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It’s What’s for Dinner
By Bob Humphrey
Fawn predation is a growing problem, especially in the Southeast.
QUESTION: I’ve been hunting since I was 20 and am now 56 years young. Where I live in North Carolina, I have seen a bunch of new fawns dropping off my cameras. I try my best to keep up on the predator control and I would like to know if maybe seeing more hogs and bears would cause any drop in the whitetail population.
ANSWER: The situation in the Southeast has changed dramatically over the last couple decades. Research has shown coyote predation accounts for between 46% and 84% of all deer mortality, and somewhere between 47% and 62% of all fawns succumb to coyote predation, most within the first three weeks of life.
As a result, deer populations in parts of the Carolinas have declined by 30% or more since the mid 1990s. Hunting generally keeps bear and hog populations in check, but hogs seem to be increasing in range and abundance, and while they’re generally not considered deer predators, they can still be problematic.
If predator control alone is not improving deer productivity, you might consider taking steps to improve habitat for fawn protection by creating more young, thick growth, and larger areas of it.