Old bones beckon us to woods

With deer season upon us, literally thousands of Arkansans share the same aspiration, whether driven by harvesting a healthy and tasty alternative to storebought meat or by an inner need.

So is this business of pursuing bucks with massive racks a way of proving our skills to fellow hunters or ourselves. Perhaps it’s the challenge of matching wits with a wary animal armed with amazingly keen senses.

Whatever the cause, a sudden and severe onset of buck fever strikes in late fall and early winter, an affliction so real that masses of people skip work to partake in the first week of deer season.

That in mind, I decided to research those hardened bones perched atop a mature buck’s head.

As most of us are aware, whitetail bucks shed and grow new antlers annually. According to an article published by the University of Missouri Extension, “Males typically begin growing a new set of antlers in late spring. Growth starts at the pedicel, which is the antler growing base attached to the skull.”

Their antlers continue growing throughout the late spring and summer months. We’ve all seen it, a hairlike membrane covering their antlers during the growing period. This coating, referred to as velvet, serves an important purpose, carrying a rich blood supply to the antlers and allowing them to grow.

Whitetail bucks undergo a change during the summer months as their antlers begin to mineralize. As blood flow to their antlers ceases, the velvet dries up and begins to slough. Although it is suggested that the velvet would fall off on its own, this is the time when bucks rub the bark from the base of shrubs and trees.

Mature bucks will carry these hard, polished antlers throughout the early winter months. Some will actually shed before deer season’s end, though many will drop their antlers later in the winter.

Now that we have a good general idea of how antlers are formed, let’s talk a little about the finished product. According to the aforementioned article, three main factors predominantly dictate antler size, starting with age.

As males mature their antlers become heavier and better developed. However, aging a deer by his rack size is an impossibility, as at 1.5 years of age, a deer can sport antlers ranging anywhere from spikes to 10 points. It is suggested that their maximum antler growth is reached at about 6.5 years of age.

So why such a variance of antler size per age? Well, that leads us to two factors that affect antler growth. Of course, deer are no different from humans in the sense that our traits are often a result of genetics.

A buck that consistently sports a trophy rack is apt to produce offspring capable of doing the same. It’s even suggested that the shape and composition of a buck’s rack can be a result of genetics.

Despite a deer’s bloodline, proper nutrition plays a huge role in the development of a whitetail’s antlers. According to the University of Missouri Extension, “Antler growth and casting is an energetically expensive task for whitetail deer. Antlers reflect an individual’s nutrition, especially protein and energy levels. A difference of 8 percent and 16 percent protein in a deer’s diet at 4 years of age can cause a 20-inch difference in antler size.”

Antler injury during the growing process sometimes leads to nontypical racks. Leg injuries, for some reason, also might lead to unusual antler formation. And most interestingly, front leg injuries coincide with antler deformation in the same side as the injury. However, back leg injuries can result in deformation of antlers on opposing side.

With a little luck, some reading this article will harvest that buck of a lifetime during the 2016 season. Most of us likely will settle for something less. Regardless of our success,, we can hunt with a little better understanding of those hardened bones that beckon us to the woods time and time again.