What To Know About Whitetail Deer Hunting
You’ve probably heard a lot about whitetail deer hunting and are curious as to what is so popular about it. For the most part, it is simply one of the most common species of deer, especially in the United States, making it a popular target for deer hunters. However, before you can go whitetail deer hunting, you should know a little about them and their habitat so that you can target them correctly.
The first thing you’ll notice when whitetail deer hunting is the reason these deer are referred to by such a name. They have a relatively long, broad tail for deer that is white on the underside (which is usually visible, due to the fact that the tail sticks up in the air). These deer are relatively small and generally have short ears. Females do not have antlers, and the antlers on bucks have all major points coming off the main beam. On average, males weigh between 30 and 70 kilograms when full grown (60-160 pounds), with females being slightly smaller.
It is most important in whitetail deer hunting to know where to find your target. You’ll do best searching hardwood areas in the south, with Texas being one of the major home states of this breed. In southeastern Texas, this is slightly adjusted due to the more mixed vegetation including or almost exclusively pines, in which whitetail can also make their homes. If you trek over to the Chisos Mountains of Texas, you’ll find that, while mule deer inhabit much of the lower foothills and bases of the mountains, whitetail deer hunting is best within the upper mountains themselves. However, in most other places, such as the Guadalupe Mountains, this is completely vice versa, with whitetails preferring the foothills.
You’ll notice in whitetail deer hunting that these animals are dainty eaters and can be quite choosey in their meal tickets. In the Chisos Mountains, you would do best to target them in areas where they can feed extensively on mountain mahogany and low shrubs, while specimens in the Edwards Plateau area are more likely to graze on forbs and grass. You’ll also find that whitetail deer hunting can occur in a very concentrated area, since these deer have a small home range and won’t stray far from it, especially where food is abundant. In fact, some marked whitetails have been noted to spend at least three years inhabiting less 600 acres.
Once you’ve determined what you are looking for and where you are going to be able to find it, you can make a success of your whitetail deer hunting trip with ease. Following these guidelines will make your trip enjoyable and fruitful.
3 Responses so far
June 5th, 2011
12:32 am
i will add after the last three years of keeping a everyday eye on the near by hunting land i can tell you a few things about north carolina deer that can help. keep in mind this is a small bit of land with real healthy deer. deer are moving feeders the move the hole time the eat. they are jumpy for any reason and the always eyes on the look out. if there is new moon with out bad weather the will feed after dark. there is a peaking order to does there is one that will give the order for them all to run. and the last one for now if the doe i front of you looks back or stairs at a patch of woods for a long period of time she can see what you cant and start looking for another deer or animal to pop up
June 5th, 2011
1:11 am
but some more pointers on the nc hunting of deer. it is more important to take does then bucks. i have hunt lots of different place in nc and i have found less does equils bigger bucks. so just shooting that trophy buck is a no no. if your not a meat hunter im sure you can find a needy family that will think you for the meat. but also it changes the tricks you can use for the hunt. if your in a high population area most of the time grunts and rattleing is useless even in rut. the number of boes to bucks is so high there is no contest for the right to breed. the bucks will just breed a large number of does and rest and not chase the idea of another bucks doe. if this is the case your best chance to get a buck is before and after the rut but you may get lucky during but the odds are bad. the odds are that only one buck is staying on the land to hunt and he will be hard to find. but after the rut he will return to his normal paths. so keep the does thin out and you bucks will become bigger and a little easyer to hunt
June 5th, 2011
1:21 am
one last trick of the high doe count hunting land if you bate a spot for hunt where it is legal to do so. do not hunt the bate you will tip the deer to a danger zone. hunt the paths going to the bate about a few hundred yards in. if that stand gets burned and the deer stop passing you.they will make a new path and still go to the same point every time. you can move the stand to a new path and let the old one cool down or you can change stand at random to keep them clue less i found this out the hard way and went thro about 2000 pounds of corn this way but the freezer was full and the family was feed. plus you can pick a choose the deer you would like best. i like the one year old does they a tender and have a good mellow taste to them and make good roast.
Leave a comment