a doe's body fat may provide her with 30% of the energy she needs each day. Does begin increasing their food intake in early spring and intake rises slowly through summer, eventually peaking again in early fall. Food consumption by fawns In fawns, food consumption increases as their body weight increases. In other words, fawns gradually increase their food intake throughout most of their entire first year. During winter, fawns slightly decrease their food consumption compared to the amount they eat in autumn, but the decrease is less dramatic than that observed in adult deer. The main reason for this is because unlike adults, fawns store very little fat their first autumn, and therefore, must rely heavily on food to meet most of their energy requirements during winter.

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