Reading Bones

With the temporary return of winter it is a good time to read an article that has been around awhile, since 1949! A wildlife pathologist by the name of E. L. Cheatum published a landmark article on bone marrow analysis of white tail deer which gives an estimate of the animal's nutritional status at death. The bone marrow consists of fat and blood cells giving a normal bone marrow the color and consistency of fat. Once a fawn reaches 4-6 months its marrow is the same as an adult. Cheatum determined that when marrow fat becomes 50% depleted the other body sources of fat have been utilized for energy, the marrow then becomes a solid red color. How does all this relate to the two coyote killed deer I found last month? One deer was in good shape and the other was severely malnurished.

A copy of the is interesting article is available on request.
Dale