While Texas has seen a good amount of moisture this year, other whitetail states are experiencing drought conditions. Game populations respond to lack of rain and the associated lack of nutrition. Drought conditions create a lot of stress, David says. Stress is much more insidious than people realize as it can cause higher fawn mortality rates, decreased body weight, and among a long list of other factors, it can make it more difficult for does to provide the good quality milk that fawns need to survive. The same thing holds true for antler production in bucks. In years with more nutritional stress within the herd, the nutrition that is consumed will first go to maintaining body condition and second to antler growth, David says. So, in years with poor nutrition, antler size will be smaller because the deer will take everything they can and put it toward maintaining their body condition.
If you happen to own or lease a hunting property, you have the unique opportunity to help the deer on your land overcome environmental stressors with good management. David says when he first started out he was a deer hunter driven by a passion just to hunt deer. Through a natural progression over the years his goals changed and he went from wanting to hunt any deer, to wanting to hunt more deer, to wanting to target big deer. As time moved on, David says his passion for deer hunting remained, but he also took an interest in the management aspect of deer hunting. Intrigued by the cause and effect that a manager can have on a deer herd, he says he really started to dive in and research how to make things better, how to grow bigger deer, and how to grow them more consistently. Pairing his passion for hunting with an ever increasing interest in management, David has become an authority on the whitetail management subject and hunters across the country look to him for advice in turning their own properties into whitetail hotspots. Although he can't help every individual hunter with a specialized plan for their tract of land, David says his goal has always been to teach by example, showing people what is possible when management is done right. Tecomate Signature Properties has allowed him to do just that - purchasing, developing and showcasing what good management looks like. David talks about the Mavala Ranch in Texas, one they've owned for 4 years now where they have put into place a good management program and are now starting to see pay offs with big deer. He also highlights the Highveld Ranch, another Tecomate Signature Property in the Texas hill country where food plots aren't practical so they are adapting and coming up with a different management plan to increase the output of high quality whitetails on that property.
Be sure to listen in as David Morris talks deer hunting, the impacts of stress on whitetails, as well as developing and managing your property for better whitetail hunting. Watch "The Bucks of Tecomate" on Outdoor Channel, Saturdays at 9:30 am ET. You can also catch several seasons with the MyOutdoorTV app, check it out!