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Early spring is a crucial time for deer managers, and I spend a lot of time on the ground monitoring deer movement and activity. Both sexes are becoming more active as the days lengthen, with the does feeding longer as embryos develop and the bucks thinking about territories and starting to fray.

With the cover down, we are still experiencing ground frosts and deer are becoming more visible as they are drawn out to feed on young tender shoots and buds, which are now emerging full of nutrients in the forest and hedge margins.

It is time to assess if cull targets were correctly set. Deer have a habit of disappearing, which can lead you to hold off on shooting before you reach your original target, only for them to reappear in numbers around this time of year. If