I have 550 acres of private land I hunt. I am the only one who hunts it beside when I have a friend down to hunt. In the last 19 years there has only been 6 bucks killed on the property. 2 small ones a long time ago, a 12 pt that scored 144", 8 pt that scored 130", 10 point that scored 134", and a 10 point last year that was 7+ years old and was around 120". There is a large hunting club bordering me that is around 2k acres. Supposedly they have an antler restriction, but you know how that goes. They shoot a lot of deer I feel like. There is another private tract of land on the other side of me that is roughly 1,200 acres. The lone person that hunts it is fairly selective, but the past 3-4 years he has shot what I consider young bucks that scored around 110-115". I keep a log of each hunt on what I see or don't see. I have seen 21 deer so far this year, and only 2 of those have been bucks.....both small bucks... a 4pt and 6pt. I run 8-9 trail cameras during the season and the majority of my pictures are of does as well. With that information would you say my buck to doe ratio is off? What do I do to improve it? Shoot more does? During the rut I rarely see the tell tell rut signs of aggressive chasing, etc .... although my buddy who shot the 10 point last year did shoot it trailing a doe. I feel like I see a lot of "yearlings" and not a lot of big mature does. I would say half of the "does" I have seen this year were yearlings and maybe button heads. I just could not tell. Any advice or questions are welcomed.
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Question about my buck/doe ratio
- Thread starter bnew17
- Start date
buckpasser
Senior Member
Disclaimer: I’m not a biologist.
With that said, here’s my opinion based on managing a deer hunting plantation and before that paying very close attention to a lot of hunting property. Unless you see a “browse line” and indications that your land is at or behind carrying capacity, shooting more does may fix the “ratio”, but the result will just be seeing less deer. Don’t buy into the old “alls you gotta do is pop some does and them bucks will have to search, you’ll see bucks running everywhere!” It won’t work. You’re getting good results as is! Stay the course! Enjoy the land for what it provides. Good luck!
With that said, here’s my opinion based on managing a deer hunting plantation and before that paying very close attention to a lot of hunting property. Unless you see a “browse line” and indications that your land is at or behind carrying capacity, shooting more does may fix the “ratio”, but the result will just be seeing less deer. Don’t buy into the old “alls you gotta do is pop some does and them bucks will have to search, you’ll see bucks running everywhere!” It won’t work. You’re getting good results as is! Stay the course! Enjoy the land for what it provides. Good luck!
Disclaimer too: I'm not a biologist
Here is my take, i would attempt to reach out to neighbors, and get a good understanding of if/how they are managing (if at all) their property and deer herd. It is impossible to tell if their 110"-115" buck kills, from kill pictures only, are mature or younger ones...don't simply judge age based on antler size and pic of dead buck laying in field or back of a truck. My speculation is that you may have a imbalance in the ratio for buck to doe, if you/they are not killing any does. Outside of the rut, bucks and does do not generally have a bedding area or home range that truly overlap. In other words, does will typically take up the area closer to food sources (planted plots etc) , and bucks outside that doe zone. Anyway, didn't see which county you are hunting...but I manage a tract (Piedmont Region) about the same acreage size as your 550 plus the 2 lease tracts, and we regularly kill 15-20 does every season, and this year we had a biologist visit and suggest we kill 50 does......each property has its own structure, I just think it would be challenging at best to make any determination about your tract without input/feedback from your neighbors, and then deer camera survey Spring/Summer, then recording doe kill weights, lactation, jawbone age, in other words truly managing the ratio can be results based but you need to keep records so you can monitor it effectively.
Here is my take, i would attempt to reach out to neighbors, and get a good understanding of if/how they are managing (if at all) their property and deer herd. It is impossible to tell if their 110"-115" buck kills, from kill pictures only, are mature or younger ones...don't simply judge age based on antler size and pic of dead buck laying in field or back of a truck. My speculation is that you may have a imbalance in the ratio for buck to doe, if you/they are not killing any does. Outside of the rut, bucks and does do not generally have a bedding area or home range that truly overlap. In other words, does will typically take up the area closer to food sources (planted plots etc) , and bucks outside that doe zone. Anyway, didn't see which county you are hunting...but I manage a tract (Piedmont Region) about the same acreage size as your 550 plus the 2 lease tracts, and we regularly kill 15-20 does every season, and this year we had a biologist visit and suggest we kill 50 does......each property has its own structure, I just think it would be challenging at best to make any determination about your tract without input/feedback from your neighbors, and then deer camera survey Spring/Summer, then recording doe kill weights, lactation, jawbone age, in other words truly managing the ratio can be results based but you need to keep records so you can monitor it effectively.
I have been fortunate over the last 15 years to have had permission to hunt numerous private properties. The properties with the highest doe populations are the ones I see more big bucks on and more rutting activity. I also see a lot of rut activity in December. Probably because they don’t all get bred. I also think having a high doe population pulls in outside bucks during the rut. Some friends of mine that annually kill 140s and better shoot few or no does. If I had a browse line or low body weight deer then I would shoot does. A biologist may disagree, but this has been my experience. Just don’t go beyond the carrying capacity.
Jim Boyd
Senior Member
I would consider a selective camera survey.
I would run three to four cameras on corn during the rut - in secluded areas where you do not go.
I would then run the exact same survey during the summer in the same location using corn and minerals.
I would not rely on what I saw from the stand.
There may even be QDM guidelines regarding how to run an effective survey.
Good luck and it sounds like you have a GREAT set up!
I would run three to four cameras on corn during the rut - in secluded areas where you do not go.
I would then run the exact same survey during the summer in the same location using corn and minerals.
I would not rely on what I saw from the stand.
There may even be QDM guidelines regarding how to run an effective survey.
Good luck and it sounds like you have a GREAT set up!
Navigator0321
Senior Member
500 acres by yourself is a lot of land to cover
SlipperyHill Mo
Senior Member
Buck to Doe ratio is different than carrying capacity for your land.
As stated above, run a regimented camera survey in September and find out your deer density and buck/doe ratio. Biologist say 1/1 is ideal but 2/1 is good. Check QDMA or a biologist for survey methodology.
A better buck/die ratio will intensify the rut. Deer sighting will be lower if you kill does to balance the ratio it will lower your deer density. Your bucks will move more and grow larger because of less competition for food. Age is the trump card for bigger bucks, but better ratio and lower deer density will help.
I do not play a biologist on TV
As stated above, run a regimented camera survey in September and find out your deer density and buck/doe ratio. Biologist say 1/1 is ideal but 2/1 is good. Check QDMA or a biologist for survey methodology.
A better buck/die ratio will intensify the rut. Deer sighting will be lower if you kill does to balance the ratio it will lower your deer density. Your bucks will move more and grow larger because of less competition for food. Age is the trump card for bigger bucks, but better ratio and lower deer density will help.
I do not play a biologist on TV
