Montana Population Deer Population and Management News Archive
Local study published on developmental malformations in deer ... November 3, 2011, Montana, Bitteroot Star, By victoria1 This long-term study was done with no funding, as a public service.... Underbite makes it difficult for a grazing animal to procure enough nutrition, the primary reason many of the females are unable to produce viable young and young animals fail to grow properly and gain weight after weaning... The authors attribute the widespread deformations to endocrine disrupting chemicals in the environment that are associated with fetal thyroid dysfunction that results in such deformations... The study concludes that underbite and the other serious symptoms of fetal hypothyroidism are likely a significant factor in the decline of wild ruminant populations in Montana and other western states. [Gary Haas of Big Sky Beetle Works, and Dr. Pamela Hallock, a researcher and professor at the University of South Florida, recently published in the journal Wildlife Biology in Practice] These articles have been reviewed for relevance and content. Some links to the original article may no longer be active. | More Deer Management and Population News by State |