WINTER WEATHER did its thing last week. Mother Nature reminded us humanoids who is in charge.

She orchestrated a big drop down curve in earth’s upper atmospheric polar express air mass. That current of cold air enabled a massive cold air bubble to collide with warm, moist air in a conversion over the upper Midwest.

The result? Snow and lots of it. Welcome to just one of those late November weather surprises, which is not really a surprise to anyone who pays attention to the ebb and flow, the ups and downs of natural variations in cold/warm air interactions.

The weather was not a surprise to resident wildlife. Adaptation is the name of the game, survival is at stake, and many species are fully capable of taking weather events in stride. Wildlife can shake the snow off and continue about their business of finding food and staying warm.

Good habitat for pheasants is also good habitat for a host of other critters. Tall grasses allow wind free snow cave type cavities to form. Inside, out of the wind, birds may huddle down for a long wait, waiting for the storm to blow eastward and the sun to reappear.

Local television weather people showed us a chart of past late November and early December big snowstorms. I thank them for that reminder for people to not become complacent about mild weather when the potential is always just around the corner to slam us down hard.

Game over.

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BISON are one adaptable large mammal quite well adapted to North American landscapes. At Green Castle, on Friday early afternoon of Nov. 21, four new bison were released from a stock trailer to join the bull and cow bison already there.

Green Castle’s bison family is now a total of six. Those new additions are two cows and two calves. The purchase arrangement was made earlier this fall from a bison ranch located near Promise City. The ranch has about 250 bison and is located south of Rathbun Lake in Wayne County.

Bison are adapted to grassland landscapes and are now well populated in many states. Yellowstone National Park is just one place. Custer State Park in South Dakota is another. So too is Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge near Valentine, Neb.

Every Midwest state has both public and privately owned herds of bison. Within Iowa, my research indicates that almost every county has someone with a small to medium sized herd under their care and management.

Bison bulls can weigh up to 2,000 pounds and stand 6.5 feet tall at the shoulder. Female bison cows can tip a scale at up to 1,200 pounds and stand 5.5 feet tall.

The head and skull of a bull bison is heavy. It is supported by strong muscles and tendons attached to tall dorsal spines of its thoracic vertebrae.

Bison teeth are constructed to eat grasses and woody shrubbery, about 15 to 30 pounds of plant material per day. Bison hair is denser than that of domestic cattle thereby providing improved insulation during cold weather.

Bison do not feel the cold until the outside air reaches -20 F. Bison can run at speeds up to 35 miles per hour.

Steep hills are not a problem. In mountain western states, bison easily climb into places we humans do not think would be possible. They just do it.

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DEER and DEER HUNTING during Iowa’s gun season number one begins this weekend, Dec. 6-10. Iowa DNR Biologist Jase Elliot predicts that between 55,000 to 60,000 deer will be taken by hunters by the close of gun season number two on Dec. 21.

Snow will allow deer to be more easily seen, and tracked. However, the deer are fully capable of evading hunting pressure if pushed too hard. The numbers from deer registration post harvest will tell managers if the snow was helpful or a hindrance.

A little snow is nice. Deep snow can be counterproductive.

So far, hunters primarily by archery, early muzzleloader or crossbow have taken about 29,000 deer. This is in the range of three percent below the five year average.

Eastern Iowa holds the best forested land habitat. However, every county has its own habitats from sparse to highly productive. Looking at the data, it appears deer taken by hunters so far during 2025 are almost identical to 2024.

Deer hunting safety remains a prime concern. Hunters need to have a plan and stick to it. That helps ensure that hunters do not inadvertently move into someone else’s line of fire.

Clothing requirements for deer hunting with firearms mandates a solid blaze orange vest at a minimum. Hats and caps or coveralls of blaze orange are better. Hunters are not hiding from deer while wearing blaze orange.

Hunters need to be seen by other hunters to help avoid mishaps.

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Today’s image of the bronze deer statue was made at the Bass Pro Shop at Springfield, Mo./Wonders of Wildlife Museum. This larger than life deer mount was commissioned by the Bass Pro owner.

Dick Idol made the molds for casting using a lost wax process. The deer mount is four times larger than life making this statue 26 feet tall, and weighing over 15,000 pounds.

The antler spread of this model is over twelve feet. It perhaps is the largest single bronze mammal ever created in the United States using the lost wax method. With matching drop tines, tremendous tine lengths, massive beams and fantastic character, this buck is the buck dreams are made of.

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A MULE DEER in Colorado at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge near Denver fell to its death by another mule deer. A battle between the bucks was intense during the rutting phase this fall.

According to a story from The Venatic, the famed and much photographed mule deer nicknamed Slingshot died on Nov. 16 after its lungs were gored/penetrated by the tines of another mule deer. A necropsy revealed that the huge antlered mule deer suffered from a punctured lung. The injury was inflicted by another deer.

Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR is a 16,000 acre area. It was established in 1992 on lands previously operated by the U.S. Army chemical weapons site.

Now closed to that former use, wildlife conservation became the focal point for the land. White-tailed deer and mule deer live here along with many other species of birds and small mammals.

The site is well known to observers and wildlife photographers. The name Slingshot was made to describe the huge spread of the antler beams of the iconic mule deer. This example illustrates how intense deer battles with other deer can become — nature in its rawest form.

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Christmas Trees are for sale at the Izaak Walton League land located two miles south of Iowa Avenue on Smith Avenue. Select your own, cut your own and take it home. All trees are $50, any size. Tree sales are Dec. 6-7 and again on Dec. 13-14.

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Here is a quote from Black Elk, an Ogala Lakota, concerning life.

“In truth, we depend on all the creatures in this world. In order to survive, we humans must consume plants and animals — life must be taken so that we may live. It is only with this awareness that we learn humility and find balance. Our lives need to be in a circle, not a square, nor a straight line,” he said.

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Garry Brandenburg is the retired director of the Marshall County Conservation Board. He is a graduate of Iowa State University with a BS degree in Fish & Wildlife Biology.