Eric Zetterholm was the first to photograph this Black-tailed buck near The Sea Ranch golf course.

The Buck looks healthy except for those twisted antlers. I queried CDFW. I heard back from Krysten Kellum, Information Officer. She wrote, “CDFW’s Statewide Deer Coordinator Brian Leo tells me: I believe this sometimes happens due to hormonal imbalance, sometimes due to testicular injury or disease. It could also result from damage to the pedicle. Since the antlers are deformed on both sides and the deer appears to be otherwise healthy, my guess would be testicular injury or some other cause of hormonal imbalance.” I learned testosterone is essential for the normal antler cycle of growth and shedding.

It will be interesting to see what happens to this buck's antlers next year.

Thanks to Eric for allowing me to share his photos with you here.

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