Why are they Nocturnal?

From the pictures I have gotten on my trail cameras almost 99% of the activity I see of hogs is nocturnal activity.

Can anyone explain this to me? I get random pictures at 1:00AM and have cameras out everywhere but like I stated 99% are at night.

Do hogs sleep the day away? Or is this caused by hunting pressure?
 

NCHillbilly

Administrator
Staff member
I think hogs are naturally more nocturnal than diurnal to begin with, but it's also a matter of location.

On my property which is mostly fairly open woods, every pic of a hog I get is at night. I have seen them in the daytime in areas nearby that are thicker cover and nearer to water.

One place I used to hunt down in Wilcox County was a 1,000 acre property that was mostly nearly impenetrable thickets, with scattered food plots and openings. I would see lots of hogs all day there, even though there was a lot of hunting pressure on them.
 

Mexican Squealer

Senior Member
agree on location. Here on the coast, I can find a hog to kill during daylight anytime. My farm in central Ga has tons of hogs but we never see them during daylight.
 

frankwright

Senior Member
I have noticed by watching my trail cams in Talbot county that the biggest boars always seem to be nocturnal. We have seen and killed some but always at first or last light.

If the big one is visiting the feeder at midnight to 4 am, then I get lots of pictures of smaller pigs on the feeders at 10 am, noon or 1-2 in the afternoon.
They are not real predictable but the most reliable way to kill one seems to be to sit all night.
 

markland

Senior Member
Noticed that as well on my hog lease in Twiggs Co, even though there is really very little pressure on them right now.
 

Redbeard01

Member
Why are they Nocturnal

I am not an "experienced hog hunter", but from what I saw last year in Terrell Co., and now on Beaverdam WMA, they always seem to only show up right before dark. Last year, I had a trail cam out and they came in like gangbusters after dark, but no other time. These hogs had no hunting pressure. Beaverdam has pretty consistent hunting pressure, and I have put in the miles walking, but the only time that I have found hogs has been right at dark. I keep hoping they will move more as they clean up the over abundant acorn crop we had this year.

Redbeard
 

Hillbilly stalker

Senior Member
I don't run cameras but I hunt hogs a lot. My experience is they react quickly to any pressure. When I start bowhunting hogs on Public land, I see a huge difference in the hogs between the first and second week. Also when season comes in , the hickory nuts and acorns are falling heavily, and a hog is a slave to their stomach. They move more and make a lot more noise when that's going on. When firearms season comes in, I have to walk miles and miles on the same land to find the hogs in the thickets because of the increased pressure. They make a lot less noise then also. My opinion, a big hog is twice as smart as a big deer. You could watch those same cameras when deer season has been out for a couple of months and have your answer.
 

sea trout

2021 Turkey Challenge Winner 2022 biggest turkey ?
My experience is they react quickly to any pressure.

We don't know much about hogs. We have some on occasion on our lease.
During black powder/youth week we all saw hogs in various locations on the club. Had kids who couldn't get a shot off and adults whose muskets didn't work right.
We were all excited to get some pork when regular season opened but no ones seen one since! But trail cams still gettin them at night!
 

Ihunt

Senior Member
They're smart and in most places they get pounded. Day and night. It's the best way they can survive.
 

tree cutter 08

Senior Member
They do prefer to use certian locations at different times and pressure has an affect. Usually first and last light is best times. If your getting night time pics move closer or into the thick stuff to find them in the daytime. I've seen well over 100 hogs just in the last month. Half of them was first and last 15 minutes of light around thickets.
 
Hogs are the most intelligent land animal that's hunted in all of North America. As mentioned above, a mature hog is far smarter than any mature buck.

Now, that said, hogs reproduce far more quickly than do whitetail and in areas with a good hog population, there will always be lots of younger, dumber hogs around. Most hogs killed are 1yr old +/- 6 months. When a hog reaches 2 yrs old and older, they are way smarter than those 25-75 pound tasty porkers.

Any hunting pressure in the area (doesn't have to be hog hunting pressure) will push them nocturnal. I've sat and watched 20 hogs from 20 to 150 pounds come out in the late afternoon and evening before seeing a 300+ bruiser come into the same area, but at 1 hour past SS.

If you might doubt the intelligence of a hog, go right ahead and research what the most intelligent land animals on this planet are. Elephants are also thought to be pretty smart, but I've never seen one, cept in a zoo. Primates are 1st on any list I've ever researched, but you'll need a passport to travel to Africa and shoot a baboon (plus, lots of $$)

Hogs are fun to hunt and it's a real challenge to shoot a monster boar of 300-400+ pounds. However, if you can do that, you've done something quite special.
 

Killer Kyle

Senior Member
Hogs are the most intelligent land animal that's hunted in all of North America. As mentioned above, a mature hog is far smarter than any mature buck.

Now, that said, hogs reproduce far more quickly than do whitetail and in areas with a good hog population, there will always be lots of younger, dumber hogs around. Most hogs killed are 1yr old +/- 6 months. When a hog reaches 2 yrs old and older, they are way smarter than those 25-75 pound tasty porkers.

Any hunting pressure in the area (doesn't have to be hog hunting pressure) will push them nocturnal. I've sat and watched 20 hogs from 20 to 150 pounds come out in the late afternoon and evening before seeing a 300+ bruiser come into the same area, but at 1 hour past SS.

If you might doubt the intelligence of a hog, go right ahead and research what the most intelligent land animals on this planet are. Elephants are also thought to be pretty smart, but I've never seen one, cept in a zoo. Primates are 1st on any list I've ever researched, but you'll need a passport to travel to Africa and shoot a baboon (plus, lots of $$)

Hogs are fun to hunt and it's a real challenge to shoot a monster boar of 300-400+ pounds. However, if you can do that, you've done something quite special.

I've noticed this repeatedly about hogs in the last seven or eight years. I like to hunt hogs around food plots and used to trap them. On my trail cam on the corral trap I used, the little hogs were the first ones to come into the trap, each and every time. It might take three or seven days to get the bigger, older sows to let their guard down and start feeding inside the corral. In the majority of occasions, with a couple exceptions, when I am hunting food plots, the little ones are usually the first to rush into the field.
Like stated above, every hog I have killed while hunting was either right before dark, or at dark when I hunted private land. I have only pulled the trigger on one hog in the a.m., and it was a couple weeks ago. It was so dim still, I could barely see the hog.
I did see some mid day hogs two of the last three hunts on Swallow Creek this month. I saw some moving in the snow way down in a cove somewhere around 4:00 p.m.,. and I had a big, red boar slip in on myle the next day around 2:30 p.m. as my back was turned and I was packing up my bag to leave. I was in the thick at that time. Hogs were feeding on the red oaks. Up here, I've had poor luck finding them in the daytime.
Good luck to you guys in your guest. Hoggin' sure is fun!
 
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