01What the research found
RECEIPT
The study
West Virginia: doe groups are family
WhereCentral Appalachians, West VirginiaSample229 adult does (DNA), 102 of them in 28 social groups
What they did
Collected genetic data on adult does and measured how related the does in each social group were.
What they found
- Does in the same group were about as related as first cousins. The authors: within-group relatedness "approached the expected value for 1st cousins" (R = 0.103).
- The authors: "philopatric females form social groups composed of related individuals."
Limits
- A high-density Appalachian herd.
- A South Carolina herd showed little of this structure, so it varies.
Source. Miller, DeYoung, Campbell, Laseter, Ford and Miller. 2010. "Fine-Scale Genetic and Social Structuring in a Central Appalachian White-Tailed Deer Herd." Journal of Mammalogy 91(3): 681-689. digitalcommons.unl.edu →
RECEIPT
The study
Petals on a rose
SampleA concept paper
What they did
Described how doe social groups spread across the land.
What they found
- The authors: "female offspring remain near their dams for life."
- A population expands slowly as overlapping home ranges, "analogous to the petals on a rose."
Limits
- A model and concept paper. The abstract names no study site.
Source. Porter, Mathews, Underwood, Sage and Behrend. 1991. "Social organization in deer: Implications for localized management." Environmental Management 15(6): 809-814. pubs.usgs.gov →
RECEIPT
The study
Minnesota: one doe family over 20 years
WhereNortheastern MinnesotaSample6 does from 4 generations of one familyWhen20 years
What they did
Followed one doe family, from the matriarch to her great-granddaughter.
What they found
- All of them "migrated to the same summer and winter ranges."
Limits
- One family.
- Migratory northern deer.
Source. Nelson and Mech. 1999. "Twenty-year home-range dynamics of a white-tailed deer matriline." Canadian Journal of Zoology 77(7): 1128-1135. pubs.usgs.gov →
RECEIPT
The study
Maryland: why bucks leave home
WhereChesapeake Farms, MarylandSample32 adult bucks, GPSWhen2003-2007
What they did
Looked at when GPS-collared bucks made trips outside their home range.
What they found
- The researchers think most of the bucks' trips outside their home range had to do with breeding.
- Their words: "breeding-season-related motives were likely the driving force behind the majority of adult male" trips.
Limits
- This is the authors' read from the timing of the trips, not observed mating.
- None of the 37 trips followed the same path at the same time as a collared doe.
Source. Karns, Lancia, DePerno and Conner. 2011. "Investigation of Adult Male White-tailed Deer Excursions Outside Their Home Range." Southeastern Naturalist 10(1): 39-52. eaglehill.us →
02My read
MY READMy tactic, not a study result
In November, the does are the map. Find where the families bed, and hunt the travel between them.
That's how I hunt it, not something these studies tested.
03Field notes
- Doe families can hold the same ground for years. Learn where they bed.
- In November, hunt the travel between doe family bedding areas.
- Check your own state's season dates and legal hours with your state wildlife agency.