Times are tough

[JNRBRONC]

With all the snow and ice we've had, I noticed that the deer have started eating red cedars. All the lower branches on this tree have been stripped.

And then I found where they were eating an old dried up fungi. I had seen this Hen of the Woods earlier in the year at the base of an oak tree. I'm guessing that it wasn't something the deer wanted to eat when there was lots of other food available and only now, out of necessity, are they finding it palatable.

Hen of the woods

 

[sofakingfast_1]

He had other options. He just got bored and wanted some good visuals.

 

[RACKATTACKS]

Wow, hungry deer.. times do look tough.

 

[loneranger]

In MI, where I come from they have a winter severity index, where thye monitor how the winter is affecting the deer. I don't supose Iowa has such a thing as winters here are supposed to have neglible effect on deer, but I wonder about this winter?

 

[gundog870]

deer are amazing. They truly are. As soon as I think they have it bad here. the sask boys posts some pics of what winter really is.

 

[turkeyriver]

Two below this morning with six inches of snow by tomorrow. Up here in northern Clayton county we have had snow and/ or ice cover since Dec. 1. The Jan. thaw never cleared the ground up here. I believe the average is seven weeks of snow cover so we're way past that. Real hard on the birds and the next couple of weeks will start to hurt deer too. The Indians always called March the starving month cause even tho it was warming up all the food was gone. Anyone else remember how the woods smelled from the dead deer in the spring of 2001?

 

[captain]

I can't say I remember the smell,thank goodness /forum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif , but I certainly remember finding many dead deer and LOTS of turkeys that spring. With the ice underneath everything for so long this year, I think the damage to the turkey population will be just as bad as 2001 or worse.