Buck to Doe Ratio in North Georgia--Problem?

[PoultryMan]

I moved up to northern part of the state with my wife almost 10 years ago after growing up in middle Georgia.

Since moving here, I have noticed the buck to doe ratio is extremely out of balance in the opposite way that I saw back home.

I have a lot of does on the properties that I hunt. I have even more bucks. It's not uncommon for me to see 2-4 doe and 5 plus bucks per hunt.

This year I have seen 15 bucks and 4 does. On Saturday evening, I had 4 bucks and a doe come in to the food plot. I watched the bucks chase off the doe for 15-20 minutes. This seems to be typical, bucks are constantly running off the does all year.

Anyone else seeing this in the northern counties? Has the DNR ever commented on the buck to doe ratio in the northern portion of the state?

 

[Slowmow24]

I do not have this problem and I have been hunting in north ga. for about 8 years, and we have a scarcity of deer. I think it all depends on the area along with hunting pressure. This year alone I have only gotten a total of 4 bucks on trail camera and 5 or 6 does on camera, and I am running 6 cameras in multiple areas throughout my lease. I have even moved them accordingly based on sign (when conditions are met to not leave a scent trail). My area is also prone to more predators than most which is the cause of my lack of deer. We have several coyotes, bobcats, and a lot of bears. Those 3 along with hogs don't match up to a healthy heard of deer.

 

[bronikjb]

I suspect they are aware and working to correct this. Here in Stephen’s County (second from the top tier of counties) we are down to 9 or 10 doe days this year where we used to have about twice as many. Is it that more of these mountain men are bow hunters (I am not) and can thus get themselves more either sex days, or what? I hope whatever they try, it works. I am envious of those hunters on here who talk about going out and seeing 15-20 deer in a sitting. I count it a good day if I see one deer and at most one or two a year are taken from my 124 acres with a neighbor on 92 acres who does no hunting and a huge private tract nearby that also has no hunting.

 

[furtaker]

I wouldn't be killing many does off that property.

 

[WOODIE13]

Rattling should work great

 

[WOODIE13]

And not taking any does...but it is 2022 after all

 

[PAE]

Interesting.

 

[p0rky]

I do not have this problem and I have been hunting in north ga. for about 8 years, and we have a scarcity of deer. I think it all depends on the area along with hunting pressure. This year alone I have only gotten a total of 4 bucks on trail camera and 5 or 6 does on camera, and I am running 6 cameras in multiple areas throughout my lease. I have even moved them accordingly based on sign (when conditions are met to not leave a scent trail). My area is also prone to more predators than most which is the cause of my lack of deer. We have several coyotes, bobcats, and a lot of bears. Those 3 along with hogs don't match up to a healthy heard of deer.

 

[p0rky]

I do not have this problem and I have been hunting in north ga. for about 8 years, and we have a scarcity of deer. I think it all depends on the area along with hunting pressure. This year alone I have only gotten a total of 4 bucks on trail camera and 5 or 6 does on camera, and I am running 6 cameras in multiple areas throughout my lease. I have even moved them accordingly based on sign (when conditions are met to not leave a scent trail). My area is also prone to more predators than most which is the cause of my lack of deer. We have several coyotes, bobcats, and a lot of bears. Those 3 along with hogs don't match up to a healthy heard of deer.

 

[p0rky]

are you on a lease or is this private land the reason i ask is that i would love for my son to bear hunt it

 

[Joe Brandon]

I’m in Waleska and the does are certainly more “visibly “ prevalent but back on my ridge and behind my house, when it’s dark like this and I got to work, I see just as many bucks. But I would think you’d see more does and groups there of.

 

[Powerline]

North Ga has a lack of habitat problem. Closed canopy forest or a subdivision that’s it. Needs lots of timber crews cutting and the populations would rebound quickly. This is especially true on all the national forests lands and WMA’s! No disturbances, no fire, less deer and turkeys. And ZERO quail!

 

[sea trout]

I'm in Banks, just 1 lower than most y'all are writing about. We got, (what I notice), a good buck ta doe ratio. A good healthy amount of deer.
However we don't have the bear problems yet. Sure people see the occasional bear but we don't have permanant bears.
It seems to me that in North Ga where the bears become heavy populated..... the deer become dramatically less populated.

 

[tree cutter 08]

Thats a good thing. I'd say it's more balanced than you think. Some areas just hold more bucks through out the year

 

[Slowmow24]

are you on a lease or is this private land the reason i ask is that i would love for my son to bear hunt it

This is a lease.

 

[Tight Lines]

@C.Killmaster may have some insights here...

 

[C.Killmaster]

@C.Killmaster may have some insights here...

Has to be a property-specific difference. Just based on harvest regulations alone the standing crop ratio is going to favor does in all the mountain counties. It also depends on the size of the property. If we're only looking at 100 acres, give or take, then it could just be an area that bucks like as someone mentioned above. The same observation at 1,000 acres that contains that 100 could be vastly different.

 

[mguthrie]

North Ga has a lack of habitat problem. Closed canopy forest or a subdivision that’s it. Needs lots of timber crews cutting and the populations would rebound quickly. This is especially true on all the national forests lands and WMA’s! No disturbances, no fire, less deer and turkeys. And ZERO quail!

And very few grouse left. WRD knows this but their hands are tied. The tree huggers have went to court to stop any meaningful cutting on NF lands. That’s a shame.

 

[DasHaas]

I’m in Fannin county, see tons of doe but not many bucks. Did catch this youngster on my trail cam last Jan

 

[elfiii]

I moved up to northern part of the state with my wife almost 10 years ago after growing up in middle Georgia.

Since moving here, I have noticed the buck to doe ratio is extremely out of balance in the opposite way that I saw back home.

I have a lot of does on the properties that I hunt. I have even more bucks. It's not uncommon for me to see 2-4 doe and 5 plus bucks per hunt.

This year I have seen 15 bucks and 4 does. On Saturday evening, I had 4 bucks and a doe come in to the food plot. I watched the bucks chase off the doe for 15-20 minutes. This seems to be typical, bucks are constantly running off the does all year.

Anyone else seeing this in the northern counties? Has the DNR ever commented on the buck to doe ratio in the northern portion of the state?

Count your blessings and shoot a buck.