It sometimes seems as if white-tailed deer grow antlers overnight. In reality, that's not too far from the truth. Antlers, which are made of bone, grow quickly. They are one of the fastest-growing tissues in all of the animal kingdom. A white-tailed deer's antlers can grow as much as a quarter-inch per day, according to Popular Science.
But that's nothing compared to elk and moose. Elk antlers can grow as much as 1 inch a day, and a moose can add 1 pound of new antler growth every day. All animals in the Cervidae family grow antlers with one exception — the Chinese water deer, according to the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. Among animals that grow antlers, only the males grow the appendages, again with one exception — both male and female caribous have antlers.
Male deer and other cervids grow antlers to attract mates. A large set of antlers is proof of the animal's health to potential mates, but that's not all. Bucks also use their antlers to fight other males to show their worth and supremacy to females, Sciencing reports. A once diffuse vascular system solidifies, cutting off the supply of blood and minerals.
The antlers and their velvet covering literally die. Velvet sloughs off completely within about 12 hours, leaving the dead bone of the completed rack behind.
Exceptions do occur and are usually the result of injury, often to the testes, or sometimes the result of retarded testicular growth. This is also sometimes the case with deer erroneously labeled as antlered does.
They may actually be bucks whose secondary sex characteristics penis and testes never fully formed. Antlers have many interesting characteristics but one of the most fascinating is that, like leaves on a hardwood tree, they are deciduous. In an annual cycle they are grown, cast off then regrown again. Once the breeding season is over their purpose is served. In cold climates they act as radiators, drawing valuable heat energy from the body and retaining them only wastes valuable energy.
Eons of natural selection have determined that it is more energy efficient to cast them off and grow a new pair than to carry them over the course of a lifetime, like horns. Yet again, photoperiodism plays a role.
Eventually, a specialized layer of cells called osteoclasts forms at the abcission line between the pedicle and antler base, ultimately degrading the point of attachment until the antlers simply fall off. They cycle is complete but will begin again as the sun slowly increases its duration in the sky. Most folks know the three main factors in antler growth are age, nutrition and genetics.
As managers we can really only influence two. By providing proper nutrition and letting bucks to reach maturity we allow them to reach their maximum genetic potential. He discusses antler genesis and what we can do to help grow the healthiest deer possible. Listen below:. Break-Up Country. Elements Agua. Elements Terra. Shadow Grass Habitat. Explore All Patterns. Back About Our Story. Meet Our Staff. National Pro Staff. Regional Pro Staff. Back Licensing Marketing Services. Licensees FAQs.
Back Resources Contact. Customer FAQs. State Licensing. Back Brands Mossy Oak. Mossy Oak Fishing. Nativ Nurseries. Mossy Oak Properties. Of course, acorns and other mast are great across the board. Seasonal changes and rainfall will affect the levels of protein in forage and, as stated above, supplemental feeding is often used to support antler growth. What we do know is that, just like other animals, genetics are a two-part equation, and both the mother and the father play equally important roles.
Genetics will determine the shape and size of the antler, and studies have shown that big antlers are hereditary more on this later.
Before a buck can be called a monster, a hawg, a toad, or booner, it has to survive a few seasons. Like the best things in life, antlers get better with time. A whitetail buck will reach generally reach his prime in four to six years , and for elk, it is more like eight to twelve.
Age is one of the easiest factors humans can manipulate to see bigger antlers. Regulations like point restrictions and deer camp customs like passing up smaller bucks can be helpful. Male cervids have two soft spots on their skulls called pedicles. In the spring or early summer, two nubs form at the pedicles and are covered in a sensitive type of skin called velvet.
The velvet is packed with blood vessels that rapidly bring blood, oxygen, and nutrients that the antlers need for growth. The antlers grow from the tip, starting as cartilage and then calcify into hard bone as they go. During the velvet stage, cervids try to avoid contacting their antlers with just about everything. Injuries to velvet during antler growth can cause changes.
Once the antlers are fully grown, the velvet is cut off from the blood supply, and it dries up and dies before getting rubbed off by the animal. Throughout the season, the connections between the pedicles and the antlers weaken, and usually during the winter, well after mating, the antlers fall off. In a matter of weeks, the cycle starts all over again. Depending on the photoperiod, or amount of sunlight during the day that a male cervid is exposed to, they will either be growing or shedding their antlers.
Generally, antler tips have more protein and minerals than the bases. Antler composition also varies by region because of differences in diet and soil characteristics. Not all deer antlers grow evenly. Demarais and Strickland said injuries, genetics or health cause most antler abnormalities. Identifying those causes, however, sometimes requires a necropsy, or internal examination, after a buck dies.
However, injuries cause most abnormalities, and include pedicle damage, broken rear legs, or damage to a growing antler. Researchers believe broken bones change the blood supply to the antlers, which causes antlers to grow irregularly.
In other words, if a buck breaks its right rear leg, its left antler will likely grow oddly.
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