BSK
Well-Known Member
Just an example of the data that can be collected from trail-cameras run in late summer:
Summer photo census data
- Thread starter BSK
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stickler
Well-Known Member
thats awesome how you put it like that
BSK
Well-Known Member
PowerPoint.
HOOK
Well-Known Member
That is way impressive!
8 POINTS OR BETTER
Well-Known Member
Looks like your bucks just keep getting older each year.
BigGameGuy
Well-Known Member
Hey Bryan, just trying to spark discussion here...
...but looking at the graph, in 2003 and 2004 you aged 4 and 5 bucks respectively that were at least 2-1/2 years of age and older. Except for 2007, it appears that after all this intensive management you are doing, you have the same or gained maybe one older aged class buck. What do you think is the reason for not seeing greater gains?
...but looking at the graph, in 2003 and 2004 you aged 4 and 5 bucks respectively that were at least 2-1/2 years of age and older. Except for 2007, it appears that after all this intensive management you are doing, you have the same or gained maybe one older aged class buck. What do you think is the reason for not seeing greater gains?
BSK
Well-Known Member
BigGameGuy said:
Darn good question and one I don't have an answer for, but I suspect it is simply a matter of the survivability of yearling bucks (as well as 2 1/2 year-olds) in my area, and that is driven by hunter density and deer density in the local area. Deer (and buck) densities have increased over this time-frame while hunter densities have declined, yet still we don't see much of an increase in resident older bucks. In addition, there may actually be some sort of social dynamic in place that is not understood.
But here is a better way of displaying what you are talking about. This graph only shows the number and age of resident older bucks (2 1/2+ years old). Other than 2007, not much of a change over the 6-year span:
BSK
Well-Known Member
Another interesting piece of data is looking at the total inventory of bucks I pick up on trail-cam across the 6-month span of August 1 to January 31 each year. Approximately only 1/3 of these bucks will be summer residents. The rest will be fall-season and rut range-shifters. Yet even with this data we are not seeing much of an increase in age structure. 4 1/2+ and 3 1/2 year-old bucks are basically "flat-lined" across the 5-year span of 2003 through 2007. 4 1/2+ year-old bucks run a pretty consistent 8% of the total bucks while 3 1/2 year-old bucks are a consistent 14% of all bucks. The only real change percentage-wise has been the increase in 2 1/2 year-old bucks. The percent of 2 1/2 year-old bucks has increased over the 5-year span from around 22% to just a hair over 30%. I believe that probably matches most of what is occurring across the state of TN--an increasing percent of the buck population being 2 1/2 as more and more hunters pass up yearling bucks.
Honestly, our biggest success has not been in increasing the percent of the buck population in the older age-classes, it has been in increasing the total number of bucks using the area. With habitat management increasing the food volume and acreage in good security cover, we produce and ATTRACT far more bucks to the property during the hunting season than we did previously. With more total bucks--even if the percent of them that are older doesn't change from year to year--you have more older bucks to hunt.
Here is a graph of ALL photo inventoried bucks from year to year (August 1 through January 31 each year), not just resident bucks but also those the shift in to the property during the fall as well as those that only use the property during the rut. Notice that it isn't so much a change in buck age structure as it is simply having more bucks.
And by the way, the decline in 2007 is most likely due to EHD and the lack of acorns on the study property:
Honestly, our biggest success has not been in increasing the percent of the buck population in the older age-classes, it has been in increasing the total number of bucks using the area. With habitat management increasing the food volume and acreage in good security cover, we produce and ATTRACT far more bucks to the property during the hunting season than we did previously. With more total bucks--even if the percent of them that are older doesn't change from year to year--you have more older bucks to hunt.
Here is a graph of ALL photo inventoried bucks from year to year (August 1 through January 31 each year), not just resident bucks but also those the shift in to the property during the fall as well as those that only use the property during the rut. Notice that it isn't so much a change in buck age structure as it is simply having more bucks.
And by the way, the decline in 2007 is most likely due to EHD and the lack of acorns on the study property:
BSK
Well-Known Member
Here's some more interesting data. This graph displays--for the entire census period of August 1 through January 31--when individual bucks first appear on camera. The bucks are broken into three groups: 1) resident bucks--bucks we pick up in the summer baited census (August); 2) fall range-shifters--bucks that don't appear until after velvet shedding (usually late-September through mid-October) and generally stay for the duration of the hunting season; and 3) rut range-shifters/expander--bucks that only appear on the property right around the peak of the rut and are usually only photographed for a couple of weeks, only to disappear after the peak of the rut.
Notice that the number of resident bucks has been slowly increasing. The number of rut range-shifters/expanders varies from 6 to 15 bucks, with the average being around a dozen. However, the number of fall range-shifters is highly variable, I believe this is due to the over-all layout of habitat in the area. Although my property is primarily hardwoods, there are very large agricultural bottomlands within a mile of the property. In years with a good acorn crop we draw many bucks from these bottomlands. However, in a poor acorn crop year, we draw few bucks from the bottomlands. Notice the number of fall range-shifters are low in '03, '04 and '07. These were all bad acorn years. Yet the number of fall range-shifters were very high in '05 and '06, which were very good acorn years.
Notice that the number of resident bucks has been slowly increasing. The number of rut range-shifters/expanders varies from 6 to 15 bucks, with the average being around a dozen. However, the number of fall range-shifters is highly variable, I believe this is due to the over-all layout of habitat in the area. Although my property is primarily hardwoods, there are very large agricultural bottomlands within a mile of the property. In years with a good acorn crop we draw many bucks from these bottomlands. However, in a poor acorn crop year, we draw few bucks from the bottomlands. Notice the number of fall range-shifters are low in '03, '04 and '07. These were all bad acorn years. Yet the number of fall range-shifters were very high in '05 and '06, which were very good acorn years.
