82 CALIFORNIA KISIl AM) GAME 



DEATH OF BUCK DEER RESULT OF FIGHTING IN RUT 



Many hunters believe tliat all buck deer live nntil they are shot 

 and give little or no alloAvance for the number of deer that die each 

 year from natural causes or accidents. That the latter factor is respon- 

 sible for the death of a considerable number of our male deer annually 

 is beyond question. ]\Iany types of fatal accidents may occur to deer. 



For instance, this summer, Captain of Game Wardens S. R. 

 Gilloon, of Mount Shasta, was called upon to autopsy a spike buck 

 that was found in a dying- condition near Volmers, Shasta County. 

 The supposition was that this deer was suffering from an infection 

 known as Bacillus necrophorus, or ''calf diphtheria." It was brought 

 into Delta by a government truck where it died, and where Captain 

 Gilloon later autopsied it. He found no indications of the above men- 

 tioned disease, but ascertained that the deer's stomach was ruptured, 

 which, no doubt, accounted for its death. This accident could have 

 occurred by the deer having been hit on the highway by an automobile, 

 or by its having fallen off a cliff. 



Another accident of a different character was brought to my atten. 

 tion during the past deer season. Some sportsmen of my acquaintance 

 were hunting deer with dogs west of Boonville, in Mendocino County, 

 on September 10, 1938. The dogs ran a three-point buck for some 

 distance and then bayed it. One of the hunters approached- the animal 

 quite closely in an endeavor to account for its unusual behavior, for it 

 is unknown for dogs to bay an unwouuded buck. The animal presented 

 all appearances of having been wounded, so the man killed it, and on 

 approaching it, he noticed a deep wound in the thorax, or what is 

 generally termed, the "sticking place." Skinning the animal later 

 revealed that this w^ound was unquestionably caused by the animal 

 running into a snag while attempting to escape from the dogs. 

 Undoubtedly deer may so occasionally snag themselves when fright- 

 ened from causes other than hunters. 



Another type of accident that it appears may be more common 

 than the lack of reports of same would indicate is the death of bucks 

 caused by their fighting in the rutting season. 



Game Warden J. W. Thornburg, Jackson, California, lias kindly 

 provided us with the following notes of his observations in this regard : 



During iho ■\vintor of lO.'',! to 1032. -\vliilo stationod at Summit Camp, on the 

 Salt Spring-Tiger Creek canduit of the Pacific Gas and Electric Company, in 

 El Dorado County, I had unusual opportunities to observe the numbers of deer that 

 were wintering in the vicinity. 



One day in the latter part of November, 1931, I was driving up the road from 

 Summit Camp to Bear River Intake and had taken several photographs of the 

 many deer along the road. On rounding the turn near Beaver Creek, I was forced 

 to apply my brakes so that all four wheels of the car locked in order to avoid 

 having a head on collision witli two lioantifnl foni'-point bucks that were battling 

 in the road. 



One of these deer leaped from the road to the upper bank, and after retreating 

 for about 30 feet, stopped and turned around. The other animal ran a short 

 distance up the road and thoi also went on up the upper bank. As soon as this last 

 animal was above the bank, the first buck started aft(>r him with bowed neck, hair 

 along the back and shoulders l)ristling. and they resumed their battle. I had a front 

 row seat for the show and watched it from my automobile at close range. What an 

 opportunity I lost for photographs liaving used all my film prcvioiis to finding tliese 

 deer. 



