White-tailed Deer Seeking Salt

Congratulations to Janine Norton, the first of many readers to correctly identify the truck “salt lick” being visited by White-tailed Deer! A real-life and humorous confirmation of the quest for salt on the part of White-tailed Deer in the spring comes in the form of tongue marks on the side of Nancy Howe Russell and Jim Russell’s salt-laden truck!

Almost all soils more than 25-50 miles from the seacoast are low in sodium.  In addition, in spring and summer many of the plants White-tailed Deer consume have higher amounts of potassium and water in them which interferes with efficient sodium conversion, leaving deer with an increased need for sodium.  Does are particularly vulnerable, as they need twice as much sodium as bucks this time of year due to reproduction demands. 

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