Hunters and deer managers face a new reality in the Southern woods. In case you haven’t heard—maybe you’re a new reader of GON—coyotes are here and having a significant impact on deer populations on some pieces of property. It’s a story we’ve been researching and telling for years. Just how dramatic an impact coyotes could be having really came to...

Deer managers and hunters now know for certain coyotes in Georgia are taking a bite out of fawn numbers. Top deer researchers studying fawn mortality are finding survival rates significantly lower than they used to be, and coyotes are the primary fawn killer. Studies in the Southeast are finding only 20 to 25 percent of fawns are making it, and recruitment rates are 0.2 to 0.25...

The 2008 deer hunting season came to a close with similar results as the 2007 and 2006 seasons. The 1,000 acres my family and close friends hunt provided us with plenty of opportunities to kill a doe or small buck but very few — if any — opportunities at a mature buck. We had been practicing quality deer management (QDM) on our southwest Georgia property for more than 10 years with...

Coyotes are omnivores and opportunistic predators. They travel alone or in small packs, hunting and foraging mostly at night and covering miles of ground in search of food. Nose to the ground and ears perked to scan the landscape as it passes, they remain alert to react quickly on any feeding opportunity or danger that arises. When the high-pitched bleat of a fawn in distress sounds...

The old tree-planting axiom goes like this: The best time to plant an oak tree was 30 years ago. But the second best time is today. For anyone with land who would like to plant hardwoods or fruit trees for wildlife, ArborGen has expanded their hardwood SuperTree Seedling inventory with trees you can use to improve your property for wildlife. Five nurseries in the...

The talk around the fish-supper table rambled from the one that got away to the comeback of the beaver and eventually wound up with a plan to help out Georgia’s waterfowl population. Wood ducks are glad it did. Back in 1999, David Beecher, of Lyons, and a group of friends were discussing how the beaver had brought back quite a bit of our state’s natural waterfowl...

Imagine a crisp fall morning. With a light wind blowing directly in your face, conditions are just perfect for an October deer hunt. A young, inexperienced hunter sits beside you in a 20-foot tall tower stand as you stare down a narrow strip of clover and chicory. To the left is a beautiful hillside littered with white-oak acorns. To the right is a 4-year-old stand of thick planted pines. The...

Surplus seed showed up in late April, and it will go fast. So get online, join the GONetwork if you haven’t already, and purchase corn or soybeans for your wildlife plantings for just $10 per bag... while supplies last. These surplus bags of seed are at least a year old, not certified, and can only be used for conservation purposes, not any form of crop or product production....

Spring and summer may be the times when your deer herd needs you the most. Don’t assume you can forget about deer now, and they will be big, healthy deer next fall. There are antlers to grow and fawns to feed! There is an amazing selection of spring plantings for sale. A recent survey of Southeastern states identified no fewer than 62 plant species commonly planted for...

Deer were hungry. On a very cold day last winter, 96 deer were observed digging through a foot of snow trying to fill their bellies. Digging for the last remaining acorns? Clover? Rye? You probably could not guess what these 96 deer were digging for, so we’ll tell you: radishes. The above scenario occurred in New York last February, but we’re quickly...

The seed is here. Orders are placed online, and return e-mails are letting each GONetwork and SCI-Ga member know the order has been received and when...

WRD developed Georgia’s current statewide deer-management plan in 2004. In gathering responses from sportsmen about that plan, charitable deer...

The GONetwork’s Henry County Committee and the Henry County Water and Sewerage Authority (HCWSA) held their second-annual Kids’ Wood-Duck...

Spring is here, and it's an early one this year, so the wildlife on your land has been carried through the sparse months of winter on the food plots...

One of the greatest ironies of the present struggle that quail are facing in Georgia and the Southeast, an irony pointed out a few months back by...

It's September, and the thoughts of most hunters are focusing on the upcoming deer season. At this point, when the season has not even opened yet, not...

If you are thinking it's too late to plan or plant any new wildlife crops this year, think again. October is the optimum time to put in annual grasses...