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Deer Habits/patterning after velvet

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IowaDave

PMA Member
The "Patterned" thread made me think of a question for you guys, but I didn't want to hijack the thread-

This is the first year I've had cameras out this early (last year I bought my first one and put it out the first of Oct), so I'm not familiar with everything that goes on & how their habbits change from early spring until fall, but I've got some pictures of a few bucks that I'd like a shot at.

There are a number of responses in that thread that say once they lose their velvet that they 'disappear'. Well, they've got to go somewhere, so I'm wondering how often any of you have had the opposite happen- once they shed their velvet you start seeing nice deer that you hadn't seen before?
Just curious becuase I know there are a lot of deer in the area that I'm not seeing on the property I'm hunting at this time.
 
We don't see ANY nice bucks on our place 'til mid-October. I've almost given up on setting up trail cams in late summer. We've put them on food plots, trails, even put on camera over corn and apples. Nothing but does, fawns, and a few smallish bucks.
 
Alot of your findings will depend on the size of the property, deer numbers, food availability, etc... Also the number of cameras you are running. They dont disappear, they just change their patterns a bit. This can be because of a switch in food sources, circadian rhythms, or climate change. Alot of the bucks that you will get this time of year may not spend the fall on your property because of the scenarios listed above, but they probably wont be far. On some of the bigger farms I hunt, I will get pics all through the summer on one part of the farm, and up seeing or killing the deer on the opposite end of the farm. The buck I killed last year was a mile away from where I had him on trail cam in August, but come Sept, and Oct I got him almost everyday on the next property over, this was due to him changing food sources. There are so many variables that come into play for a bucks "home territory" but I think if you can pattern your deers movement from year to year it will give you a great idea of where they will be come October.

My advice is run as many cams as you can in different areas, and keep tabs on where you are getting lots of doe pics and chances are that will be where your target buck is come season.

Hope this helps, Good Luck this fall :way:
 
It all depends on the particular property. Things that can heavily influence when you will get pictures of the big guys is a pretty long list. Available free water is a big draw in the hot summer, but not as important in the cooler fall weather. Changing mast and grain crops will influence this also. A big key is how much pressure the surrounding properties get as well. I have one farm that I can get big buck pics all august and september, but once the season starts they become pretty scarce. I have another one that I can count the number of big bucks I have summer pics of on one hand, yet when the rut rolls around the giants show up, which is when it really matters anyway. The best way to find out is to get the cameras up and move them around, and year after year you will see the pattern.
 
Alot of your findings will depend on the size of the property, deer numbers, food availability, etc... Also the number of cameras you are running. They dont disappear, they just change their patterns a bit. This can be because of a switch in food sources, circadian rhythms, or climate change. Alot of the bucks that you will get this time of year may not spend the fall on your property because of the scenarios listed above, but they probably wont be far. On some of the bigger farms I hunt, I will get pics all through the summer on one part of the farm, and up seeing or killing the deer on the opposite end of the farm. The buck I killed last year was a mile away from where I had him on trail cam in August, but come Sept, and Oct I got him almost everyday on the next property over, this was due to him changing food sources. There are so many variables that come into play for a bucks "home territory" but I think if you can pattern your deers movement from year to year it will give you a great idea of where they will be come October.

My advice is run as many cams as you can in different areas, and keep tabs on where you are getting lots of doe pics and chances are that will be where your target buck is come season.

:way: I agree
 
Its hard telling because the deer in front of my cameras this time of year are there for mineral. I think I could have mineral sites anywhere within the immediate area and they would be there. No pattern. But the first of September I will move my cams to areas I hunt and see what happens.
 
We usually get pics of a few big ones early, but they really start showing up in late September and October.
 
The first few weeks of the season i find that where i hunt they keep the same bed to food routine. They just start doing in later and later. As soon as the bucks shed there velvet I move my cameras to mock scrapes and rubs. The bucks start feeling there urge to set there territory. I get some good bucks during the summer, but I get a real look at all the bucks in the area on scrapes.
 
On one small piece I hunt, I can get pics of the same deer from Jun-Dec. The problem is getting in/out without getting busted. It can be tricky so i limit my time in this particular spot. Another thought which many have heard, if a mature buck busts you, he is out of the country. Not so much, it all depends on the location of food/bedding area. In 09' I ran into a giant on three separate occasions that broke half his rack off. I ran into him from Nov-Dec midday and he kept coming back. Just some thoughts for you!
 
Thanks for the replies guy! Keep 'em coming if you have anything to add.

We'll just have to see what happens as the season progresses I guess. I got pics of 3 new bucks last week that I've never seen before, so hopefully everyone sticks around and I'll have some options!

I was lucky enough to tag out early last year but kept my cameras out on the property so I had a pretty good idea of what was going on in late October & November, so hopefully those patterns will carry through to this year.
I've got a camera on a trail that last year in Oct & Nov would have 100+ pics a week on it. So far since June I've only got about 20 pics total, so hopefully they start using it again once October rolls around because it's a great spot to set up.

This is only my 2nd year hunting the property, so there's going to be a learning curve, but I appreciate all the help I get on here! :way:
 
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