internal timing

[msbadger]

I once had a earth science teacher tell me "If your stuck without an alarm and think about the time you need to be up alot before going to bed...you'll wake close to that time"...over the years it's worked...
 Well we sprung ahead and this evening (now)I''ve been watching this herd of deer feeding up the edge of the field...20yrds off the dog kennel now...the dogs just started barking...which they just look up and continue feeding....I realized that last week the dogs would be barking but it would have been pitch blk out...those deer come by twice a night...now and about 3am...the change in day light didn't disrupt the time that they decided to feed...there bodys are on an internal time clock ...not based on the light they are seeing...I'M NOT TALKING BREEDING CYCLES HERE....just the daily routines they have.....

[dtrain56]

the daylight didn't change just the clocks did...same amount of light as before the clocks were changed...though the days have increased by more than an hour since december ....deer don't know what time it is and "time" is man made...
 
 
the deer pattern should change all that much..deer are predictable this time of year..real cold or snow on the ground deer are up and about mid afternoon...once the snow melts deer are around mournings and early evenings....

[paulie]

See, now I've heard that their feeding times are (loosely) based on the moon phase. In other words the moon being in a certain place in its orbit, triggers their movement. Obviously weather and a few other factors would effect that. I once heard Toxy haas (Mossy Oak founder) say, (in his experience) deer will move best (most, however you want to look at), when the moon is directly overhead or directly underfoot! Is that true? I'm not sure (but I'll bet more than one you will test that theory).

[dtrain56]

 a quote from  T. R. Michels
 
"the studies of several other researchers, clearly show that weather is one of the primary influences on daily deer activity",
 
 



this sums it up...moon phase does influence deer activity but daily activity is based on hunger..they need to eat every 6 hours i belive...
 
 
http://www.hunttheoutdoors.com/articles/default.php?id=146
 
and you can read all about moon phase at this link

[msbadger]

dtrain...of course the amount of light changed in relation to time thats the purpose of day light savings....and no deer don't tell time in an outward maner as humans...what i'm saying is they(meaning this group) have a ...internal sense as to when to move...the fact that it was daylight at that time didn't change them walking in so close to the kennel...that despite the fact that we have one more hour ..not of day... but of light... they stay on schedual....Every year the deer here run this same routine...an internal timing...such as ppl waking up at the same time daily ...without an alarm clock...just a thought to invoke more thought

[dtrain56]

...that despite the fact that we have one more hour ..not of day... but of light...

 
 
I hate to say this but how many hours of light the day before the clocks were changed
 
 
how many hours of light after the clocks were changed....it will be the same hours of light maybe it will increase a minute or two since the day before..
 
 
but the day didn't get an hour longer in one day....you just are not asleep sunrise is now an hour later two
 
 
sunrise and sun set for saturday march 7th and length of day
 





RISES

SETS

DAY LENGTH


Sun
6:29 AM
6:06 PM
11:37
 
this is sunrise and sunset and length of day for sunday march 8th...the day light increased by three minutes not an hour...





 
RISES

SETS

DAY LENGTH


Sun
7:27 AM
7:07 PM
11:40

[dtrain56]

nothing has changed in the deers world..just ours...

[msbadger]

I'm not saying this right ...I referrance saving time because its our spring of sorts changing light affects us...thats fact studies show it ...but deer at least here change about the same time as well....feeding and bedding patterns change ....they aren't doing the dusk to dawn thing... they come out sooner come in closer during day light at night...they also cross the field in the morning later in the light ... it starts in the spring and you can see a distinct reversal in late summer...it is some sort of internal timing.that is close to the spring ahead fall behind cycle we impose on our selves...yes we visually have an hour less "working" light in the morning to an hour more "working" light at night per time change not orbit rotation

[dtrain56]

I don't really get what you are trying to say...deer have no CLocks..time is a "man made" product...you may be seeing more deer activity..due to weather changes and food abundance... which in turn also correlates with the change in time....
 
deer are hungry the weather is finally getting warm, buds are starting to show and deer are on the move...their internal clock has do due with length of day increases... weather improvement..and putting weight back on...for next years winter
 
you see them more because they are out more...
 
 
it just so happens that we change the clocks...the deer have no idea that we did that...

[Goose]

I agree with dtrain, I'm betting it's food related more than anything....warmer days bringing more available food for them to regenerate after a bad winter and then throw in the need for upcoming fawning and you have some hungry deer.