Nocturnal Deer
- Thread starter Geezerman
- Start date
Moving this to the Deer Hunting section...
Blizzard Ridge
Well-Known Member
Here is my theory on nocturnal. I believe that most if not all true big giant whitetails are somewhat nocturnal. Now they will get up walk around within a few yards of their bedding sanctuary but you will rarely see them out in wide open fields except for that two week period that they just can't help themselves. Even though they will get up and move around to bump a few does from time to time, when the breeding starts in my area the big old smart bucks will move the doe off from the rest of the herd to isolate her in a small woodlot or fence row to breed her. I believe they do this for two reasons. #1 Less competition in a fence row sitting in the middle of a 300 acre field and #2 No hunting pressure, he will be able to see you coming when you get out of the truck. That is why you will find me in small woodlots and fence rows during the rut. I get in early and stay all day, you just never know when they will get up to stretch their legs or move on to find the next doe.
boot
Active Member
I think this year is a bad year to judge on that, at least in my opinion. Considering weather has in the 70s through mid November, at least in Western KS, with such warm weather the bucks are in no need to get out early and feed or move around. It also varies greatly farm to farm, depending on the food, cover, and deer population for your area its gonna change. But in general I would agree that bucks favor nocturnal movement.
I agree that the temps make it somewhat uncomfortable for bucks to move but one thing I did notice was that the periods that the moon was overhead or below I saw buck movement.It may have been middle of day.I am thinking about getting the moon guide this year and comparing what they say to what i see.Some buck are just nocturnal no real reason.For example several years ago a buck moved in towards the end of Nov,he actually had been living 3 miles away.I got pictures of this deer every night,found both sheds that spring,got pictures the next year and my neighbor found dead the next spring.No one ever saw this deer alive that we have found but he was there everyday.We killed other mature deer these years on this property.
Blizzard Ridge
Well-Known Member
buckdeer1 I killed my buck on the red moon early in evening had a couple hours of daylight left. I waited to test the guide with a perfect wind direction and arrowed my 174" buck within a few minutes of the the red moon time. Coincidence? Could be. I know Adam Hayes killed his 4th 200" buck within a couple of minutes of when I killed mine that night. You are correct I believe there are bucks that rarely are seen during daylight. I have seen bucks between ages of 4 and 5 disappear to show up again at 6 or 7. I would still get there night time pictures but they just would not move during daylight. But when they hit that old age mark they started moving around again during daylight. The whitetail deer is such a remarkable creature.
g squared 23
Well-Known Member
The truly large deer we have around (very few, LOTS of hunting pressure) do not show themselves on our cams during daylight. Although most of our cams are on the field edges/food plots.
So I guess mature bucks just don't walk out in daylight to food plots in pressured areas.
I agree with the small woodlot/fencerow comment. Weekend after shotgun season I had a 150"+ walk through at 10 yards trailing a MONSTER doe. Too thick, no shot, but it was in less than a 5 acre block of timber, and I didn't see any other deer the rest of the day.
So I guess mature bucks just don't walk out in daylight to food plots in pressured areas.
I agree with the small woodlot/fencerow comment. Weekend after shotgun season I had a 150"+ walk through at 10 yards trailing a MONSTER doe. Too thick, no shot, but it was in less than a 5 acre block of timber, and I didn't see any other deer the rest of the day.
I think mature deer probably move more than we think,they just may not cover alot of ground or where a camera is.I watched deer enter my food plot one evening and realized that very few of the deer had their picture taken.you can't set out 20 cameras on every trail or area and it seems that bucks use the doe trails even less .I shot my mature buck this year but it wasn't the best place to sit or a place that I usually hunt.Only time I sat there this year and if I wouldn't have had a grunt call I wouldn't have killed my second biggest buck.It was hot this year during prime time in the midwest and thats why the cold fronts and moon may have been even more important.
Blizzard Ridge
Well-Known Member
buckdeer I would almost bet you if you hunt that same location within the same couple of days another big buck will come through there taking the place of the buck you killed. There is obviously a reason why he was there off the beaten path on that particular day.
Blizzard Ridge
Well-Known Member
Don Higgins has some very interesting information on bucks doing the same thing every year. Sometimes miles from their home range. It is very interesting read. He thinks way deeper into things than I do but he always gets me thinking.
old thread but in northern wi I actually had more daytime activity this year than the last 5. Although this year I got my bow buck opening day (September) in central wi so there was no hunting pressure up until gun season so that probably played a decent size role in it. We also over the last 2 years have dedicated a 4-8acre section of property that is off limits and I think that has helped a decent amount as well
Mennoniteman
Well-Known Member
Had a hunting guide show me a trick with nocturnal big bucks one time, a half hour after dark he took a walk around the perimeter of the food plot, the big boys didn't come in to feed that night at all, we shot the one at 10 am next day, later in the week he did the same thing and we shot a 155 at 1pm.
No way. Have you tried it on your personal property?
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Mennoniteman
Well-Known Member
I only saw the trick last fall. I know it sounds crazy, but it might just be crazy enough to work. I am planning to experiment with it a little next season.
