Take man-induced agriculture out of it for now!!!
I believe that different geographic areas have different sub-species of deer. Through evolution, the further north you go, the bigger the animals. A Saskatchewan deer needs more body mass to survive the winters than does the Florida Key deer. Ruts are earlier in the North than they are in the South; by design (or evolution) as fawns need more time to put on weight before the winter hits.
Let's look at the soil of, say, the Midwest. I read somewhere where the Midwest's soil is "younger" (as in millions of years) than our soil here in the South. I can't expound on that but it has something to do with glacier movements and soil leeching, etc... Maybe someone can expound on this subject.
I don't have any advanced knowledge about soil and ag practices but any of us that have seen the color of the Midwestern soils can attest to its black color and read about its nutrient enriched soil characteristics.
Now let's throw in agriculture in the Midwest where thousands upon thousands of acres are planted with beneficial cultivars which feeds the deer herd there. Eating soybeans all summer long with high protein content obviously makes a difference. Packing on fat with carbohydrates (corn) in the fall helps the deer herd come through the winter in better shape and therefore, the deer do not have to "recover" as much when the green-up occurs.
So, in the Midwest, you're already working with a larger subspecies of deer... throw in highly nutritious agriculture and it's obvious what has occurred. Also, natural browse is higher in protein content in the Midwest as well.
The bottom line is it's nutrition, nutrition, nutrition and we saw it here in Alabama back when soybeans were grown. However, on average, other deer subspecies to the north of us are naturally bigger and couple that with nutrition, you have big deer/big antlered bucks!
Genetics play a big role too but I believe it's more about diet.
Look at the kids today coming out of high school! How many 300 lb linemen do we see now as compared to yesteryear? However, I think that may be the hormones in the chicken and beef kids eat today.
Anyway, my thoughts....
Oh, one more comment... I believe if you brought a Saskatchewan buck down here and artificially provided the same diet he'd get in S'wan, or maybe even less nutrition, he'd grow just as big down here. However, you'd have to "baby" the buck and probably have to isolate the buck away from other deer and probably have to administer antibiotics as he'd be exposed to new diseases, etc... he would not have to face up there. In the wild, I do not believe a S'wan deer would survive down here for many reasons.
Last edited by Bucktrot; 11/18/11 04:07 PM.
