How does the 'leaf drop' affect deer behavior?

[JoeRE]

For some reason I started thinking about an old article I read which was about how the leaf drop in the fall affects deer behavior. The author stated he believed most people overlook this as a factor in deer hunting. After some time spent thinking it over, I believe it does have a big impact on how deer behave in my area...

In general, I find deer spend much more of their time in the 'edge' along fields and such as long as there are leaves still on the trees. They also are more likely to travel along edges instead of deeper within any stand of timber. This seems to be true for deer in general, but a lesser extent to mature bucks.

Once the leaf drop comes along, deer have a greater tendancy to bed deeper within cover. This makes sense since it is much more 'open.' There are a few places I hunt, deeper within larger peices of woods, that are not worth hunting early in the season - but after the third week of October (our leaf drop) there are plenty of both bucks and does everywhere there.

Then the rut kicks in and everything gets crazy of course....

Just curious....what are your thoughts on the leaf drop? Does it have a significant effect where you hunt?

[GMMAT]

You'd think it woud, here.....but it has the opposite effect one might think. They don't have a CHOICE where I hunt.....except to come to the food sources available to them. By the time leaf drop occurs......they're hard on the mast crops, here. With the deer density as it is, here.......the browse line is non-existent to 6', also. So the cover they used in Septemeber and early October(to travel where I can hunt them)is now a thing of the past.

I notice them coming out of the thicker stuff later and later, though....but this could also be attributed to pressure (gun season around here is still popular in the outlying tracts I hunt).

For a time....in my woods....they have all they need within the confines of an area that allows no hunting. They stick tight in there until they've used up the food sources, there. Then.....they come out to places I can hunt them.

If the herd dynamics were different, here.......they could stay in the non-huntable area during the winter. Too many of them.....and the food sources are depleted rather quickly. I have mast producing trees, galore, though........

So I got that going for me.....which is nice.

During the rut here.......is basically the only time I see a buck (barring an early season sighting or two of a buck with his guard down).

[early in]

I think they get back to bedding earlier in the morning, and come out in the evening's a little later. It's just a matter of how much cover they have, or don't have. I believe they know they're more visible after leaf drop. JMO

[bawanajim]

We have a very diverse forest make up here, so unless we have a very heavy early snow fall that takes the leaves down over night the deer adjust slowly as it takes several weeks to a month for all of the different trees to loose their leaves.The red maple and white ash are first and the popular are nextAnd of course the red and white oaks are the last to fall so thats just another good reason to be hunting the oak flats pre rut.

[Bowman4440]

My forest is mostly oaks and white pines. I think the leaves dropping has a pretty big part of the deer movement. They become more visible the food on the ground gets covered by the falling leaves so they must browse more to find food. Also it is getting colder as the leaves drop so the deer of course start to move more. Im going to really watch this, this coming season. This thread has peaked my interest.

[rybohunter]

I've never associated a correlation between leaf drop & deer behavior. My biggest issue with leaf drop is when its very late. I have stands that I can't hunt unless the leaves are off. Last year was late leaf drop & an early end to our season, so I never got to hunt a couple of my best stands.[:@][:@]