Late season buck bedding

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Late season buck bedding

Unread postby Hill Hunter » Sun Dec 30, 2012 3:30 pm

In an area where they is standing grain (corn, beans), and not much other food around during the late part of archery season, with snow on the ground + cold temps and not much other food available....will bucks continue to use their 'main' beds from earlier in the season and just travel a little further to food or relocate closer to the food source??

Also with main trails being established in deeper snow, will the bucks use their normal travel patterns/routes to get to the food or start using the trails that the other deer are using?


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Re: Late season buck bedding

Unread postby dan » Sun Dec 30, 2012 10:46 pm

Some bucks will certainly start to abandon the rules and move closer to the food source... The oldest bucks sometimes stick to the safe bedding and walk the distance, and sometimes try and find nearby somewhat safe bedding... A lot of it has to do with pressure and past experiences. In the Marsh by my house big bucks are bedded way deep right now. But, on some of the local low pressure farms they are bedding 100 yards from standing corn or food plots.

They will follow easy paths to walk in deep snow... I have even the pressured bucks using my walking paths i n the deep snow.
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Dewey
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Re: Late season buck bedding

Unread postby Dewey » Mon Dec 31, 2012 4:08 am

dan wrote:
They will follow easy paths to walk in deep snow... I have even the pressured bucks using my walking paths i n the deep snow.


This is exactly what I have been seeing the last few weeks. Around here it's tough walking especially in open areas of marsh grass where the snow is over knee deep in most places. Seems like they start using my walking trails to get around easier by the next day already. If a guy had time to blaze some key trails out of bedding areas you could probably funnel the deer where you want them.

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Stanley
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Re: Late season buck bedding

Unread postby Stanley » Mon Dec 31, 2012 4:57 am

Bucks are in survival mode their entire lives. Food sources are a big part of their survival. Bucks change their habits as it gets colder and food sources dry up. This time of year the deer yard up and bed closer to food. This helps eliminate some energy usage by traveling far distances. Hunting pressure can make them bed farther from a food source, or change food sources for that matter. Also keep in mind a big buck will use the herd as his alarm so bedding in remote spots farther from food sources isn't necessary. On most of my glassing/scouting endeavors the old boy usually enters the food source last. Case in point, the buck pictured was killed by a friend of mine. There were 35 deer that came to the rye field, the old boy was the last deer right at dark to enter the field. Killed him with a 125 yard shot from a ML. One key note; hunting yarded up deer is in no stretch of the imagination like hunting early in the year. You have to adapt, as to how the deer are adapting.


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Re: Late season buck bedding

Unread postby Country » Fri Dec 06, 2013 4:57 am

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