Fish & Game Biologist Henry Lomeli has advised that the first sentence of the second paragraph should be stricken from my previous blog post Notes on Preserving Open Space – Deer Herds.
"Lungworm has been reported as a high source of mortality in resident valley deer along the Sacramento River during the late winter months of high water years," wrote Mr. Lomeli, "It is not however a significant factor of mortality (fawn or adult) in the migratory deer herds of Butte County. The 78% number that you used is not a lungworm related figure , but rather an annual fawn mortality number. That means due to a wide variety of mortality factors the annual mortality rate of fawns is 78 percent during the first year of life."
Mr. Lomeli also suggested that I mention that "poor livestock management can have a significant negative impact on the condition of young fawns in migratory herds."
My apology for the misinformation! I will endeavor to better check my facts before writing any more articles for the blog. This is especially embarrassing to me, as our Yahi Group website & blog wizard is also our newsletter editor and decided to surprise me by printing this article in our summer newsletter as originally posted.
