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Penobscot County Conservation Association
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Don't forget the Hunters breakfast and shoot at the Stetson land on October 1st. This is a fun morning and a great time to tune up your shooting eye. On October
2nd there is a work day at Greenland Point and this would be a good time for club members to go there and see this beautiful property and help get it on the road to becoming a Conservation Camp again. We will be leaving from the Clubhouse at 7:00 am that morning. Come along and help out.
There will be a Hunter Safety course at the Club on October 15-16. It costs $3.00 and bring your lunch. A child under 12 must be accompanied by an adult.
Don't forget to see Tony and sign up for the big deer contest!!! If you don't get in you can't win and this contest has several ways to win.
The Board and Officers, at our last Board meeting, approved the purchase and installation of a 15K generator at the Club. This will provide enough electricity to run the Club in case of a power outage. It will be run off Propane and will cost us almost $5,000.00.
The next Board meeting is October 20th at 6pm. Remember any member is able to attend.
(Reprinted from SWOAM News with permission of author)
Yesterday, as I walked under a stand of mature red oak, I couldn't think of a better topic than the importance of oak mast, acorns, in the diet of the autumn whitetail. Without a doubt, acorns and the energy and body building mass they provide the deer are of major importance.
During this time of year, deer begin to migrate into stands of hardwoods where those tree species can be found. Oak trees which are mature enough to produce regular mast crops are a primary target. Those trees that produce the most mast tend to be the biggest trees. For example, a 26" diameter red oak may produce three times the amount of acorns that a similar 12" diameter red oak would produce. Deer prefer white oak over red oak; red oak over chestnut oak. The crown size is extremely important in the production of acorns; hence, a good crop tree management program in an oak area cannot only significantly increase the size of a tree, but increase the wildlife benefits as well. Turkeys and many other species are also fond of acorns.
In order to find the oak crops, deer will travel great lengths. For example, in a normal year, does will travel a range of 20 to 40 acres. When deer populations increase, that home range may expand to 60 or 70 acres. The deer are on the move as acorns are indeed the WHEATIES of the fall in terms of nutrition. Red oak acorns contain more usable energy for deer than leaves...about 40 percent more! Acorns, although low in protein, provide the carbohydrates needed to build weight in the pre-rut bucks and also build mass in the does before they breed. During the fall rut, the males literally give up feeding and expend their energy chasing does, breeding, and fighting over territories with other males. Their weight drops tremendously as the rut goes on into December. When the snows fall and the temperature drops, deer begin to migrate into the yards, and their forage changes from mast to hemlock and arbbrvitae. Acorns have become less available and white oak have now germinated. Red oaks, which germinate in spring, now benefit wildlife by providing a needed early spring source of food before germination takes place.
Here is an interesting note to ponder. A deer needs about three pounds of usable food per 100 pounds of body weight. So, a 200-pound deer needs about six pounds per day. If acorns provided one-half of that diet per day, then 270 pounds would be consumed in three months. It would take, on average, more than 14 red oak trees 26 inches in diameter to produce that amount.