Hey Duke....More "Home Range" fodder

[GMMAT]

Read a short article last night (I'll post the publication after lunch.....but it was in a question/answer type quiz section) referencing more about a buck's home range.

The question was dealing with bucks....and why they DON'T disperse.....if there's not a reason to do so. It stated if a buck had everything he needed in the area he was reared......he wouldn't have a reason to leave. The cited telemetry-based studies that showed a buck might not travel outside a Home Range as small as a "few dozen acres" barring the rutting season.

It aslo stated that the further west you go....the more they seem to travel......due to various reasons (proximity of food and does). The home ranges, naturally, are larger, there (and other places where doe density and food is not in close proximity).

Just found it interesting.....

[peakrut]

I agree they keep a very small core area for most of the year except for hunting pressure and the rut.
Late season they may move that core area due to changing food sources,limited availability and weather conditions.
Back in 92 the BIG ONE I missed kept his bedding area in the front yard next to the farm I hunted.
She has part of the yard mowed but the rest about 100 feet was just tall weeds with one small thick bushy area.
That 180+ buck daily about 1 pm would track the backside of her house come around the corner to the back yard get a
sip of water. Then head back behind this small farm in a meadow and fill his gut and then head back to bed.
The farmer told me he would do this about 3xa day and you can tell by the trail thats all this pig did.
I also witnessed this many more times with other bucks when I lived in the Illinois (Zoo ).
This is why bucks get that arch and gut as they dont have to move much and many live
right close to dwellings it seems in my experiences. Safe havens I think they call it.
My next big guy if I can seal the deal will come approximatly 50 yards from my moms house.

P.S.-By the way a former chicago bears player got him about 1/4 mile down the roadthat same year during the rut.
Stinking bears!

[GMMAT]

T:

What this says to me is.......unless we have access to them in these tight little quarters......we stand very little chance.....unless it's during the rut. This kinda stuff makes sense, to me, in my woods....as they have NO REASON to ever (barring certain times of the year when they deplete the food sources, there.....and the rut)come out of the un-huntable land (legally un-huntable).

I'd like to be able to just see what was hiding "in there".

[MichaelHunsucker]

That is interesting. Im looking forward to that article Jeff....

[GMMAT]

I received the magazine, un-solicited, Mike. I'll let you know which one it was....but I'd never even heard of it, before. This was a VERY short "quiz" section.

While we're at it.....one of the other questions addressed rubs.

I was shocked to find out some rub info. I read in there. How many rubs, on AVERAGE, does a whitetail buck make?

[MichaelHunsucker]

ORIGINAL: GMMAT
How many rubs, on AVERAGE, does a whitetail buck make?

I dont have the slightest clue, but i would guess 20-30

[peakrut]

Jeff here is a map of my mothers place theyellow blotch is where I believe I will wack this bad boy.
The white blotch is where I seen another bad boy a couple weeks ago and posted the pic here.
Of course the B is for his bed which I actually found last gun season.
See my mom always tells me she sees a 6 point that is with this 18 sneak right behind the house in the mornings.
Usually my step dad is to the west near that white blotch in the fall so my plan is to be in well before sunrise to catch
the guys sneaking back to bed. As for the 6 point my step dad has seen him and claims its the biggest 6 point you
will ever see. Now one thing that could mess this whole thing up for me is my step dad.
Last thing bucks are coming from the Northeast food plot.

[peakrut]

Big picture
Yellow we own, red access too.
I believe if we did not have that food plot he wouldn't go that far.

[GMMAT]

Hey T.....

That long strip of ag land on the left ......come to a point on the far left, bottom side.....forming an inside corner at the woods line.

Call me crazy.....but that looks like a WONDERFUL spot for an evening sit.....even though you're not too far off that road.

What is it across that strip? 130yds? I'm betting they feed int hat little corner. But......what do I know?

[peakrut]

You talking by the 80 on the road? (2nd pic)
I need to clairify the red we have access as in case one runs onto it and dies.
We can also shoot one if were on our property and it comes down a tree line on his property.
So way over there I cant actually hunt it but I am sure my step dad can.