When managing white-tailed deer, biologists must think and plan in terms of systems and populations, not individuals. However, when we hunt deer, we respond to individuals. And when I studied whitetail social behavior while working as a research biologist, it was essential that I got to know deer on an individual basis.
Such was the case during my last 22 years working with the Cusino research facility in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. For 22 years, my studies sought to determine how behavioral factors influenced deer health and reproductive success — a relationship referred to as sociobiology. I tried to handle and examine all study animals annually, mark all of them with numbered ear pennants for easy field identification, and equip some of them with radio transmitters. Needless to say, my wife, Janice, and I spent thousands of hours tracking and observing deer.
There were nearly 700 deer involved in my studies. Many of them only remained in the herd for one year. However, more than 100 bucks were studied for two or more years, and some for nearly 10 years. I will admit, I had my favorites and came to know some of them intimately.
M-100: THE DOMINANT FLOATER
I captured M-100 in a local deer yard when he was about 8 months old and weighed 90 pounds. He was released into the enclosure a few months later. When he was 2-1/2 years old, M-100 achieved dominance over all other enclosure deer. He held the alpha position for eight consecutive breeding seasons, including the year of highest deer density, when 46 antlered bucks lived in the enclosure.
Although M-100 was not the largest buck in the enclosure, nor did he have the largest antlers, he seemed to maintain his high status easily. He was a master at bluffing, using aggressive stereotyped body postures to intimidate other bucks year-round, thereby
