It just seems like the deer I get on camera are almost always in the middle of the night. My place is 40 acres, split about 50/50 w. timber and open land. I have 3.5 acres of soybeans, 1 acre over 4 plots of clover, half an acre of brassicas. There's plenty of thick, nasty woods, and there's a creek that runs diagonally through the property that always has water. I am surrounded on 3 sides by ag fields and on the other side is a 40 acres that is not used at all. There's some bigger timer around me, namely a 60 acre block that is just on the other side of the ag field to the south of me. I planted an Egyptian wheat screen all along the timer edge, to block the view from the timber to the road. There's just no reason I can come up with that the deer are so nocturnal. My only thoughts are they are bedding somewhere else and making their way onto me later in their travel route. Any Thoughts?
Typically deer go nocturnal because of hunting pressure. They will eventually move when they are chasing a hot doe. I would try to find a path near the bedding area without being too close as to disturb it and try some light calls and rattling when the rut starts picking up. That might help get a bedded buck on it's feet to come in to investigate.
No hunting to pressure them during the summer. They could feel pressured if you're constantly checking cameras or walking back in there. My guess is that they are bedding elsewhere if you haven't found any sign of them bedding on your property. Otherwise they could just move at night when its cooler and they feel safer. It sounds like the deer have no reason to leave your place. Have you glassed your fields in the evenings?
I'm referring more to the off season. Like right now, I can't find one reason why these deer feel the need to be so nocturnal. They have cover, food, water, and are concealed from outside pressure like traffic, or dogs.
Looks like good property to hold deer. If you're seeing deer at night, then you have nothing to worry about, as they are using your property as home range. You didn't mention if you are using a lick or other type of attractant near your cams. If licks are legal, you could try that. Otherwise, maybe you should consider moving you cam. Lee and Tiffs live cam testifies to the fact that deer frequently feed in broad daylight. I would look at placing a cam near a food source sourounded by a decent amount of cover. The experts claim that deer are in a race against the clock in late Summer and early Fall to put on fat and it only takes about two hours to chew cud. Bring your cams to the deer, or bring the deer to your cams; either will work.
I have specifically stayed out of the timber, only running my cameras on field edges. I've only been out once this year trying to get video of bucks in velvet. I do usually go in every week or two to check the cams, but I'm in and out pretty quick. Throughout the season, I've been back there a fair amount working up food plots, but I think this is activity that they are used to as I'm surrounded by ag field and the farmers tend to work in their fields quite a bit too.
I have 3 cams on my Monster raxx mineral sites which are all on the edges of my food plots. The deer are using the plots for sure, there's a lot of browse on the soybeans and I've gotten lots of pictures of does feeding in the clover plots. It is funny though, out of 6 cams I have running it seems like only 2 are producing buck pictures and all 6 of the cameras are probably in about a 150 yard radius. I have 2 cams on one plot and I'm getting good buck pics on one and hardly any on the other. Almost all at night. Maybe it is just the heat, but honestly we have had the mildest August I can remember. Barely hotter than the mid 80's most days and some even cooler.
My experience is that usually the nocturnal deer I am hunting, usually still like to leave safety with a little bit of light left and return to safety/bedding area with the first little bit of light. I think it helps them spot predators, coming and going. If you are mainly getting night pictures, I don't think that is a bad thing. Cameras should be placed on the fringe and not right on top of them. Being on the fringe will still give you a good sampling of what is out there and that is all you really need from the pictures at this point in the game. During hunting season I will get a little more aggesive with camera placement, but thats because of travel to and from different stands I am using.
I not by any means the great white hunter, but I have been getting out this Summer in SE Wisconsin and have seen fawns and does feeding on beans at: day break, 0800, 0930, 1130, 1300, 1430, and anytime after until dark. All except one were does. Does are typically a month behind bucks in putting on much needed winter fat due to the demands of birth and nursing. The does also rule the roost and the bucks tend to feed on
Maybe the pressure is coming from the neighbors? Is this only from this year? Or same thing happen in previous years?
Just because you aren't pressuring them doesn't mean someone else isn't and some deer can go nocturnal on a regular basis, regardless of season, until the winter months come when it gets colder. When it gets colder they start chasing does and have to move to stay warm so it throws them off their routine. I don't think you have anything to worry about.
I don't think there's any pressure from the neighbors. No activity at all on the 40 to the east of me, the 40 to the west of me does have a guy that bow hunts but I haven't seen him in there yet this year. The north ag field doesn't but up to the timber and it's planted in beans and to the south of me is an ag field in beans as well with no early season hunting on it. That one is only hunted by gun hunters that drive in opening morning and hunt out of their trucks. It seems that it's more this year than past years.
I hope your right, It's just frustrating. I was watching Midwest Whitetails preseason report and they had tons of video of bucks in velvet out in the middle of the day feeding in ag fields. Just not sure what's so different around my place.
Seems like u have a same situation we had at our woods last year, theres really not much u can do, but at least your still getting pics and when the rut comes along theyll def be more likly to come out last year we didnt get any buck pics til rut started so i say just look forward to seeing the nocturnal bucks soon
There are some positives this year for sure. I have tons of healthy does and have several shooter bucks on cam so I'm thinking all will be fine. I just love seeing them in the daylight so that I know they will be huntable during the early season. Right now, I figure I might as well go hunt some public land during the early season and keep the pressure off my place until the rut starts to kick up.
Deer, like a lot of mammals are just primarily nocturnal critters. No amount of pressure will ever change that.
Could it be that they are bedding mainly to the SW of your property in that larger section of timber? They may be using this to access your property and aren't getting there until well after dark. Just a thought.
What time are you getting pictures of the deer. They could be bedding close by if you're getting them during the twilight times.
