Category: Deer Hunting

Many bow-carrying deer hunters have already headed to the field, but it’s darn tough out there right now for those than plan on whitetail hunting around a feeder. Much like the rain, food plots seem to be hit or miss depending on which part of Texas your located. Those that have been in the woods lately have no doubt discovered that the acorns have fallen. Last check of the game cameras have demonstrated that deer visitation at the feeders has slowed way, way down. But I’m not worried. They are there. Somewhere.

All in all, things are looking really good for Texas deer hunters this year. I’ve corresponded with quite a few property owners within the past couple of months and the overwhelming majority of them say things are looking pretty darn good. Habitat is decent for the time of year, antler quality is there and good numbers of fawns mean good deer hunting seasons to come. State wildlife officials are echoing what landowners have been saying for some time. This season is going to be a good one.

Source: “Statewide population trends remain stable and hunters should expect good numbers of deer year in and year out,” says Alan Cain, TPWD whitetail deer program leader. “I would predict the statewide deer population to be close to or slightly above the long-term average and hover around that 3.6 million deer mark for 2013.”

“One factor hunters should also keep in mind is the good carryover of deer from the 2012 season as harvest was down resulting from heavy acorn and mast crops in several regions of the state,” Cain notes. “For hunters this translates into plenty of opportunities to harvest a deer.” Though the deer population numbers are expected to be good this year, Cain predicts the recent September rains that resulted in a flush of green vegetation may cause bow hunters to rethink their early season hunting strategies as deer may spend less time visiting feeders. A well-traveled game trail may be more productive than hunting at the deer feeder.

Dry conditions in 2011 resulted in a significant decline in fawn production, down to 29 percent for the statewide estimate, a 24 percent departure from the long term average. Fawn crops bounced back in 2012 at 47 percent and Cain anticipates survey results will show a higher fawn crop this year. In fact, Cain is hearing reports from landowners as well as TPWD biologists of fawn production in the 60 to 80 percent range in the Hill Country and similar reports of good fawn production in other areas of the state.

For hunters fawn crops may not be as meaningful since harvest is generally focused on older age class deer, but remember those fawns this year translate into your adult deer several years into the future.

Environmental conditions can play big part in determining hunting season success on yearly basis, but if the hunting outlook in your area does not seem quite as rosy as you’d like then there may be some other factors at play. Never underestimate habitat when it comes to holding and producing whitetail deer. Deer need it because it provides plants to eat and they need it for screening cover. Fawns need it for thermoregulation as well as for concealment from predators. Of course, hunting pressure both on your property and neighboring properties can play a large role too. Consider active deer management to find out more about what’s happening with the deer population in your area, as well improving the deer hunting on your property.

It was a perfect morning for deer hunting. It was late October, 53 degrees and a 5-7 mile per hour wind was blowing out of the northeast. Directly in front of me, standing at 10 yards, was a 10 point buck that I recognized from game camera photos. The deer was walking quartering away and stopped right on cue. The arrow rocketed through him and hit the ground before he even flinched.

I could immediately see blood. He lurched forward and hit high gear in only a few steps. A few seconds later I heard him crash. It was quiet again. Just to be safe, I waited 15 minutes before walking to the end of a 45 yard long blood trail that culminated with my bow buck.

I dragged the deer back to the truck, which was parked less than 60 yards away. You see, I was deer hunting a pint-sized property in Central Texas that consisted of a mere 7 acres. It was the second time that I had hunted the small tract in 6 years. Three years earlier had resulted in a mature, heavy-bodied 9 point whitetail buck.

My latest deer, why far from a “book” buck, was the product of only one deer management practice—harvest management. Not shooting him years earlier when he was younger was the strategy, just letting him go so he could grow into something more substantial. Deer hunting small properties can work, but you have to do it right from the start.

Deer Hunting Small Property 101

Keep it quiet. There is no real secret to this one, but it does mean allowing deer to be content using and traveling through a property. Larger properties afford protection to whitetail by the shear amount of space they put between them and any disturbances. Not the case when talking about a small property.

Small acreages do not have the kind of built in buffer that distances deer from disturband, so it’s much more important that deer are not continually pushed off of the property, especially as the hunting season approaches. As a note, whitetail can deal with regular disturbances, but it’s different come hunting season once hunters take to the woods.

Mature deer, both bucks and does, become well aware of the sounds and smells that are out of the ordinary for the places they call home.

Help Their Diet

Just like the way to man’s heart is through his stomach, the best way to put an arrow or bullet in a buck’s heart is to keep him coming back for more—keep him well fed. Dominant bucks do not look for the poorest or even the most mediocre meal on the landscape as a part of their diet. They look for the best grub and they keep it to themselves.

If a big ole buck finds high quality forage on the small property you plan to deer hunt this fall then so much the better. A deer has got to eat, right?

The largest antlered bucks in an area will typically have the biggest bodies and that’s because they eat well. Give them something good on your property that is not found anywhere else in the area. Then you have a shot at making your small acreage property part of a dominant buck’s core area.

It’s always a good idea to choose something that is highly tasty or high in protein. This could be anything from pelleted protein to cottonseed to other types of manufactured foods/baits that attract deer, including well-prepared food plots. The bow buck above had a taste for the Nut ‘N More Drop Block by InSights Nutrition. It’s actually a block that I believe was developed for deer breeders but I’ve found that free-ranging deer really go for this sweet, peanut-based product. Water can also be a great attractant in arid areas.

Know Your Small Tract

Not all small properties provide deer habitat. Smaller properties do not need an abundance of cover, but whitetail will avoid areas that do not have enough suitable screening cover to even provide for perceived safe travel. If you want whitetail deer to use a property it will at least need to have cover comprised of brush, grass, or small trees that are at least 3-4 feet in height in or near potential travel ways.

Some of the best small acreage deer hunting can be found on tracts of land that provide good travel corridors. In these cases, providing food or water may just be the icing of the cake for deer that are already traveling through a property. A creek, natural funnel or pinch-point can be a regular deer producer, even if it’s located on just a small tract of land. This is also something to consider when evaluating a hunting lease or when looking for property to purchase.

Timing is Everything

Like life, timing is everything when it comes to deer hunting. Time it just right. Use game cameras to keep informed of when animals are visiting your feed stations or traveling through the area. Most bucks will stick to well-defined feeding patterns before the breeding season turns them into nomads. If you don’t have the opportunity to hunt the pre-breeding season then the rut is, of course, a great time to hunt.

This is can bucks will longer distances in search of hot does. Know when the rut takes place in your hunting area, know the weather and get out there to take advantage of what’s going on. Deer will move throughout the day when the time is right.

Another option is to try rattling. Bucks will readily respond to rattling antlers a couple of weeks before the breeding season kicks into high gear. You may also have a shot a drawing them onto your small hunting tract after the rut as tapered off. A buck may cruise by to take a look if he thinks there is one last shot at breeding success.

Hunt Deer, Don’t Scare Them

Hunt only when the wind is right. This idea is so simple in theory, but it had been one of the most difficult things for me to put into practice during the hunting season. The problem had always been that I wanted to be in the field regardless of whether or not the weather was right. After years, however, I’ve learned that not only is hunting bad wind not effective, it can can run a buck out of the area for good.

I had one buck wind me several years ago and he never showed back up, at least not on game camera, for almost 5 weeks. Mature deer learn real quick when an area is not safe. That’s how they got old.

Hunting Small Acreage Successfully

These tips are a good place to start when deer hunting smaller tracts or any property for that matter. Whitetail are smart animals and that makes them challenging to hunt. It also makes it that much more rewarding when we’re lucky enough to bag a good one, especially on small acreage.

There is something about hunting these mini properties that makes deer hunting even more challenging. It’s good to shoot deer, but keep always remember that deer harvest management is even more important on small tracts. Do not over hunt them.

The last of the 2012-13 Texas deer hunting seasons officially ended as the month of February came to an end. Many hunters put deer season behind them months ago when the General Season ended, but properties enrolled in Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Managed Lands Deer Permit (MLDP) Program under Levels 2 and 3 just wrapped up their hunting. Now that the month of March has blown in (literally) it appears a new crop of fawns will be hitting the ground in just a couple of months. Where does the time go?

But as one season ends, another is about to bloom. Hopefully. Chalk up another drier than average winter for almost every corner of the state. Things have been green as of late, but soil moisture is low and everyone is going to need more rain when the temperatures increase. There just is not much in the tank and it’s going to get ripped out of the soil as plants use it for both growth and evaporative cooling. Deer and their habitat need rain from time to time. As research out of Texas A&M University-Kingsville, where they were investigating antler growth in both fed and unfed bucks, recently stated:

“Average antler size of males in both treatments decreased noticeably during drought in 2009 and 20011. Antler size decreased during drought even with pelleted feed; we interpret this result to imply that maintaining quality natural forage is important and deer depend on vegetation even when pelleted feed is available.”

Amen, brother.

High quality forbs and browse will always be the gold standard when it comes to whitetail deer foods. That’s the primarily reason I am a big believer in deer habitat management. Food availability can be manipulated through habitat enhancement and deer population management, but it’s hard to grow good habitat when Mother Nature does not lend a helping hand. Fortunately, whitetail deer are a hardy species that can make do when times are tough. Things are looking okay so far.

There are more than just deer in them there woods though. Improving deer habitat benefits many other wildlife species too. Most habitat management practices for whitetail deer fall right in line with turkey management techniques, creating better habitat for those animals as well as other game and non-game species. Habitat enhancement is a large part of developing better deer and turkey hunting, but it must start with action on the ground.

It ends with happier land managers, hunters and wildlife, including rabbits, quail (if you still have some) and dove. Unfortunately, healthy plant communities attract everything, including feral hogs.

The next deer hunting season starts in about 6 months, so no better time to get cracking on all the projects you planned during the last one. Hey, there’s only a couple of months left before it gets really hot. Take advantage of it. I’ve been meaning to get out and get a few more things done myself, as well as get some exercise while searching for shed antlers.

Although bucks have already started dropping antlers there are still quite a few holding on to their headgear. The 2012-13 deer season is definitely in the books, but my shed hunting season is about to be in full swing.