Consumption By Wildlife is Often Beneficial to Plants

It can seem like an odd concept. Being eaten doesn’t sound like a great way to maximize survival. However, nature isn’t focused on the survival of a single member or species; it is instead geared toward survival of an ecosystem.

First, WHY would plants want to be consumed? While some reasons, like reproduction, are obvious, there are several other reasons as well. Here are a few:

• Stimulated Growth: Some plants, like certain grasses, have evolved to thrive under grazing pressure. Grazing animals remove old, unproductive leaves, allowing new, more photosynthetically efficient leaves to grow in their place.
• Nutrient Cycling: Animal droppings serve as a natural fertilizer, returning nutrients to the soil that benefit plant growth.
• Seed Dispersal: Animals can play a role in seed dispersal, carrying seeds in their fur or ingesting and later depositing them through their feces, thereby helping plants spread and colonize new areas.
• Reduced Competition: When dominant plant species are browsed, it can reduce their competitive pressure on other, less aggressive plant species, allowing for greater plant diversity.

All of the reasons above are ways in which plants and animals benefit each other, including having the plants being consumed during the process. It allows for the plants to participate in the “circle of life” necessary for a thriving wild community.

How do plants signal to animals that they are ready to be consumed? The following are just a few  examples.

• Visual signals: Color changes in ripening fruit or the appearance of flowers.
• Olfactory signals: Release of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that indicate ripeness and palatability.
• Gustatory signals: Changes in sugar content, acidity, and texture that make the fruit more appealing.
• Nutritional signals: Presenting a reward (sugars, fats, vitamins) to the disperser.
• Timing: Ripening when specific dispersers are available.

Many of these plants and animals evolved together. Many grass types specifically adapted to grazing. They took advantage of the ability to restore grazed portions with denser growth that is more efficient for photosynthesis. They even developed growth areas that are at or below ground level, protecting themselves from being grazed too short. These areas remain intact to provide that new, lush, more productive growth. They have partnered with the animals that eat them to ensure their long term survival and ability to flourish.

Lucky 7 Appetite Ignite was developed to use these same plant signals to attract deer and trigger active appetite and feeding behavior. It taps into nature’s communication system to supercharge the desire to eat. No one else has achieved this. It is a great new tool for the hunter to put himself in position to harvest game. This new product is amazing, give it a try. Spray it at bait sites, on areas of food plot near your shooting zones or even on normal surrounding vegetation and grasses. It will pull deer and other plant eating animals to it and cause them to feed. It is not only a great attraction advantage, but also an ethical one as it will help present shot opportunities at a closer range. NO ONE ELSE HAS DONE IT!