dead deer everywhere...

[Singing Bridge]

When spring scouting I always find dead deer that didn't make it through the winter... the vast majority of which were fawns from the previous spring. But this spring, the numbers are WAY UP in my public land areas, the cold and length of the winter had a major impact. Also of note is the fact that these deer are dropping dead right now, they have died in just the last couple of weeks (the time frame is normal going back into March). But the numbers I'm finding are more than double, and some of the deer were yearlings last fall. The areas I hunt typically have no agriculture available and are poor for nutrition to a whitetail.

Curious to see if the winter kill is / was up elsewhere?

[Bucky]

I found roughly 20 dead this spring... central, south central, and west WI. Slightly higher than normal I would say

[BassBoysLLP]

I'm at 22 dead so far...same regions as Bucky. Most of the dead ones are in farm country. Too many deer and not enough browse once the crops disappear. Deer did best in areas of good thermal cover with cutovers.

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[wiscbowhntr]

I have logged in about 60 hrs between central and SE WI and found two. Both dead for a long time. I think the one in central was a wolf kill and not sure the one in Waukesha. It has all been on public land and some of it had good wintering sign. The WDNR is saying a 17% mortality rate farther up north and I would think that is low. I will find out when I head up there next week for turkeys.

[BassBoysLLP]

I have logged in about 60 hrs between central and SE WI and found two. Both dead for a long time. I think the one in central was a wolf kill and not sure the one in Waukesha. It has all been on public land and some of it had good wintering sign. The WDNR is saying a 17% mortality rate farther up north and I would think that is low. I will find out when I head up there next week for turkeys.

Im having a difficult time finding turkeys. Hopefully they are grouped up somewhere....

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[headgear]

Too much snow to even get out yet but I have a bad feeling about northern MN, one of the worst winters in a couple of decades according to WSI. I likely won't find a lot of dead deer, the population was pretty low to begin with and it can be a needle in a haystack situation in the bigwoods.

[wiscbowhntr]

I have been seeing turkeys everywhere I go. They were gobbling like crazy two weeks ago in central WI.

[PK_]

I think I am just below the winter kill zone.

Seriously though, that sucks.

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[JoeRE]

Northern Iowa lucked out, stuff melted off just in time and the deer and turkeys seem to have come through pretty well. I have found pretty average numbers of dead deer - couple dozen, some killed last fall and some winter kills.

It was so cold we never got a crust on the snow till the end, that helped the wildlife a lot, a hard crust of snow really limits what they can do. It must be ugly in northern WI and MN though.

[Singing Bridge]

When I had a cabin in the snowbelt of Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula a winter like this would wipe out entire doe families that I had monitored for years. It can take many years for the low deer population to recover... and I had entire areas that were seemingly devoid of deer.

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[Ack]

Are you finding these deer locally Scott?

[Singing Bridge]

Are you finding these deer locally Scott?

Yes, in a multi-county area. I'm surprised at how fresh a lot of them are, as they just died in the last week or so. It was definitely a tough winter on them.

[dbltmn]

I was at my cabin the last weekend in March. Had about 35 deer in the neighborhood one of the nights. I have never seen a group of deer that big in the Lakewood/Mountain area in 30 years. My son took a ride on the 4 wheeler late Sat night and saw them standing and laying in several cottage yards. I think that is a sign they were yarded up pretty tight anywhere people might be throwing out some food. I will say the deer we got a good look at looked pretty healthy so that was a relief. I am going into the woods this weekend in between raindrops. Hope I am not disappointed with what I see out in the areas I plan to walk.