Shed antlers
Most deer antlers have eight points, but in 2021 a hunter took down a 26-POINT buck west of Colorado Springs. Like the leaves of a tree, antlers grow and fall off every year, so a large and sturdy rack is a sign of years of good health.
It’s a process that uses a lot of the animal’s resources. In a bull moose, a quarter of the food it eats goes to antlers that grow a pound a day. And the body of an under-nourished bull elk will direct calcium to antlers instead of bone. Bucks and bulls use antlers to compete for mates, then shed them after the rut. But shed antlers still have a role to play in the forest. Mice, squirrels and porcupines will chew on them for protein and minerals. Since 2018 in Colorado, shed antlers themselves are still considered "wildlife." It’s illegal to collect them on public lands west of I-25 from January through April.
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