Complete index of articles by Whitetail Stewards, Inc.

Whitetail Stewards, Inc. is proud to provide you with original articles you can use to improve your knowledge and understanding of deer biology, deer management, and deer hunting.  In addition, we provide links to fact sheets and articles produced by other credible organizations, which contain additional information you can use to become a more effective deer hunter and manager.  We are writing and updating this site constantly so be sure to check back regularly!

Deer habitat management articles

Deer habitat requirements                

• Seasonal habitat requirements of deer: An overview - M. Ross
• Habitat requirements of northern white-tailed deer - M. Ross
• Habitat requirements of southern white-tailed deer - M. Ross

General management articles

• What habitat management activities are right for your land? - M. Tarr

Managing natural deer habitat

• Improving acorn production - Part I: Factors affecting acorn production of oaks - M. Tarr   
• Improving acorn production  - Part II: Identifying oaks with superior acorn production - M. Tarr
• Improving acorn production Part III: Management guidelines for improving acorn production - M. Tarr
• Why deer prefer white oak acorns - M. Tarr

Food plot basics

• Food plot basics - K. Adams
• Nutritional vs. hunting food plots - M. Tarr
• What are annual, biennial, and perennial deer forages? - M. Tarr
• Cool-season vs. warm-season forages for deer food plots - M. Tarr
• Table of cool-season and warm-season annual and perennial forages- M. Tarr
• Legumes for deer food plots- M. Tarr
• How food plot forages meet the seasonal nutritional demands of deer - M. Tarr
• What is soil pH and why is it important? - M. Tarr
• How to measure food plot acreage - M. Chagnon

Descriptions of forages for deer food plots

• Alfalfa - M. Tarr
• Alyceclover - M. Tarr
• American jointvetch - M. Tarr
• Aeschynomene - M. Tarr
• Austrian winter peas - M. Tarr
• Birdsfoot trefoil - M. Tarr
• Brassicas - M. Tarr
• Catjang peas - M. Tarr
• Cereal grains - M. Tarr
• Chicory - M. Tarr
• Clover - annuals - M. Tarr
• Clover - perennials - M. Tarr
• Corn - M. Tarr
• Cowpeas - M. Tarr
• Iron-clay peas - M. Tarr
• Kale - M. Tarr
• Lablab - M. Tarr
• Oats - M. Tarr
• Rape - M. Tarr
• Rye - M. Tarr
• Ryegrasses - M. Tarr
• Sorghum - M. Tarr
• Soybeans - M. Tarr
• Sweetclover - M. Tarr
• Turnips - M. Tarr
• Vetch - M. Tarr
• Wheat - M. Tarr 

Supplemental feeding of deer

• Winter feeding is Not the key to deer survival in the northeast - M. Tarr

More habitat management information: Links to additional fact sheets

• Is the hunting industry missing the point? -The Noble Foundation
• Forest management guidelines for the provision of white-tailed deer habitat (pdf) - Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources
• Biology and management of white-tailed deer in Alabama (pdf) - Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
• White-tailed deer management (pdf) - Alabama Cooperative Extension
• White-tailed deer management (Alabama) (pdf) - Natural Resources Conservation Service
• Managing Iowa Wildlife: White-tailed deer (pdf) - Iowa State University Cooperative Extension
• Ecology and management of white-tailed deer in Oklahoma (pdf) - Oklahoma Cooperative Extension
• Principals of habitat management for deer - Colorado State University Cooperative Extension
• White-tailed deer management - Missouri Department of Conservation
• White-tailed deer in British Columbia: Ecology, Conservation and Management (pdf) - British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks
• White-tailed deer - Massachusetts Audubon
• White-tailed deer: The foods and management in the Cross-timbers - The Noble Foundation
• Summer stress and white-tailed deer diets - The Noble Foundation
• Daylighting roads and trails to create edge - Connecticut Department of Evironmental Protection
• Mineral Licks - Kentucky Fish and Wildlife
• Forest Openings - Kentucky Fish and Wildlife
• Natural revegetation - Kentucky Fish and Wildlife
• Native plant communities are very important for wildlife - The Noble Foundation
• Plant identification: Is it worth the effort? - The Noble Foundation
• Managing your woodland for white-tailed deer (pdf) - Natural Resources Conservation Service, Minnesota
• White-tailed deer habitat requirements and management in Wyoming (pdf) - University of Wyoming
• Basics of brush management for white-tailed deer production (pdf) - Texas Parks and Wildlife
• California oaks and deer - University of California Integrated Hardwood Range Management Program
• White-tailed deer: diet - Mississippi State Extension Service
• Wildlife management notes: White-tailed deer (pdf) - Oklahoma State Cooperative Extension
• A landowner's guide to white-tailed deer - Michigan Department of Natural Resources

More basic food plot information: Links to additional fact sheets

• Think before planting food plots - The Noble Foundation
• The establishment of food plots - The Noble Foundation
• There are no "silver bullets" - The Noble Foundation
• Strip disking - Kentucky Fish and Wildlife
• Food plots for white-tailed deer - Purdue University
• Knowledge for northern food plots - Quality Deer Management Association
• Summer food plots - Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks
• Planting warm season forages for white-tailed deer - Quality Deer Management Association  
• Food plot plantings for white-tailed deer in Louisiana (pdf) Louisiana State University Cooperative Extension
• Planting chart for wildlife food plots in Tennessee (pdf) - University of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service

Seeding food plots: Links to additional fact sheets

• Frost seeding of forages - University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension
• Improving pasture with frost seeding - Ohio State Cooperative Extension
• Mini food plots - Quality Deer Management Association                

Inoculating legumes for deer food plots: Links to additional fact sheets

• Inoculation of legumes for maximum nitrogen fixation - Penn. State University
• Inoculation of forage and grain legumes (pdf) - Penn State University
• Inoculation, nodulation, nitrogen fixation and transfer (pdf) - Texas Cooperative Extension
• Planting winter annual legumes (pdf) - Texas Cooperative Extension  

Soil management and collecting soil samples: Links to additional fact sheets

• Soil amendments - Kentucky Fish and Wildlife
• Some facts about soil basics (pdf) - Penn. State University
• How to collect soil samples - Virginia Cooperative Extension
• Soil testing - Clemson University Cooperative Extension
• Soil Test Science - Quality Deer Management Association
• Soil Moisture: The most important ingredient for successful food plots - Quality Deer Management Association
• How to calibrate a fertilizer spreader- University of Florida
• Calibrate your fertilizer spreader - AggieTurf    

Lime and liming materials: Links to additional fact sheets

• Lime: An essential ingredient for successful food plots - Quality Deer Management Association
• Choosing between liming materials (pdf) - University of Wisconsin
• Soil acidity and aglime (pdf) - Penn. State University
• When and how to apply aglime (pdf) - University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension             
• Wood ash: an alternative liming material for agricultural soils - Alberta Government
• Using wood ashes in the garden! - University of Connecticut

Fertilizing and fertilizing materials: Links to additional fact sheets

• A homeowner's guide to fertilizer - North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
• Comparing fertilizer materials - Penn State University
  

Weed and pest identification and control: Links to additional fact sheets

• Weed management - Penn State University
• Winning the weed wars in your food plots - Quality Deer Management Association
• Key to identifying grassy weed seedlings - Penn. State University
• Key to identifying common broadleaved weed seedlings - Penn. State University
• Multiflora rose management in grass pastures (pdf) - Penn. State university
• Pest management - Penn. State University         

Supplemental winter feeding: links to additional fact sheets

• More harm than good (pdf) - New Hampshire Fish and Game Department
• Supplemental feeding of white-tailed deer during winter - Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
• Thinking about feeding deer this winter? -Think again - Vermont Fish and Wildlife
• Feeding deer in winter - New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
• Deer and elk feeding issues in Michigan (pdf) - Michigan Department of Natural Resources
• Information sheet on deer feeding regulations - New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
• Winter wildlife feeding - Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
• Deer feeding concerns: a biological perspective - Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks
• Supplemental feeding: you decide - Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks
• Cutting browse for deer feeding - New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

Establishing and managing hunting leases: links to additional fact sheets

• Designing hunting and recreational leases for your property - Cornell University                  

Hunting Cooperatives: links to additional fact sheets

• Deer management associations - The Noble Foundation

Deer biology articles

Deer physiology         

• Antler basics - K. Adams
• Factors that determine deer antler characteristics - M. Ross
• White-tailed deer antler growth and physiology - M. Ross
• Hormone influence on antler growth - M. Ross
• Antler abnormalities - K. Adams
• Seasonal protein requirements of white-tailed deer - M. Ross
• Do deer lower their metabolic rate in winter? - K. Adams

Deer biology : Links to additional fact sheets

• White-tailed deer biology (pdf)- Texas A&M University System
• White-tailed deer biology - Missouri Department of Conservation
• Deer antler development - Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
• All about antlers - The Noble Foundation
• Bigger buck for your bang - The Noble Foundation

Deer parasites and diseases : Links to additional fact sheets

• Fibromas (deer warts) in white-tailed deer - Mississippi Dept. Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks
• P. tenuis [brainworm]: the whitetailed deer parasite (pdf) - Michigan State University
• Epizootic hemorrhagic disease - Michigan Department of Natural Resources
• Current diseases of concern to Mississippi deer hunters - Mississippi Deptartment of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks

Chronic wasting disease: Links to additional fact sheets

• Chronic Wasting Disease Alliance - main web page            
• Chronic wasting disease: The new reality - Quality Deer Management Association                

Deer population management articles

Deer population management

• Comparing quality deer management (QDM) to other deer management strategies - K. Adams
• The importance of harvesting antlerless deer- K. Adams       
• What are cull bucks? - K. Adams
• Understanding deer sex ratios - K. Adams

More population management information: Links to additional fact sheets

• Dispersal of yearling bucks - Pennsylvania Game Commission
• Implications of yearling buck dispersal - Pennsylvania Game Commission
• White-tailed deer population regulation, management goals - The Noble Foundation
• Who's doing the breeding? - The Noble Foundation
• Doe harvest effort - The Noble Foundation
• Killing the factory? - The Noble Foundation
• Me, shoot a doe? - The Noble Foundation
• Passing the buck - The Noble Foundation
• Use these strategies for managing buck harvest - The Noble Foundation
• The need for deer population management (pdf) - Northeast Deer Technical Committee
• Quality deer management: guidelines for implementation (pdf) - University of Tennessee Cooperative Extension
• Can QDM improve deer management in forested landscapes? - Cornell University
• The white-tailed deer in North Carolina - North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
• White-tailed deer management - Alabama Cooperative Extension
• Managing Iowa wildlife: white-tailed deer (pdf) - Iowa State University Cooperative Extension
• Missouri whitetails: a management guide for landowners and deer enthusiasts - Missouri Department of Conservation

Aging white-tailed deer: Links to additional fact sheets

• Aging white-tailed deer - The Noble Foundation
• A guide to age determination of white-tailed deer (pdf) - Texas Parks and Wildlife
• Aging white-tailed deer by tooth replacement and wear: accurate or unreliable - Quality Deer Management Association

Monitoring deer populations: Links to additional fact sheets

• Deer census techniques (pdf) - Texas Parks and Wildlife
• White-tailed deer management in Florida Part 1: Collecting information on herd health - Florida Cooperative Extension

Managing urban deer populations: Links to additional fact sheets

• Managing white-tailed deer in suburban environments: a technical guide - (pdf) Cornell University, The Wildlife Society, Northeast Wildlife Damage Research and Outreach Cooperative
• A citizens guide to the management of white-tailed deer in urban and suburban New York (pdf) - New Yor State Department of Environmental Conservation
• A manual for deer management in urban and suburban areas of Kansas (pdf) - Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks
• Managing white-tailed deer in Michigan: capture and translocation as a means of population control (pdf) - Michigan Department of Natural Resources

Controlling deer damage: Links to additional fact sheets

• Control of deer damage in tree plantations - Ohio State University Cooperative Extension
• Wildlife and homeowners: New Jersey's white-tailed deer - Rutgers Cooperative Extension
• Deer tolerant plants - Rutgers Cooperative Extension
• Controlling deer damage in Wisconsin (pdf) - University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension
• Controlling deer damage in Georgia - Georgia Department of Natural Resources
• Deer Damage and Control - University of Connecticut
• Animal damage control: white-tailed deer - University of Connecticut
• How deer and beaver affect you and your land and what you can do about it - Cornell University

Impacts of overbrowsing: Links to additional fact sheets

• The impact of deer on forest vegetation in Pennsylvania (pdf) - United States Forest Service
• The impact of deer on woodland biodiversity (pdf) - Forestry Commission
• Ecological impacts of deer overabundance (pdf) - Annual Review of Ecology Evolution and Systematics
• Forests too deer: edge effects in northern Wisconsin (pdf) - Conservation Biology
• Deer impacts on forest ecosystems: a North American perspective (pdf) - Forestry
• A demographic study of deer browsing impacts on Tillium grandiflorum (pdf) - Plant Ecology
• Direct and indirect effects of white-tailed deer in forest ecosystems (pdf) - Forest Ecology and Management

Hunting tips

General hunting tips

• Forget field-edges, hunt bedding areas for Consistent success in early bow-season - M. Tarr  

Tracking tips and strategies

• Deer Search, Inc. - Tracking wounded deer with trained dogs - M. Ross

Using topographic maps

• How are topographic maps useful to hunters? - M. Chagnon
• How to read topographic maps - M. Chagnon
• How to use topographic maps to scout for deer - M. Chagnon
• Instructions for viewing aerial photos and topographic maps on the TerraServer USA website -M. Chagnon

Field dressing and butchering deer

• Deer processing for the sportsman - Virginia Cooperative Extension
• How to butcher a deer (pdf) - Arkansas Game and Fish Commission
• Proper care of venison is necesary for excellent-quality meat - The Noble Foundation
• How much meat will your deer yield? - Butcher & Packer Supply Company

Archery tips and techniques               

General archery articles

• Drop-away arrow rests - S. Stevens
• Making your broadheads fly true - S. Stevens
• Maintain your string and cables for top bow performance - S. Stevens
• Overcoming target panic - Part I: Punching the trigger - S. Stevens
• Overcoming target panic - Part II: Freezing below the target - S. Stevens
• Shoot long distances in your practice routines - S. Stevens

Product reports

Archery products

• Hoyt Xtec - S. Stevens
• Easton ST Axis arrows - S. Stevens
• Schaffer drop-away arrow rest - S. Stevens