"BIG WOODS" Marshes

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May-39
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"BIG WOODS" Marshes

Unread postby May-39 » Tue Jan 21, 2014 2:11 pm

Do deer relate to large cattail/tag alder/ red osier marsh areas in the "big woods" like they do in more traditional haunts?

I was cyber scouting for big woods spots when I came upon an area that has large cattail marsh bays along a river and portions of a lake.

The river's headwaters are in a swamp that begins just a mile away . Real swamp, undrained, untamed, uninhabited, thick nasty big bear producing swamp.

These deer receive significantly less pressure and have dozens of square miles of very low or uninhabited, lowland balsam/cedar/conifer forest adjacent. Will they still prefer to bed out on the cattail islands?

I'm sure the deer browse certain areas particularly red osier but given alternative habitat, is a mature buck more apt to walk through the marsh to islands when it has thousands of soft, peat moss cedar base beds in the other direction?


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Re: "BIG WOODS" Marshes

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Tue Jan 21, 2014 4:28 pm

Do deer relate to large cattail/tag alder/ red osier marsh areas in the "big woods" like they do in more traditional haunts?


I routinely find that they do relate to these marshes in a similar fashion to the more "traditional" marsh locations. The transitions of the marsh against the conifer swamps, fingers and points, islands etc. will often have buck use like you would expect to find elsewhere. The bonus of having the marsh surrounded by a big woods conifer swamp is that it provides additional security to the bedding area. In places where it is difficult for bucks to gain age, due to hunting pressure, this type of habitat will increase the odds of them getting a few birthdays under their belt.

These deer receive significantly less pressure and have dozens of square miles of very low or uninhabited, lowland balsam/cedar/conifer forest adjacent. Will they still prefer to bed out on the cattail islands? I'm sure the deer browse certain areas particularly red osier but given alternative habitat, is a mature buck more apt to walk through the marsh to islands when it has thousands of soft, peat moss cedar base beds in the other direction?


Soft, peat moss cedar beds in a monogomous habitat will often not provide the security that a buck with a couple of birthdays behind him wants to bed near. Even though it is inside a swamp, the buck can be approached from nearly every direction. Put that cedar swamp bed up against a beaver pond, river or an area of blown down trees, or one of many other "barriers" and the buck gains protection from one or more directions and it becomes much more useful to the buck for bedding. The interior transition line of the marsh, where it butts up against the swamp, lends itself well to protecting the buck when a point or finger of the trees juts out into the marsh and should get some time invested with scouting for bucks. This same transition line will often have a lot of buck travel along its length as the buck moves between bedding / food / does.
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Re: "BIG WOODS" Marshes

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Wed Jan 22, 2014 3:47 pm

One of the things I always look for when hunting large swamps with tree's is a good aerial photograph of the seemingly endless, monogamous habitat. I really hone in on marshes contained within, as they create a very noticeable "edge" where the marsh butts up against the wooded swamp. I also look for beaver ponds, meadows and large areas of blown down trees, and old growth forest butting up against thicker and younger habitat. Creeks and rivers running through a big cedar swamp also create edge.

When a swamp is measured by "miles" we are talking about a whole lot of cover. Marshes contained within the wooded swamps really stand out on the aerials and I march right to them. I am seldom disappointed in my search for rubs / tracks / scrapes / beds.
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Re: "BIG WOODS" Marshes

Unread postby DEERSLAYER » Wed Jan 22, 2014 4:52 pm

May-39 wrote:Do deer relate to large cattail/tag alder/ red osier marsh areas in the "big woods" like they do in more traditional haunts?...

Just to try to put it in a nut shell... Yes, because we are not the only predators that hunt them. So they still need the kind of security Singing Bridge just mentioned and marshes are good at providing it.
You cannot invade mainland America. There would be a rifle behind every blade of grass.
Isoroku Yamamoto, Japanese Admiral


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