By: Lindsay Thomas Jr.

Lindsay Thomas Jr. is NDA's Chief Communications Officer. He has been a member of the staff since 2003. Prior to that, Lindsay was an editor at a Georgia hunting and fishing news magazine for nine years. Throughout his career as an editor, he has written and published numerous articles on deer management and hunting. He earned his journalism degree at the University of Georgia.

This “Frosty” Silver Buck Has Biologists Stumped. See the Photos.

Dec 10, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

For three seasons now, Kevin O’Brien and his uncle and cousins, who all hunt in the same area of northwest Wisconsin, have been seeing and photographing a ghostly deer. Lots of whitetail bucks “ghost” us,…

read more

Bucks, Does, and Dewclaws: Clearing Up One of Hunting’s Biggest Myths

Dec 3, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

At NDA, we frequently share emerging science that sometimes shatters old beliefs about deer, so we’re accustomed to hearing from skeptical hunters who are reluctant to let go of time-honored ideas. Lots of hunters have…

read more

New Study Investigates Peak Rut Buck Movement

Nov 5, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

Bucks move more during the rut than any other time of year. The rut will peak at the same time every year in a given location. These two basic rules of the whitetail rut keep…

read more

New Science: Rubs and Scrapes Glow Like Highway Reflectors to a Deer’s Eyes

Oct 15, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

In the light of day, our eyes see the pale yellow or white wood exposed by a buck that has shredded the bark off a small tree. But in twilight woods, deer eyes likely see…

read more

6 Ways Hunters Taint Their Venison and Get “Gamey” Flavor

Oct 1, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

“Gamey” venison is code for mishandled venison. Having cooked and eaten young deer, old deer, mature bucks, rutting bucks, and ancient does, I will die on this hill. Properly handled and processed venison rarely has…

read more

Scientists: Releasing Captive-Bred Deer to Fight CWD in Wild Deer Is Unlikely to Work

Oct 1, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

Recently scientists have been exploring the idea that we can fight chronic wasting disease in wild deer by releasing captive-bred, “CWD resistant” deer. Some in the deer farming industry endorsed the idea, and legislators in…

read more

These 8 States Badly Need to Boost Their Doe Harvest

Jul 30, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

Two years ago, I rang the alarm about declining doe harvests in too many states. NDA is always careful to emphasize that doe harvest is not one-size-fits-all and should be set based on local information,…

read more

Fighting a Mystery Illness? Tell The Doctor You’re a Hunter.

Jul 16, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

When Craig Harper woke up on February 5, 2019, he was deaf in his left ear. An audiologist told him he had permanent nerve damage and would likely never get his hearing back. But nerve…

read more

Deer Habitat Management Can Be a Monster. Here’s How to Tame It.

Jun 25, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

No matter what deer habitat improvement project you decide you want to try, sometimes the scope of the work can frighten you if it encompasses an entire hunting property, even a relatively small one. I’ve…

read more

A Photo Gallery of Jawbones From Extremely Old Deer

Apr 30, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

The longer deer live, the more they wear down their teeth from chewing forage and browse. It used to be that hunters could only age extremely worn deer jaws as “5½-plus” or some variation of…

read more