Category: Other Blog Posts By Dr. Grant Woods

The Pre Rut occurs during late July in south Florida, September in the South Carolina coastal counties, late October/early November during most of the whitetail’s range, and late December in south Texas. No matter when it occurs, where you hunt the pre rut is a great time to deer hunt! Click HERE to read the full article at Winchester.com.

It’s mid-October and still a week or so before the whitetail pre rut in most areas. Often, this portion of the season is referred to as the October Lull. I’ve certainly experienced some hunts during this time of year when it seemed there were no deer in the area. I’ve also experienced some great hunts during mid October! It seems many folks talk about the October Lull, but…CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL BLOG AT WINCHESTER.COM

Baiting deer during season is legal in several states. This is not another promote or bash baiting story. This is a brief look at the efficiency of baiting from a scientist’s perspective. More than a decade ago, and then again very recently, scientist studied if baiting increases or decreases the chance of seeing and/or tagging a buck….CLICK HERE TO READ THE COMPLETE ARTICLE AT WINCHESTER.COM

The season for whitetails is now open in most states. In addition, farmers are starting to harvest crops, acorns are starting to fall, and the average daily temperature is changing rapidly in some areas. These factors and more mean many whitetails are changing their patterns….Click HERE to read more at Winchester.com. 

The forecast includes a good chance of rain. Some of my buddies are excited to scout based on the assumption that the rain will wash away their scent and bucks will never know they were in the area. This might be true if my buddies don’t begin scouting until its raining and deer don’t see or hear them in addition to not smelling them…Click HERE to Read More at Winchester.com. 

Most fawns are mature enough by mid September to tag along with the doe If you are getting lots of pictures of does this time of year you should also be seeing lots of fawns. Seeing lots of fawns during September is an indicator of good habitat quality and a balanced predator-prey ratio. Click Here To Read MORE at Winchester.com

During the past few weeks I had questions posted on my Facebook page asking, “Why am I getting trail camera pictures of deer that suddenly have spots of red and brown hair?” The coats of these deer appear shaggy and unhealthy. Deer molt or shed their hair twice a year. This time of year the short reddish hair falls out and is replaced by longer gray hair. The short reddish hair was their summer coat. The reddish or lighter color hair reflects the sun’s energy compared to the darker winter hair which absorbs the sun’s energy in the form of heat. Click HERE to Read More at Winchester.com

Turkey season is open or will open soon in most states! Turkey season is a lot like deer season. In most states the spring turkey season is timed around the turkey breeding season. Just like deer, turkeys go through several distinct stages of a breeding season. In fact, gobblers go through behavior similar to the pre-rut, rut, and post rut. Click Here To Read More At Winchester.com

Last week I shared the results of some recent research from the University of Georgia. Those researchers found deer opted to spend more time inside a 105 acre area where coyotes were excluded by a fence, compared to similar areas just outside the fence.

Clearly, deer preferred feeding, etc., in areas they believed to have less danger. Do deer consider hunters predators – and avoid areas they associate with hunters? Click Here To Read More at Winchester.com

The tough winter conditions this year have caused deer stress throughout the whitetail’s range. Warmer temperatures are finally in the forecast for many states. The warmer temperatures will cause native and planted vegetation to grow and provide quality forage. Does this mean deer are now living stress free? No way! Spring green up means fawning season will occur soon and coyotes will be seeking and eating fawns. Coyote depredation on fawns probably varies by area, but has clearly been documented by several researchers in different states during the past few years. Click Here To Read More At Winchester.com