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Page 8 - The Wiregrass Farmer, December 20,2017
2017 2-A All-Region team
The 2-A All-Region football team was announced.
Making the team from Turner County are:
Tyler Moore, offensive player of the year.
Trey King, linebacker
Trent Henderson, defensive back
Making the All Freshmen team are: Keonvay Clark, Chris
Clark, Jeremiah Barns and Zak Brown.
The 2-A All Academic team are Quevon Lawnson and Tane-
jae Westbrooks.
Second team:
Jetterion Morris, wide receiver
Zikieth Wimbley, offensive line
Quevon Lawson, defensive line
Tyrese Vail, linebacker
Aletan McKinney, defensive back
Honorable mention:
Jason Harris, lineback and Demarcus Barnes, defensive back.
TOYS FOR TOTS
Thanks to the generosity of people in Turner County
and some surrounding areas, every child in Turner
County who was signed up for Toys for Tots got at least
three gifts.
2017-18 Senior Favorites
Most Humorous: Demarion Johnson and Memoria Davis
Most School Spirited: Mary Catherine Guess and Carter
Sylvester
Most Athletic: Tyler Moore and Tylerriah Graddic
Most Attractive: Mulazim Holley and Alexus Rainey
Best All Around: Quenterion Tennille and Mia Carithers
Most Likely To Succeed: Dakyrae Holmes and Alexisana Mc
Cloud
Friendliest: Alex Richter and Haley Wallace
Best Dressed: Antonio Rogers and Quaneisha Ezell
Most Likely to Drive Ms. Puckett crazy: Charity Greene and
Marques Wilburn (as voted by Yearbook Class)
How biologists predict the rut
“How do biologists predict
when the rut is going to be?”
Rut season is when bucks
furiously seek to breed. During
this time, buck feeding activity
severely decreases, and bucks’
primary goal is to breed as
many does as possible.
Throughout this period, bucks
become aggressively territo
rial. With whitetail deer, this
territorial behavior is not so
much about defending a partic
ular piece of land, but rather,
excluding other bucks from
breeding a receptive female.
Understanding the timing
and triggers of the rut requires
a bit of familiarity with the
whitetail life history. The
events that precede the rut, like
foraging, antler growth, strip
ping velvet, sparring and fight
ing, all have a particular
purpose. However, while all of
these activities are essential to
a buck’s successes or failures
during the rut, the actual initi
ating factor that brings about
the onset of the rut is much less
obvious.
Similar to antler growth,
the rut is triggered by photope
riod. A decrease in the number
of daylight hours causes an in
crease in melatonin production
in the pineal gland within the
brain, causing an increase in
testosterone production. In
does, the increased melatonin
levels induce the onset of an
estrous cycle.
The oscillations in hor
mone levels generate a physio
logical response and a change
in behavior. Bucks begin to
make rubs and scrapes, build
ing muscle in their necks and
causing a swollen look. These
rubs and scrapes are also the
bucks’ calling card for does, as
they lay a scent down from a
scent gland located on the fore
head and in the tarsal region of
their hocks. Doe often locate
scrapes and urinate in them,
signaling that they are recep
tive to the buck. Bucks are
often observed sparring and
fighting with other bucks in
shows of dominance between
bucks in the same area.
So now that we have a
basic understanding of what
the rut is and what causes it, it
is time to answer the question
from the beginning of the arti
cle: How do biologists predict
when the rut is going to be?
The answer is not as compli
cated as one may think. Simply
put, predicting the rut is prima
rily done through fetal aging, a
technique that has been used
by cattle producers and obste
tricians for years. It can be
done by anyone with a fetal
aging scale.
To use the fetal aging
method, a fetus is extracted
from a harvested doe. Once re
moved, the fetus is laid on a
flat surface next to the fetal
scale. A measurement is taken
from head to rump and
recorded. Using this measure
ment, a date of conception can
be determined. Fetal scales op
erate off of the Julian calendar.
To determine when the fetus
was conceived, convert the
date the doe was harvested to
the Julian date. For example, a
deer harvested on Dec. 16
would have been harvested on
day 350 of the Julian calendar.
If the fetus was determined to
be 52 days old, then the date of
conception would be on day
298, or Oct. 25. Going one step
further, had the doe lived, the
delivery date would have been
on day 496, or May 11.
Once biologists determine
the number of days from the
conception of the fetus, they
can take an average among
several fetuses and generate an
estimate of when the rut was
that year. Using the past year’s
collection data, a correlation
can be established, and the rut
window can be projected. It is
important to realize that these
are merely projections.
For information on deer re
search at the University of
Georgia, go to www.ugadeer
research.org/.
www.theWiregrassFarmer.com
Ann Evans Grade Gunn
Empire talent showcase
Empire Dance in Cordele does a workshop every fall called
their Agent Showcase. The students participating have 10 weeks
to prepare a monologue, commercial and a song. They have dif
ferent talent agents from Atlanta attend the event and they are
able to pick students for their agency along with deciding who is
ready to go to New York City for a Master Showcase. In New
York, they attend broadway auditions, do master classes with
Broadway Stars and vocal coaches, and also get a tour of the city.
This year, out of 29 talented students, 13 were picked for this op
portunity. Two of which are super well known in the Turner
County Community, Gracie Gunn and Anna Evans. Gracie, going
for her acting talents, and Anna Evans, going for her singing and
acting talents. Empire could not be more proud of these lovely,
talented girls, and they are excited to see what the future holds
for them.
We’re chiming in with our best wishes
for a happy and harmonious season!
May the sights and sounds of the
holiday fill you with resounding joy.
Thanks to our loyal
customers for your
friendship and support.
We look forward to
ringing in the New Year
with all of you!
Y#Ti
Jp
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