Big Deer Stories Archives - Page 36 of 113

24 04, 2018

2017-18 Virginia Deer Harvest

admin2020-06-10T09:15:54-04:00April 24th, 2018|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Deer Management|1 Comment

During the 2017–18 season, hunters harvested 189,730 deer in Virginia. This total included 95,474 antlered bucks, 12,822 button bucks, and 81,434 does (43% of the total harvest). Archery hunters killed 27,630 deer…muzzleloader hunters shot 48,811 animals…and firearms hunters (rifles and shotguns) shot 113,169 deer, or 60% of the total. Deer hunting with dogs accounted for approximately 54% of the total firearms deer harvest in the 59 eastern counties where deer-dog hunting is legal. Approximately 157,500 deer (83%) were checked using the Department’s electronic telephone and online checking through the Go Outdoors Virginia portal. According to Deer Project Coordinator Matt Knox, the stable or declining deer harvest trends experienced in most Virginia counties over the past decade were expected. Knox further [...]

23 04, 2018

Late Spring Shed Hunting

admin2020-06-10T09:15:54-04:00April 23rd, 2018|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Shed Hunting|Comments Off on Late Spring Shed Hunting

Tyler Knott of Iowa is still shed hunting, and he just found this 72 6/8” left side. The late spring of 2018 has the woods still brown and open, with “green up” still a good week or two away. Conditions are great for one last day or two of shed hunting in an around bedding areas. Hit the woods, find a deer trail and follow it until you come to a thick and obvious area where deer stage and/or bed. Back in the fall hunting season you would have stopped, tested the wind and worked the outer fringes of such a sanctuary so as not to spook any deer. But now, plow right in. Go slow and look close for [...]

20 04, 2018

Spring: Deer Antler Growth Cycle

admin2020-06-10T09:15:54-04:00April 20th, 2018|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Deer Science|1 Comment

This graphic from the Mississippi State Deer Lab shows the entire antler growth cycle…here we focus on spring growth, what is happening right now: New antler growth resumes about 3 weeks after (old) antler drop, on a scab that has formed over the pedicles. A growing antler is covered with velvet and grows from the tip. Antler growth is slow during April-May and becomes more rapid during June-July, especially in older bucks.

18 04, 2018

Bigger Bucks: 5 Food-Plot Pointers

admin2020-06-10T09:15:54-04:00April 18th, 2018|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Deer Management|2 Comments

One: Design Before You Dig On an aerial map, look for strips and pockets of open ground toward the interior of your property, and plant those first. This keeps your plots—and the bucks they attract--away from roads and the neighbors’ fence lines. Also, the closer you plant to thick bedding cover the better your chances that mature 8- or 10-pointer will pop out into the plot to grab a bite one evening this fall. Think back to past hunts on the land. Whitetails are habitual animals that come and go in the same places from year to year. Where have you seen the most deer and found the found the most trails, rubs and scrapes over the years? Plant your [...]

13 04, 2018

Scout Deer In Spring Turkey Season

admin2020-06-10T09:15:54-04:00April 13th, 2018|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting|1 Comment

When we scout and hunt a property for deer from September through December, we poke around and look for rubs, scrapes and tracks. But we are reluctant to walk around too much or penetrate too deeply into the woods for fear of bumping deer. That’s good, but trouble is, by working only the perimeters of a hunting area, you only get a glimpse of how and where the deer, and bucks, live and travel. But in the spring, you can walk freely in the woods and investigate every ridge, bottom and thicket for signs of deer. Why not kill two birds with one stone and combine your scouting with your turkey hunting in April and May? At daylight, listen for [...]