Sheds -When?

[grizz1]

I would like to do some shed antler hunting but by the pics I'm still getting from the trail cams looks like they're still holding on to them in my area.Any one else still getting bucks on your camera's?It is bitter cold here so won't shed hunt until till the antlers disappear.

[Buckhunter]

They still have there head gear around my area also. I have never found a shed, but I start looking at the end of Feb. I have bumped bucks still holding the antlers in late Feb.

[grizz1]

buckhunter31,I sure don't claim to be an expert at finding sheds either,most of the time I find them while farming and see them from a tractor or truck.The pics we've been getting this last week such as the buck I posted shows all deer still have their antlers but I've had relatives finding sheds in Iowa for a week.Most of my buck pics are coming into where cattle are being fed & I thought the good nutrition might be helping them to retain their headgear longer but Iowa has it's fair share of corn so there goes my theory.

[Brian89]

My dad was predator hunting last weekend and found an eight points shed that still had blood on the antler.

[grizz1]

Brian89 I've never found one that fresh ,your dad must have been right behind that buck.Sounds like they're starting to fall off.

[Buckhunter]

I think it depends on alot of different things. Nutrion is a big one if they were injured they will lose them early also. I have heard that if they ran real hard during the rut that they will lose them earlier. I dont know if any of it is true. I just go out and due my post season scouting and look for sheds while im out there. Its all fun

[Limbhanger]

Hey guys I found this from Dr. Mickey Hellickson concerning shedding.

Believe it or not, the 23 degree tilt of the Earth¹s axis is the ultimate
cause for the annual cycles in deer antlers. This tilt is what causes
Earth's annually recurring seasons. Deer have adapted their physiology and
behavior to these seasonal changes, including antler growth. The
environmental cue that regulates antler growth is the amount of day
length, or photoperiod.


The physiological cue is the male hormone testosterone. The way this works
is complicated, but changing day lengths are sensed by the eyes, which
send this message, via the optic nerve, to the pineal gland. The pineal
gland - a pea-sized organ at the base of the brain - produces many
different hormones. One hormone produced is luteinizing hormone, which
controls the amount of testoserone produced in the testes.


The antler cycle lags behind the changes in day length because the
hormonal changes take time. During fall, decreasing day lengths cause
melatonin production to increase, resulting in decreased production of
both luteinizing hormone and testosterone. Decreasing testosterone levels
then cause the antlers to shed.




Antler Shedding


In the past, it was believed that deer withdrew to secluded places to shed
their antlers in order to avoid the loss of virility in 'public.' However,
it is likely that deer are unaware of when they will lose their antlers.
Antlers are shed when a thin layer of tissue destruction, called the
abscission layer, forms between the antler and the pedicle. This layer
forms as a result of the decrease in testosterone. As the connective
tissue is dissolved, the antler loosens and is either broken free, or
falls off on its own. This degeneration of the bone-to-bone bond between
the antler and the pedicle is the fastest deterioration of living tissue
known in the animal kingdom.


In whitetails, a restricted diet has been found to cause bucks to shed
their antlers early. It has been suspected that the lack of adequate
nutrition somehow effects testosterone output. Nutritionally-stressed
bucks may also grow their antlers and shed their velvet later. Older-aged
bucks are thought to shed their antlers earlier than younger bucks. It has
also been reported that higher-ranked (more dominant) bucks cast their
antlers sooner than lower-ranked (subordinant) bucks. Older-aged, more
dominant bucks probably shed their antlers sooner because of the high
energy costs incurred in maintaining a higher dominance rank.


The farther deer are from the equator, the more defined their antler
cycle. In other words, northern deer have a shorter "window" of when
antler shedding can occur, compared to deer herds in southern states. In
addition, the specific date when a buck will shed his antlers may be
determined more by his individual antler cycle than any other factor. This
cycle is independent of other bucks and is believed to be centered on each
animal's birth date.


Penned deer studies have allowed scientists to measure the exact dates of
antler shedding for individual deer year after year. One study in
Mississippi found that individual bucks usually shed their antlers at the
same time each year and almost always during the same week. Yearling bucks
with only spike antlers shed sooner than yearling bucks with forked
antlers, likely because they were more nutritionally stressed than
fork-antlered bucks. This study also indicated there was no relationship
between antler mass and date of antler shedding, although other studies
have shown that bucks shed their antlers earlier as they grow older.
Additional penned studies have also revealed that bucks usually shed both
antlers within three days of each other.


Although there is no clear evidence that weather directly affects antler
shedding, it is likely that severe winters may also cause bucks to shed
their antlers earlier than normal because of the nutritional stress this
causes.

[THE GOB-FATHER]

Great read LH! Karma to you on that.

[THE GOB-FATHER]

I'm going to move this thread as it's more of a shed type thread than it is a trail cam thread.

[grizz1]

Good reading limbhanger,thanks,I've heard or read most of those theories before but you put it together nicely.I'm just anxious to start finding some.After reading your post I feel like I've stayed at the Holliday Inn Express!

[Buckhunter]

great info thanks Karma on its way from me also.