If bones from dead deer could talk, they would reveal compelling
stories. In late March 1989, snowmobilers reported several dead
and frozen deer in a Canada Falls deer yard near historic
Pittston Farm, 50 miles northwest of Greenville. As the state’s
regional wildlife biologist at the time, I investigated the
report and found 10 dead deer. Curious to know if the deer had
died from coyote predation or other natural causes, I broke open
the femur (thigh) bones with a hatchet to examine the bone
marrow. Bone marrow of healthy deer resembles the color and
consistency of thick hand cream. During late winter, as deer
exhaust all remaining energy reserves, their bone marrow turns
the color and consistency of red jelly. Lethargic deer with
swollen faces and visible rib cages are signs of very poor
health. Red jelly-like bone marrow in eight of 10 deer indicated
severe malnutrition. A ninth deer died of a fractured hip caused
by bullet fragments. Coyotes had eaten the deer based on tracks
and scat, but did they kill t