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Learn all about wild deer behavior, habitat improvement, food plots, hunting techniques, and much more with over 500 free articles available on our website. If you enjoy our content, we'd love to have you as an NDA member!

Habitat

5 Easy Steps to Better Deer Forage and Cover

Jan 22, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

One of the easiest ways to quickly improve forage and cover for deer is to remove a plant that doesn’t belong here. Whether it’s a non-native tree, shrub or vine, the space and resources it…

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Hunting

Mature Buck Harvest Rises to Another New U.S. Record

Jan 15, 2025 NDA Staff

U.S. deer hunters took more than 3 million whitetail bucks in the 2023-24 hunting season and set a new record in mature buck harvest, as 43% of those bucks were estimated to be 3½ years…

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Deer Science

4 Reasons Mature Bucks Are Critical to Deer Herd Health and Hunting

Jan 8, 2025 Kip Adams

Mature bucks can take your breath away. Whether it’s a frosty fall morning in the woods or a summer evening in an alfalfa field, the mere glimpse of a mature buck will make your heart…

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Habitat

A Guide to the Most Important Weather Factors in Prescribed Fire

Jan 7, 2025 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

Prescribed fire is a fantastic deer habitat management tool, and nothing is more important when using it than ensuring a safe, effective and contained burn. By planning and waiting to burn under the right conditions,…

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3 Ways to Track Fawn Recruitment

Jun 25, 2013 Dr. Will Gulsby and Dr. Karl V. Miller

Over the last decade, predators, especially coyotes, have greatly altered deer population dynamics in many parts of the country by reducing fawn recruitment (the number of fawns per doe that survive to 6 months of…

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Momentum Beats Speed for Lethal Arrow Hits

Jun 18, 2013 Bill Badgley

Lethal shots without wounding deer are every ethical hunter’s top priority, and shot placement and an understanding of anatomy are paramount. However, momentum should be the most important part of arrow selection if we want…

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QDM vs. Trophy and Traditional Deer Management

May 29, 2013 Kip Adams

Quality Deer Management (QDM) is a household name to modern day deer hunters. You can’t pick up a hunting magazine, watch outdoor television, or talk to the guys at camp without seeing or hearing the…

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When Bucks Don’t Shed Their Velvet

May 28, 2013 Joe Hamilton

The hunt on Saturday November 9, 2013, was a heart-breaker for Ryne Wade of Marion, Illinois. A huge buck he had been after was in bow range when a doe winded Ryne and spoiled the…

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The Reality of Doe:Buck Ratios

Apr 23, 2013 Kip Adams

Deer sex ratios are a common topic of conversation among whitetail hunters. Other than deer density, few subjects ignite controversy as quickly as a discussion of the number of does per buck in any given…

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How to Safely Drop Large Trees with a Chainsaw

Apr 22, 2013 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

A chainsaw is a valuable tool when it comes to improving deer habitat and manipulating a landscape to enhance hunting strategies. It is also a tool that can severely injure or kill you, especially when…

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Red Oaks are Important in Deer Nutrition

Mar 27, 2013 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

Start talking about planting trees for wildlife and the first question asked is bound to be: “Which tree species is best for me to plant?” Many people are hoping to hear there is one almighty…

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Food Plot Species Profile: Grain Sorghum

Mar 20, 2013 Bob Westerfield

My first introduction to sorghum was on a dove field over 25 years ago. The land manager had planted several strips of sorghum that not only provided a good seed source for the birds but…

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