why will deer travel for many miles to get a salt lick?
Deer need salt and other minerals, just as humans do. Check this site.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_lick
thanks
Deer, like many other animals, have a natural instinct to seek out salt sources in their environment. Salt licks provide essential minerals like sodium and calcium, which are crucial for their overall well-being and health. Here's how you can understand why deer travel long distances for salt licks:
1. Nutritional Needs: Deer require a balanced diet to maintain their health, and essential minerals play a vital role in their growth, reproduction, and overall bodily functions. Sodium, for instance, helps with nerve function and muscle control, while calcium is essential for bone development. When their regular diet doesn't provide enough of these minerals, deer instinctively seek out salt licks to fulfill their nutritional requirements.
2. Scarcity in the Environment: In many regions, natural sources of salt are limited, especially in certain seasons or environments where sodium-rich plants or soil are scarce. As a result, deer may need to travel considerable distances to find a salt lick that can satisfy their mineral needs.
3. Attraction to Sodium: Deer have a strong attraction to sodium due to its taste and the biologically ingrained preference for salt. The sodium receptors in their taste buds make them seek out salty substances, guiding them to salt licks even if they are some distance away.
4. Group Behavior: The presence of a salt lick can also attract multiple deer or other wildlife, leading to the formation of a salt lick community. This sociable behavior further promotes the spread of information about the location of salt licks and encourages deer to travel longer distances to reach them.
In summary, deer travel significant distances to find salt licks because they have a biological need for the essential minerals found in these sources, and sometimes natural sodium-rich options are scarce in their environment. Their attraction to salt, combined with group behavior, drives them to seek out these valuable mineral deposits.