Page 29 - 2018 MAY/JUNE Outdoor Oklahoma

DON p. BrOWN/ODWC

The Wildlife Department’s Deer Herd Health Evalu-
ation Study’s goal is to harvest 40 does from one or
two of the state’s six regions every year. The study
provides valuable data indicating the general condi-
tion of deer in those regions.

game biologist, began putting the HHE pieces in place when the
deer check stations transitioned from physical locations to an
online system. “We took a portion of the money we saved with DON p. BrOWN/ODWC
the E-check system and used it to fund this important research
effort,” Shaw said. “We can now supplement the deer harvest
numbers with actual herd health data.”
With the groundwork laid, the HHE studies began in 2015, and
so far, nothing of concern health-wise has cropped up, Barber
said. Deer health in all regions of the state is stable, according to
HHE data. This good news seems to be backed up by the results
seen the past couple of deer hunting seasons in the state, as
dozens upon dozens of notable – some remarkable – bucks have
been taken by hunters.
The HHE is just one part of the Wildlife Department’s multi-
pronged deer management strategy, which has garnered national
praise from the Quality Deer Management Association, Outdoor
Life magazine, Peterson’s Hunting magazine, North American
Whitetail magazine, and others.
The survey protocol divides the state into six regions for the
HHE. One or two regions each year are surveyed, using as many
as 10 different sites within each region. The goal is to collect
about 40 does in each region, or about five per site, Barber said.
The timing for the study – during the weeks right after the final
deer season closes – is important because bucks still have their
antlers. It also will not interfere with deer season hunters.
Researchers target does for several reasons; key among them is Emily Clark, big game wildlife technician, fills vials with deer blood plasma
that antlerless harvest is a large part of existing deer management to send to a lab for testing.

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