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Mule deer Nutrition

Animal nutrition

Mule deer are Ruminant s, meaning they employ a nutrient acquisition strategy of fermenting plant material before digesting it.

Many subspecies of mule deer are migratory, and encounter variable habitats and forage quality throughout the season. Forages consumed in the summer are higher in digestible components (i.e. proteins, starches, sugars, and hemicellulose) than those consumed in the winter. The average gross energy content of the consumed forage material is 4.5 kcal/g. Due to fluctuations in forage quality and availability, mule deer fat storage varies throughout the year, with the most fat stored in October, which is depleted throughout the winter to the lowest levels of fat storage in March.
 * 1) When consuming high fiber, low starch diets require less food than those consuming high starch, low fiber diets and increased rumination time which allows for increased nutrient acquisition due to greater length of fermentation (4).
 * 2) Total body fat is a measure of the individual’s energy reserves while thyroid hormone concentrations are a metric to determine the deer’s ability to utilize the fat reserves.  Triiodothryionine (T3) hormone is directly involved with basal metabolic rate and thermoregulation.  Changes in hormone levels are indications of physiological adjustments to the changes in the habitat.

bibliography

Feeding behavior-rumination

Body condition- management

consequences of starvation

forage quality requirements