Options for Alabama’s deer hunters are going to be limited when the gun season opens Nov. 17.
A prolonged drought in the majority of the state will mean the usual methods of hunting may not be very productive, depending on the amount of rainfall received on the property to be hunted.
“Most people’s green fields are non-existent,” said Dan Moultrie of Birmingham, chairman of the Alabama Conservation Advisory Board. “If we don’t get any rain, it’s going to be a tough year for deer. If it gets dry enough, a lot of the fawns will get milk, but the does are going to have a tough time keeping up. I learned this in Texas – you won’t see the effect immediately, but as the fawn crop matures in five or six years you see that these fawns never catch up.”
Moultrie, who has studied deer and deer habitat extensively in Alabama and Texas while building the Moultrie Feeders business, said hunters will likely have to change their habits to be successful.
“It’s going to be old-fashioned hunting,” he said. “The people who are used to hunting green fields, they’re going to have to go back to the woods and concentrate on acorns or whatever food source they can find. Unless we get rain, the only decent food source is going to be acorns. Some places do have good acorn crops, but not everybody.
“If you can find a creek with water, I’d recommend hunting the acorns on the edge of the creek. I think that will be the most productive area to hunt. Under these conditions, you find the food source and you find the animals. When it’s this dry, deer will basically eat anything green. I’ve even seen them eat magnolia leaves in Macon County, and that’s definitely not a preferred food.”
Despite the less-than-favorable conditions, Moultrie said at least a few people have managed to keep their sense of humor.
“I got a call the other day and the guy asked if it would be baiting to put a bucket of water out in the middle of a field,” Moultrie laughed. “I told them I didn’t know, but I referred it to the Commissioner (Barnett Lawley).”
If the weather pattern changes and winter rains become a reality, Moultrie said there could be a short window to produce a green field.
“The only quick way I know to get a late, late winter food plot is to take Marshall rye and broadcast it over the food plot,” he said. “If we start getting rain, it will provide forage on into the spring.
“And if we don’t get any rain, there are a lot of people who have spent a lot of money on fertilizer and seed. The seed will be gone, but the fertilizer will be still laying there. In the spring, instead of losing the fertilizer,
it would be a great year to come back in and plant spring forage. That will benefit the deer and a lot of other wildlife.”
Keith Guyse, Wildlife Section Assistant Chief in the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division, said that while the drought will have an effect on the state’s abundant deer herd – estimated at 1.75-million animals – he doesn’t expect dire consequences.
“It certainly puts a lot of stress on the deer, but I don’t expect to see any direct mortality from it,” Guyse said. “I don’t think we’ll see any deer starve to death. Summer is usually tough on deer anyway, and this year has been hot and dry.
“I think you’re going to see lower weights and some deer in poor condition. You’re probably going to see a lot of ribs. Fawns born in August have tough conditions to begin with, and nursing puts a heavy burden on does. That doesn’t mean every deer is going to be skinny, but those clubs who keep weights are likely to see that average weights are going to be down.”
Guyse said the natural browse deer utilize is of poor quality and the mast production is basically hit and miss across the state.
“Overall, I don’t think the food supply is going to improve until spring green-up,” he said. “It surely wasn’t good conditions for fall planting. Some people were able to wait until they got a little moisture. The deer are hitting those places hard. The natural food supply is dry and tough. They like that tender growth.
“But deer always find something to eat. It’s not necessarily good things, things they digest well. But deer are pretty resilient. They stick it out and when it greens up in spring they’ll be ready to eat.”
Dr. Warren Strickland of Huntsville, a renowned bowhunter and member of the Alabama Conservation Advisory Board, said he has several decent food plots, although he realizes he is one of the lucky few.
“I was fortunate to get rain after I planted,” Strickland said. “But I know of a lot of clubs and hunters who have not been able to get any production in their food plots. It is fairly frustrating.
“There’s not much in the way of browse, and there are very few acorns in north Alabama, almost no white oaks.”
Strickland thinks successful hunters will focus on water sources and locating those few oaks that are dropping acorns.
“There are very few places where deer can get water, especially in my part of the state,” he said. “I’ve got one small puddle of water in shaded area in a drainage. It’s just a little seep, but the deer are all over it. If you find any water source, it will be a great place to hunt.
“Hunters are going to have to go into the timber and look for acorns. If you can find acorns, you’re going to have a good chance. There’s going to be a lot of activity around that tree.”
When all else fails, Strickland concentrates on travel routes and bedding areas.
“I try to intercept a deer leaving or going into a bedding area,” he said. “On most properties, you should know where the bedding areas are. That’s a good place to start. Trails are much more prevalent around the bedding areas. I have a great morning stand with a food plot and hardwoods, plus there’s a big thicket in between. It’s a great travel corridor and a great place to intercept the deer.”
Trying to slip through the woods in search of deer is going to be a waste of time, according to Strickland.
“You’re going to have to get in a strategic place and be patient,” he said. “When you’re in the woods, it’s like walking on corn flakes. You can even walk on grass and it crunches. We just need to hope and pray for rain.”
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