Not seen this talked about but curious if anyone knows or has experience with wind direction driving doe movement like it does buck movement.
Other than food and pressure what are the other big factors on driving whether does take one trail versus another when headed to bed or headed back out to their feeding destination.
How much, if any, does wind direction affect doe movement!
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How much, if any, does wind direction affect doe movement!
"One of the chief attractions of the life of the wilderness is its rugged and stalwart democracy; there every man stands for what he actually is and can show himself to be." — Theodore Roosevelt, 1893
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Re: How much, if any, does wind direction affect doe movement!
If u r referring to the rut time frame, I feel they are more likely to be moving wind to back, they know the buck is gonna be coming from behind. They will scent check the bedding area much like a buck during this time, I've even witnessed them abort there reg bedding and move to less preferred to try and keep the boys off of em b4 they are ripe. But I do hunt a low deer density area and haven't hunted anywhere else since I was a kid so take it for what it's worth. I can judge how much pressure the deer are under by how they are using the wind, if there biggest threat is a coyote it's wind to back 99% of the time and very hunter friendly let yourself get spotted in a tree a time or 2 or over hunt and area and they will flip the script in a heart beat
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Re: How much, if any, does wind direction affect doe movement!
Boogieman1 wrote:If u r referring to the rut time frame, I feel they are more likely to be moving wind to back, they know the buck is gonna be coming from behind. They will scent check the bedding area much like a buck during this time, I've even witnessed them abort there reg bedding and move to less preferred to try and keep the boys off of em b4 they are ripe. But I do hunt a low deer density area and haven't hunted anywhere else since I was a kid so take it for what it's worth. I can judge how much pressure the deer are under by how they are using the wind, if there biggest threat is a coyote it's wind to back 99% of the time and very hunter friendly let yourself get spotted in a tree a time or 2 or over hunt and area and they will flip the script in a heart beat
That is interesting. I never really thought much about how does moved with the wind. Yesterday they were moving wind to back. In your experience would they go to different bedding based on a different wind?
The other thing am curious about is, all else being equal, meaning, they aren’t avoiding a treestand or something, what factors cause them to use one trail versus another (parallel) when traveling to their destination.
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Re: How much, if any, does wind direction affect doe movement!
I hunt in a farm country area that usually all plant the same thing, so they usually choose bedding based on a wind direction that would allow them to enter fields wind 2 back. on days with a wind change there's usually a midday bed shift with the does and young bucks closer to the food set up for that particular wind. The mature bucks already have a premium bedding site set up for a variety of diff winds. The trails they take to and from these fields seems pretty random I personally think it has to do with food they nibble along the way. The family group trails just seem to fan out, in a lot of cases somewhere along there path u can find a pinch that puts all those fanned out trails together increasing a hunters odds of if a buck cuts a parallel trail he will provide the hunter with a close shot. I prefer to set that pinch when both doe bedding and parallel trails are on the downwind side.
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Re: How much, if any, does wind direction affect doe movement!
I would love to hear what Magicman finds on this.
I personally notice a big shift in there defense Oct 25+ as far as wind. Still wind to back but more often side winding dense cover and j hooking into possible spots of Confrontation.
One thing I really noticed this year and it's only a theory but I have a doe group that I've known for 3 years. Now 4 momma's 1 of them is a smart mature animal that paves the way every time they travel. The last two days she appears to be MIA. The younger 3 that usually are fallowing blindly seem lost in regard to the wind.. Constantly being pestered by young bucks to the point that there chosing to bed in the wide open down wind of any dense cover. And only entering directly into the wind. Something I never paid attention to in years passed
I personally notice a big shift in there defense Oct 25+ as far as wind. Still wind to back but more often side winding dense cover and j hooking into possible spots of Confrontation.
One thing I really noticed this year and it's only a theory but I have a doe group that I've known for 3 years. Now 4 momma's 1 of them is a smart mature animal that paves the way every time they travel. The last two days she appears to be MIA. The younger 3 that usually are fallowing blindly seem lost in regard to the wind.. Constantly being pestered by young bucks to the point that there chosing to bed in the wide open down wind of any dense cover. And only entering directly into the wind. Something I never paid attention to in years passed
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