Monthly Newsletter
November, 2021
EDUCATION UPDATE:
As the leaves and temperatures began to turn, Deerassic Park stayed active furthering our mission of reconnecting youth with the outdoors. During the month of October our Education Team hosted 17 field trips, an overnight camp, the second session of Whitetail University and even an on-site visit at the library. 

Our field trips crossed a wide variety of ages and classes from pre-k through high school seniors and home school groups to after-school programs and even an advanced PE class. As you can see our staff can customize our programs and activities to meet the needs of almost any possible group or age range.

The annual Bigfoot Lock-in is one of our most popular camps and this year did not disappoint. 2021 campers were not only treated to our traditional activities (fishing, canoeing, scavenger hunts, etc.), but were also able to enjoy stories around the campfire and even pumpkin carving.  

In addition to the field trips, camps, and classes we also hosted the Trail of Treats. Think trick or treating in the woods. Over 500 youth walked through our beautiful, wooded nature trail and collected candy from generous local businesses. The weather was great and so were the costumes. 

As we move towards winter, the Deerassic Park staff is always ready to host your group at our brand-new Education Center or come on site to present our programs. Please check out our website for details.   
Trivia Question:
White-tailed deer peak breeding in Ohio occurs the first two weeks of November.
With that in mind, what is the average gestation period for a whitetail?
A) 160-165 days
B) 170-175 days
C) 185-190 days
D) 195-200 days
How'd you do last month?
Which of the following is NOT a venomous snake native to Ohio?
a.     Copperhead
b.    Water Moccasin (Cottonmouth)
c.     Timber Rattlesnake
d.     Eastern Massasauga

There are only 3 venomous snakes native to Ohio. The Northern Copperhead, the Eastern Massasauga, and the Timber Rattlesnake. None of the 3 are common at all. Very rare but if encountered they are all three very docile. We DO NOT have cottonmouths (water moccasins) in Ohio. We have only Northern Water Snakes that can be confused being venomous. We do have other species of snakes that you can find in the water in Ohio, but like the Northern Water Snake, none are venomous.
TRIVIA CONTEST:

Answer this month's trivia question (see above) correctly and be entered for a chance to win a Deerassic Park Prize Pack!!!

Last month was a tougher one with 37 of the 131
responses being correct.
Congratulations to Bill E. on winning last months contest.

We will be reaching out to you to send a prize your way.


Dino's Did You Know:

It’s sweet November here in Ohio! Which if you know anything about deer and deer hunting, this is the best time to be in the woods! The whitetail’s peak breeding season called the “rut” occurs in Southeastern Ohio around the first and second week of November. Bucks are chasing does and it’s the best time for a big buck to slip up and end up within range of your tree stand. But how do we know when the rut be each year? Biologist’s use a fetal scale to determine conception dates of any doe harvested to understand the timing of the rut in local areas. The photoperiod also has a lot to do with what triggers the timing of the rut. Photoperiod is the amount of daylight we receive each day. In the summer days are longer, in the winter they get shorter. This regulates a lot of things in nature including whitetails and their testosterone and hormone levels. The photoperiod triggers whitetail does to come into heat which regulates the timing of the rut, and the photoperiod also regulates the antler cycle of a whitetail buck. That’s why typically the rut in your region occurs roughly the same time each year and the casting of antlers and regrowth of antlers occurs in similar fashion year in and year out.
COLORING CONTEST
Thanks again to everyone who has sent in a coloring page so far and for those who haven’t, get those pages to us for the next drawing in December!

Reminder! The coloring contest is NOT art based and winners each quarter are chosen randomly! Of course, we’d love to still see your beautiful artwork! Winners are chosen on a running basis, so the sooner you get your submission in, the more drawings you’ll be entered in! We will be doing drawings in September, and December as well this year and announce them in the newsletter, as well as our social media platforms! Winners will be contacted separately to arrange a time to pick up their prize here at the Park!

2021 Remaining Camp Schedule
-  Winter Camp (Ages 9-14) December 27th-29th (Registration not yet available)
CAMP SEASON PICTURES!
DEERASSIC ACTIVITY SPOTLIGHT
Each month we spotlight one of the amazing educational activities offered by our dedicated education team
Antler Scoring
Description: Students will learn the proper scoring system for deer antlers. Just calling a buck an 8-point or 10-point doesn’t really tell you the size of the antlers. Here at Deerassic we use the Buckmasters Official Scoring System that teaches kids math, how to read a tape measure, and how to use those numbers and measurements to get a total “score” for a deer’s antlers. Students will also have the opportunity to bring in their own harvested bucks to be scored and possibly entered into the record books!

Duration: (5 – 40 min. class periods at your school OR 1 full school day. Can take place at the Park and become a full day including lunch and some other activities to break up the day.)

Grades: 6th+
UPCOMING EVENTS
Please check our website and Facebook page for more details
November 19th-20th: Youth Deer Hunt 

November 24th: Wild Wednesday

November 28th: Sight-In Day

December 4th: Cookies with Santa
Due to the current, ever-changing circumstances surrounding the global pandemic, please be sure to check our Facebook page and website for updates and cancellations.
Deerassic Park Education Center | [deerassic.com]