BUbuckhunter

I have been on a deer lease that has intensivly managed the doe herd over the last 5 years. The 1500 acre ranch is located in the northen part of the Texas Hill Country. We have seen some great improvements on the quality of the deer since we started the program.
We started our pre-season scouting this month, and I am seeing a tremendous amount of bucks. Our ratios are coming out to just around 1 buck for every 2 does. My big concern is that our doe management may end up benefiting our neighbors big time when the rut kicks in. Will our big bucks leave our property in search of greater numbers of does? Have we over harvested the does? Anyone out there have much experience with low buck to doe ratios?

thisfatguy

Im a little curious about this as well. We signed on to a new lease this year near the Texas panhandle. We haven' t seen a single buck so far. We actually ran into the previous leasors and they said the hunting was great . . . there are a ton of animals roaming around the place . . and we have seen quite a bit, Im just a little worried about the buck population.

Of the 20 or so deer we' ve seen so far . . . about 6 or 8 of them have been fawns with the rest being doe. The gentleman who manages our lease hunts in a field not too far away . . and is always talking about how everyone is trying to concentrate on only taking quality deer.

Im just curious what ratio I should be seeing (of course assuming it should be higher than 100/0). Just curious if we need to concentrate on lowering the doe numbers for this year (we are planning on keeping the property for several years and would like to practice QDM).

Any help would be appreciated.

Deleted User

[Deleted by Admins]

S.Texas

Are you in the rocky cedar thickets of the hill country? What town are you close to?


Like to get a litle more info on your lease habitat.
One more quick question - How has your fawn crop been?

farm hunter

I' m with Brian on this - Your better off having the higher buck count now - Rest assured - come hunting season - a good portion of the bucks you see NOW will be long gone (most bucks disperse in the fall, just prior to the rut) - Hopefully others will come in to replace the dispersed deer.

Your likely in a period of time in your hunting ground where Bucks feel more comfortable in their batchelor groups - hanging out - during the summer - There won' t likely be many does around these batchelor groups. In other - likely nearby - areas its probably mostly does and fawns.

in my experience - Does/Fawns - occupy completely different areas than deer 2-1/2 yrs and most deer 1-1/2 yrs old = UNLTIL the rut begins - let us know what the buck/doe ratio is in Mid Nov - that' ll be a more telling time.

Dan O.

Does the dominant buck tend to continue to occupy the territory that the all the bucks herded in during the summer?

Dan O.

farm hunter

Dan - I' m not sure if you were looking for an answer from me ....... but I like your question - and logic - BUT I think the correct answer is " Kind of - Yes - the Dominant buck stays" .

What a sucky answer - Yes

But - I think its smarter to be more realistic. Dispersal for Bucks older than 2-1/2 has been shown to average less than 10%. (compared to roughly 80%+ for 1-1/2 yr old deer).

The problem is that - the Dominant Buck " expands his range" 3-5 fold - during the Rut - and tends to do so BEFORE the other " hopefuls" in the area. SO - In September - sightings of the DOMINANT buck usually decrease - even though he is the dominant buck for the area.

The important thing to consider when pondering Deer Social Dynamics -is that it is a dynamic, ever changing situation - where top bucks are killed and or up-ended as " dominant" - In even the best hierarchy - the situation can become a " free-for-all" at the peek of the rut.

Deleted User

[Deleted by Admins]

S.Texas

When yearling males disperse from the herd usually establish larger home ranges than when they were with their mothers. The dispersal of your younger buck benefits in less " incestuous" activity. doe disperal does not carry as large of a benefit. Does will usually suffer a higher fawn mortality because of possibly unfamiliar ground or they might have to partake of lesser quality habitat.

Dipersal is natures way of filling every available " niche" .

Works calling got to go.....

Dan O.

farm hunter; you see the way my devious mind works. If a buck claims an area of good food during the summer does his range just expand in the fall to include more does or does he move on. I like your' s and Brian' s answer. It means that if you can get a big buck to stick around in the spring, you can salivate all summer and fall until hunting season.

Dan O.