“Synergy” is defined as the cooperation of two or more parts to create a substance greater than the sum of their separate parts. This is how the Foundations of a Healthy Deer herd operate. You can increase food, water, cover, and safety separately and probably have a good outcome on your land. However, when you implement all four foundations you can create a product greater than the sum of it’s parts.
Think about it like this – deer’s environment is their home. It’s where they choose to live. Just like you and me, deer have some basic needs that need to be met: Food, Water, Cover, and Safety. And just like you and me, the deer prefer to live in a home that offers the appropriate balance of each component. If you live out in the middle of a field with nothing but food, that would be nice only when you were hungry, the weather wasn’t dangerous, and there were no predators. If you lived in a field surrounded by water, that would be nice only when you are thirsty. If you lived in a thicket with briars and dense cover all around you, that would only be nice if you weren’t hungry OR thirsty. If you lived in a spot where you felt extremely safe, that would only matter if all of your other needs could be met in that same environment.
What if you could create an environment where all of those things were present? Well that is exactly why you built or bought the home you live in. You probably didn’t buy a house with no food, water, roof, or walls. So if we translate that principle to deer habitat, it starts to make a lot of sense. What if you were to design a whitetail parcel with all of the necessary components of life already present? This is the foundation of a healthy deer herd.
This is also my goal for your hunting parcel. My hope is that I can help you design a habitat in which your deer herd feels completely safe and that also provides the right balance of food, water, and cover. When you are able to have all of these components, it changes the DNA of your property and you get to enjoy all kinds of perks:
- Increased daylight movement
- A healthy age structure
- A more intense and predictable rut
- Year-round deer movement, not just during the rut
- Hunting a healthier deer herd
- More deer being able to use your parcel
- Less deer dying throughout the winter months
- Bigger bucks and healthier does and fawns
Have you ever wondered why the people on the Outdoor Channel are able to have such amazing hunting opportunities? It is because land managers for miles around value the foundations of a healthy deer herd. They have enough food, enough water, enough cover, and they are extremely careful about how they hunt their land. Their deer herd reflects this type of management. I don’t know about you, but I prefer to hunt land that has predictable movement throughout the hunting season.
Genetics Land Consulting 