Doe Bedding in the Marsh

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Czabs
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Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby Czabs » Sat Jan 07, 2012 11:47 am

Dan in your videos you claim and show that doe bed in kind of a circle type pattern. Scouting so far this year I haven't seen any cirlces, probably because there isn't a big enough area that isn't underwater that will support a circle. I've seen a half circle around some brush, that's the closest I've come.

I came across a spot today that most of the trees in an area of about 80 square yards had a bed underneath some held a couple beds. Would you think this is a buck changing his beds or a doe bedding area? One bed was very large. I've noticed that the buck beds I mainly find are on the edges and points of cover. This was more smack dab in the middle of the THICK junk, which leads me to believe that its a doe bedding area. What are your thoughts?


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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby dan » Sat Jan 07, 2012 12:19 pm

Sounds like doe bedding to me... they don't always bed in circles, but often bed in groups. Small beds mixed in with larger beds, lack of rubs in the beds ( there might still be some rubs in the area cause of rutting bucks looking for does ) and beds out in the middle thick areas come to mind with doe bedding...

Its hard to explain, but mature buck bedding is usually going to stick out because the exact position on the beds does not seem to be at all random... Does bed with each other for protection relying on each other... Bucks need to worry about themselves and cover every angle so no predators get them while they are bedded... There are reasons a buck picks a spot to bed. Its not a random act. He wants cover, maybe sight, maybe smell, maybe you can't get close with out him hearing you... Often its more than one of those senses covered... If you find a bed with no buck sign and it seems random, its probably not the deer your after. If it makes you think "heck, this would be a spot I would hide if I was a buck" your probably in the right spot.
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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby Czabs » Sat Jan 07, 2012 12:42 pm

dan wrote:Sounds like doe bedding to me... they don't always bed in circles, but often bed in groups. Small beds mixed in with larger beds, lack of rubs in the beds ( there might still be some rubs in the area cause of rutting bucks looking for does ) and beds out in the middle thick areas come to mind with doe bedding...

Its hard to explain, but mature buck bedding is usually going to stick out because the exact position on the beds does not seem to be at all random... Does bed with each other for protection relying on each other... Bucks need to worry about themselves and cover every angle so no predators get them while they are bedded... There are reasons a buck picks a spot to bed. Its not a random act. He wants cover, maybe sight, maybe smell, maybe you can't get close with out him hearing you... Often its more than one of those senses covered... If you find a bed with no buck sign and it seems random, its probably not the deer your after. If it makes you think "heck, this would be a spot I would hide if I was a buck" your probably in the right spot.


Sorry, forgot to mention there was one rub in the whole area. Other than that just a bunch of beds 1 large, couple small, and all the rest medium sized. The buck beds I've found so far this year have been in areas with really no trees. I'm lucky if I can get up 10 feet, and these trees aren't easy to climb (wierd angles, thorns, vines, etc.). What I've noticed is the does bed mainly in the middle and the buck beds are skirting the doe bedding areas on the transition lines and points of thick red brush and cattails.

Off topic but, would it make sense to say when picking trees for wind that you want a slightly off wind for that bed in the afternoon and morning sits you want a good wind for yourself (blowing away from where you suspect the buck to come from)?
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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby dan » Sat Jan 07, 2012 1:03 pm

Off topic but, would it make sense to say when picking trees for wind that you want a slightly off wind for that bed in the afternoon and morning sits you want a good wind for yourself (blowing away from where you suspect the buck to come from)?


My biggest worry is that my scent don't get to the buck before my arrow... If an evening set is in a spot where the wind generally blows from his staging to his bed... Good spot to hunt the just off wind... If your hunting a spot where your expecting later movement cause of distance, just off wind can give the deer a false sense of security and get him to move sooner... The biggest use of just off wind comes in hill country where bucks bedding on points with the wind blowing down the point won't be there if you wait for the wind in your face cause they are bedded there because of that wind...
I did a land scouting job for a guy and his family who have great land in Western Wisconsin and were getting frustrated because they got good bucks on camera but would never see them... I determined that by hunting with the wind in there face the bucks were bedding on the other side of the ridge with the wind coming from the ridge... Wind would switch directions and both the bucks and the hunters would do the same... They changed there set up and now hunt based on where the bucks should be bedding rather than where ever they are down wind and sent me an email detailing there best ever year with sightings and kills... In order to hunt the side of the ridge that has the wind blowing towards the bedding you have to play the just off wind... Marsh? Not as much cause there are not as many wind based beds.

As far as wind direction for morning sits in the marsh? In the mornings they seem to like to come to there beds with the wind to there back, and will sometimes circle around a bed to come in that way. I believe the reason a lot of bucks do this is so if a predator is following his scent trail he will be heading to the bed from up wind and the buck will get his scent before he gets to the bed... I tend to set up right over the top of the bed in the morning if possible... Access roughts are the big thing in the morning so you don't cross the trail the buck will take to get to the bed, nor set up wind of him.
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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby Czabs » Sat Jan 07, 2012 1:15 pm

gotchya. I might have to watch the marsh bucks video again for the 10th time.. :doh:
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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby Milk Weed Seed » Sat Jan 07, 2012 1:23 pm

dan wrote:
Off topic but, would it make sense to say when picking trees for wind that you want a slightly off wind for that bed in the afternoon and morning sits you want a good wind for yourself (blowing away from where you suspect the buck to come from)?


My biggest worry is that my scent don't get to the buck before my arrow... If an evening set is in a spot where the wind generally blows from his staging to his bed... Good spot to hunt the just off wind... If your hunting a spot where your expecting later movement cause of distance, just off wind can give the deer a false sense of security and get him to move sooner... The biggest use of just off wind comes in hill country where bucks bedding on points with the wind blowing down the point won't be there if you wait for the wind in your face cause they are bedded there because of that wind...
I did a land scouting job for a guy and his family who have great land in Western Wisconsin and were getting frustrated because they got good bucks on camera but would never see them... I determined that by hunting with the wind in there face the bucks were bedding on the other side of the ridge with the wind coming from the ridge... Wind would switch directions and both the bucks and the hunters would do the same... They changed there set up and now hunt based on where the bucks should be bedding rather than where ever they are down wind and sent me an email detailing there best ever year with sightings and kills... In order to hunt the side of the ridge that has the wind blowing towards the bedding you have to play the just off wind... Marsh? Not as much cause there are not as many wind based beds.

As far as wind direction for morning sits in the marsh? In the mornings they seem to like to come to there beds with the wind to there back, and will sometimes circle around a bed to come in that way. I believe the reason a lot of bucks do this is so if a predator is following his scent trail he will be heading to the bed from up wind and the buck will get his scent before he gets to the bed... I tend to set up right over the top of the bed in the morning if possible... Access roughts are the big thing in the morning so you don't cross the trail the buck will take to get to the bed, nor set up wind of him.


I have noticed this with bucks going to their beds in ravines, below/between cut crop fields. Could they be doing it for the same reason, or do you think they are just staying out of the open fields? I've only noticed this during bow season before gun starts. The spot I'm thinking of, the bedding is some what marshy & briar thickets..
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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby dan » Sat Jan 07, 2012 1:36 pm

Milkweed, I have seen this trait everywhere I have hunted, not just marshes...

Its funny, cause most of what you read and hear is bucks going into the wind. I think thats what people want to believe, not reality.
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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby Milk Weed Seed » Sat Jan 07, 2012 2:54 pm

Yeah the "nose to the wind" is drilled into our heads a lot!!! I was shocked when I noticed it isn't always the case, and couldn't figure it out. Got me wondering about the wind.
I also just read your post about the family in Western Wisconsin you scouted for. I think I am making the same mistake/assumption on several spots, as they were. I hope to see the same results next year, as they did this year ;)
Thanks!!!
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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby wmihunter » Sun Jan 08, 2012 7:24 am

Does a buck almost always rub in his bed? I found one large bed with a couple small clumps of red rush next to it. There are doe beds upwind on the edge of the marsh and there a nice rubs in 3 different direction s. maybe this a bucks bed during the rut only?

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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby dan » Sun Jan 08, 2012 12:33 pm

wmihunter wrote:Does a buck almost always rub in his bed? I found one large bed with a couple small clumps of red rush next to it. There are doe beds upwind on the edge of the marsh and there a nice rubs in 3 different direction s. maybe this a bucks bed during the rut only?

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Good question, I think the answer varys depending on habitat and terrain. And also buck age. I think if there is a rub-able tree in the bed and the buck is 3 or younger it should be rubbed. Older bucks rub less, but still would likely rub a tree right at the bed.
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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby wmihunter » Mon Jan 09, 2012 7:51 am

thanks for the answer dan. based on rubs in the area if this is a buck bed then it likely a 3 yr old or younger should he should've rubbed the red brush adjacent to his bed...
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Re: Doe Bedding in the Marsh

Unread postby dan » Mon Jan 09, 2012 8:37 am

wmihunter wrote:thanks for the answer dan. based on rubs in the area if this is a buck bed then it likely a 3 yr old or younger should he should've rubbed the red brush adjacent to his bed...

Correct, and one fooler would be if its a doe bedding area, you might have a rutting buck marking trees on trails crossing the does exit/entrance making you think its a buck.


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