Can a Whitetail Buck Have Two Home Ranges?
Ninety-nine percent of bucks have a home range of a mile or so where they spend 95% of their time year-round. The boys venture out of their core areas once in a while, especially during the November rut, when they often leave for days or weeks on doe excursions. But they eventually come back home where they feel safe and comfortable. Of course there is the rogue buck. Researchers with Pennsylvania’s Deer-Forest Study monitored GPS-collared Buck 12783, which had 2 distinct home ranges. Source:Penn State College Agricultural Sciences In the image above, his main home range is the eastern (right side) mass of blue. To the west is a “vacation home” that he used for 2 years. The researchers believe [...]