Hurricane Effects On Deer?

[TScottO]

Our area had awful winds during the last hurricane. Supposedly our county was among the top three on the destruction chart due to winds.

As a result, the majority of pine trees have been broken off about 10-15 feet above the ground as well as the majority of our oak tress have felled. The oaks that are still standing have been stripped of most all leaves and no acorns are in sight. They are all on the ground, green and attached to limb debris. This has also hit around the time we need to be prepping the ground and making the final planting. Tree stands are hardly accessible or the ones still standing anyway and it’s takes great effort just to walk around in the woods climbing over trees and such.

I wonder how all this will effect deer travel patterns as well as which natural food sources to try and key in on. Since the deer are still in velvet here I would venture to say many a bucks antlers will have been damaged and will result in many deformed antlered deer harvested.

What do you all think? Anyone here had any similar experiences or ideas about what approach to take?

Take Care and Be Safe,
Scott

[Wynn]

Our woods here in central Fl were hit with 3 hurricanes last year with pretty much the same damage you describe. It definitely changed the trails the deer used and made getting around in the woods more difficult for us but not the deer. They simply changed their routes but generally traveled in the same directional patterns as in the past. No apparent ill affects on their health and a normal fawn drop. If anything, the deer appear more numerous than in the past on our lease. We do supplemental planting and feeding year round however. I took a fat 6 pointer just a few weeks after hurricane Jeanne with my muzzleloader. The overall harvest for the club was the same. Bow season starts in 2 days and my game camera indicates I'm set up in the right spot.

[flintlock]

We had the same scenerio when Isabel came through NC a couple of years ago...It was about this same time of year...right before the season...Antlers will be fine, deer will be fine....We weren't able to hunt our regular areas in woods...Pines and oaks took a beating....One of my favorite areas had 5 large white oaks...All were uprooted and put on the ground...We are still cleaning up the woods to have areas to hunt...We planted sawtooth oaks along with pines in areas we had to log...

Fortunately we had beans, corn and peanuts to hunt...We killed deer in the fields that year...but didn't see as many....Lost alot of woods because we had to log areas to save what we could....This year might be tough hunting....But it also opens up the woods for new growth, so long term you will be ok....
Good luck

[Land_Owner]

Ditto to better results after the hurricane emptied the tree tops and greater sunlight gets to the forest floor.  The natural forbes and corms awaiting germination there sprout and the deer get fat.  We had out BEST season every last year after the storms.  It was too wet to plow, there were NO food plots and the feeders were all destroyed and lying under hundreds of pounds of oak tree limbs, limbs that would ordinarily produce acorns.  The deer were in there thick and we got three in ten minutes - 8 Pt.; 6 Pt. and a 125# doe on a single either sex deer morning.  Best season ever.  Hope yours is too.

[TScottO]

Thanks for the replies guys. It sounds like there’s reason to still have hope. I’m going to plant regardless if I’m a little late doing so. Hopefully something will grow.

Take Care,
Scott

[JPSaxMan]

Good luck Scott

Up in PA, we got no stinkin hurricanes, no tornadoes either :-D