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Hunting

Don’t Be Afraid to Call an Audible When Hunting Mature Bucks

Nov 12, 2025 Cole Gander

For many hunters across the whitetail’s range, the rut represents the best time to be in the deer woods and provides the best opportunity all season to fill a tag on a mature buck. Buck…

NDA Podcasts

Whitetail Rut: Fact vs. Fiction — and How to Capitalize on It, With Kip Adams

Nov 12, 2025 NDA Staff

In this episode of the Deer Season 365 Podcast, we’re sitting down with NDA’s Kip Adams to discuss the science behind the rut. We’ll separate fact from fiction so that you can improve your odds…

Habitat

5 Forest Wildlife Species That Benefit When Hunters Improve Deer Habitat

Nov 11, 2025 Kip Adams

Deer are valuable for many reasons. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates big game hunting provides over 250,000 jobs and nearly $70 billion in federal, state and local taxes annually. Whitetails provide American families…

Deer Science

New Study Investigates Peak Rut Buck Movement

Nov 5, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

Bucks move more during the rut than any other time of year. The rut will peak at the same time every year in a given location. These two basic rules of the whitetail rut keep…

Hunting

There is No Such Thing as a Nocturnal Buck

Oct 29, 2025 Cole Gander

We’ve all heard it before and some of us may have even said it ourselves at some point: “That buck has gone nocturnal.” After capturing countless daylight trail-camera photos all summer long, those same cameras…

NDA Podcasts

Research: How Hunter Behavior Affects Deer Observation Rates With Andy Little

Oct 28, 2025 Brian Grossman

In this episode of the Deer Season 365 Podcast, we speak with Andy Little, from the University of Nebraska, about a research project he conducted examining how hunter behavior affects deer observation rates. It’s a…

Hunting

NDA’s Recommended Practices for Deer Hunters in CWD Zones

Oct 27, 2025 NDA Staff

Deer hunters who live or hunt in areas where chronic wasting disease has been found in deer are on the front lines in the fight against this disease. The National Deer Association believes that CWD…

Deer Science

Why Do Deer Raise Their Tails When They Run?

Oct 22, 2025 Matt Ross

Have you ever witnessed a deer raising its tail at you while it speedily ran away? Some believe it’s the deer version of flipping the bird, and to be honest it kind of feels that…

Venison

Venison is the Heart-Healthy, Eco-Friendly Red Meat

Oct 21, 2025 Casey Rotenberger

You spend the season putting in hours of work to harvest a deer, likely because you enjoy the sport. The enjoyment can continue long past the point of processing if you begin to realize the…

Deer Science

New Science: Rubs and Scrapes Glow Like Highway Reflectors to a Deer’s Eyes

Oct 15, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

In the light of day, our eyes see the pale yellow or white wood exposed by a buck that has shredded the bark off a small tree. But in twilight woods, deer eyes likely see…

Deer Science

My Late-Season Doe Had White Hooves

Oct 15, 2025 Cole Gander

The 2024–25 deer season was one for the ages for me in northern Missouri. Along with mentoring new hunters through NDA’s Field to Fork program, I was fortunate to harvest my largest archery buck to…

NDA Podcasts

The Art, Skill, and Joy of Traditional Archery With Ron Rohrbaugh

Oct 15, 2025 Brian Grossman

Traditional archery seems to be growing in popularity as more and more hunters yearn for stepping back in time and pursuing deer in much the same way our ancestors once did. Like most new pursuits…

Hunting

5 Steps to Recovering a Gut-Shot Deer

Oct 8, 2025 Cole Gander

My anticipation was at an all-time high as I settled into my treestand for a late-October bow hunt in the agricultural country of northern Missouri. Less than a week earlier, I had sat in that…

Hunting

A Deer for Ryan

Oct 7, 2025 Tovar Cerulli

In the dream, I was hunting with Brady. He was in good spirits, enjoying Vermont’s finest autumn weather and the chance to hunt deer in a landscape so different from his familiar Rocky Mountains. On…

Venison

6 Ways Hunters Taint Their Venison and Get “Gamey” Flavor

Oct 1, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

“Gamey” venison is code for mishandled venison. Having cooked and eaten young deer, old deer, mature bucks, rutting bucks, and ancient does, I will die on this hill. Properly handled and processed venison rarely has…

Deer Science

Scientists: Releasing Captive-Bred Deer to Fight CWD in Wild Deer Is Unlikely to Work

Oct 1, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

Recently scientists have been exploring the idea that we can fight chronic wasting disease in wild deer by releasing captive-bred, “CWD resistant” deer. Some in the deer farming industry endorsed the idea, and legislators in…

NDA Podcasts

Extreme Scent Control With Jake Ehlinger

Sep 30, 2025 NDA Staff

When you ask most hunters who have successfully gotten close to mature deer what their number one priority is when heading to the woods, they’ll tell you scent control and hunting in the right wind…

Habitat

3 Habitat Strategies That Produced 3 Mature Bucks in One Season

Sep 24, 2025 Kip Adams

The number 16 conjures positive images and memories for nearly everyone. However, in this case I’m not referring to a special birthday party or select round of hoops during March Madness. Rather, 16 is a…

Hunting

9 Tips for Making Doe Harvest and Venison Donation a Community Celebration

Sep 22, 2025 Kim Zuhlke

Despite widespread awareness of the importance of doe harvest, many hunters struggle to meet goals and maintain deer populations in balance with habitat. Our local group of NDA volunteers, the Coulee Country Branch, has been…

Venison

Which Venison Tastes Better, Bucks or Does?

Sep 17, 2025 Matt Ross

Most hunters stand firm that a primary motivator why they hunt is the ability to acquire a natural, sustainable source of delicious meat for their families. It certainly is for me! But it’s often said…

NDA Podcasts

Doe Harvest Trends: Which States Are Making the Grade?

Sep 17, 2025 NDA Staff

In this episode of the Deer Season 365 Podcast, NDA staff discuss the declining doe harvest trend, which regions and states are doing a good job of harvesting does, and which ones need to step…

Deer Science

Active Management Keeps CWD Prevalence Low. Inaction Helps it Spread and Grow.

Sep 16, 2025 Ben Westfall

Early detection and intervention are key when it comes to minimizing the spread of chronic wasting disease in deer, and there are many ways wildlife agencies do this, including targeted removal. Targeted removal is a…

Hunting

No Stand Needed: The Art and Advantages of Ground Setups for Whitetails

Sep 10, 2025 Nick Pinizzotto

Opening morning finally arrived, and I had my ambush spot picked out well in advance due to my thorough scouting efforts. I had been watching a bachelor group of five bucks consistently using a heavily…

Hunting

CWD is Ravaging My Family’s Land, But It’s Not Too Late for You

Sep 9, 2025 Paul Annear

My first season deer hunting in Wisconsin was 2001, the same season that produced Wisconsin’s first deer to test positive for chronic wasting disease. CWD has always been at the forefront of deer hunting discussions…

Hunting

Lessons of Urban Deer Hunting I Learned the Hard Way

Sep 9, 2025 Mason Vliet

I was introduced to deer hunting by my dad and grandpa on a 200-acre lease in southern Georgia. We hunted from plywood box blinds and tripod stands overlooking feeders. It was fairly straightforward and a…

Hunting

What People Get Wrong About Hunters

Sep 3, 2025 Elizabeth Kligge

Hunting can stir up strong emotions and reactions in some people, especially those who didn’t grow up around it. From an outsider’s perspective, hunting might seem unnecessary, selfish, and even brutal. But many hunters would…

Hunting Land Liability Insurance Don't put yourself or your family at risk!

Whether you are a landowner, or a hunter who leases land or is a member of a hunting club, hunting land liability insurance is essential because both parties assume some legal risk while on a property.

Landowners have a duty to guests and those paying to hunt (leaseholders). Hunters need liability insurance to protect themselves, other members of their hunting group, and even guests against acts for which they could be held legally responsible.

It is simply not worth risking your personal assets or your family’s financial security for unfortunate accidents or acts of others on the property you hunt.

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Advocating for wild deer and hunting

The NDA regularly engages on important conservation issues impacting wild deer and deer hunting at the local, state and federal levels. We ask all our members and followers to get engaged with these important policy issues to help us ensure the future of wild deer, wildlife habitat and hunting.

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National Deer Association Applauds USDA-APHIS Investment in Chronic Wasting Disease Research and Management

Oct 1, 2025 NDA Staff

The National Deer Association (NDA) praised the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) for awarding more than $11 million to strengthen efforts to combat chronic wasting disease (CWD). “We thank…

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Hunt better deer, lead new hunters and secure our heritage.

Many of the greatest joys in my life have come amidst deer, deer hunters, and deer habitat, so my decision to support the National Deer Association is an easy one.