Split_G2
12-01-2010, 05:06 AM
I know it's early but I have the itch year 'round. I just finished up going back over my shed hunting logs from the past 8 years, as well as notes from my trail cam pics and threw some statistics together for anyone new to shed hunting or anyone who may be interested in the info.
I do not claim this info to be the shed hunting bible. I'm sure some would totally disagree with my info, some areas are different. Just trying to help some of ya'll out and give you a round about idea as to when bucks shed and when you need to be looking. The info will get you in the ballpark reguardless of you are location or your deer. Below the stats, I will tell you how I approach my shed hunting each spring, my best times to seach and high/low percentage areas.
Earliest shed ever found --- November 17th, 2009 and this shed was approximately 2-3 days old
Latest Shed ever found --- April 7th, 2003
Earliest I have ever seen a shed buck --- December 2nd, 2009 and the buck had already shed both sides not just 1 side.
Latest I have seen a buck still carrying atleast 1 side --- April 9th, 2004
Freshest Shed ever found --- base still had wet blood on it
Oldest Shed ever found --- couldn't tell you but it was really old
Largest Shed ever found --- 82 4/8 inch 6 point side
Smallest shed ever found --- 4 inch long spike
By January 31 --- just 2.4% of bucks have shed both sides by this date. 9.7% have shed just one side.
January 31 thru February 14th --- By February 14th, not a whole lot of change, right at 6.8% have shed both sides, 21.4% have shed just one side.
February 15th thru February 25th --- By Febrary 25th, things are starting to pick up. Right at 17.4% have shed both sides and 42.9% have shed atleast 1 side
February 26th thru March 8th --- This has consistently been the hottest time for sheds to drop, the percentages increase dramatically in this 10 day period. By March 8th 63.8% have shed both sides and 78.7% have shed one side
March 9th thru March 21st --- Another pretty good jump here as well. By the 21st 87.4% have shed both sides and 96.0% have shed one side.
It's very important to let the bucks shed their antlers before you go looking for them. Look too early and you're gonna run your sheds off to the neighbors property and you'll never find them. Yes, the tree rats will eat them up but you shouldn't be concerned by that. They just don't eat them as fast as many like to think. Most sheds can lay there for a full month and show little to no teeth marks.
Before February 15th gets here, I do nothing more than make very quick searches in food sources such as hayfields, crop fields. I do so in the middle of the day and try to stay as scent free as possible. Some hayfields that are about 8-10 inches in heigth can be searched from a short distance at this time with binos on a windy day. I say on a windy day because the grass will move as the wind blows and a shed will not and if there is any sheds in the field with any size to them, they are easier to spot than you think. I stay completely away from bedding areas and heavily traveled trails at this time.
By February 25th, I gradually increase my search area but I do not get too crazy with it. I walk the food sources, still fairly quickly but I make sure to search the entire food sourse. Again this is still a middle of the day thing when deer are off the food. If the food source has a bedding area nearby(and I mean fairly close), I will search the trails quickly that lead to the bedding area and go thru the bedding area quickly as well.....that is if I know there are no deer bedded in the bedding area at the time. Thats about all I will search but I will search as many of them as I have access to. Also, I will begin hitting everyone of my low percentage areas.
By the time March 8th rolls around, I have stepped up my game quite a bit. I am covering a lot of miles and drinking a lot of beer by this time.....the beer is optional to you!!! Searching all the food sources with a fine toothed comb, covering atleast a couple(if not more) of the best heavily traveled trails leading from the bedding areas to the food. When it comes to the bedding areas, I am hitting most but not all of them. Bedding areas in which I am certain are holding bucks, I will stay out of for about another week or so. This is when I will also leave quite a bit of boot leather in some of my high percentage areas.
By the time March 21st rolls around, I have already been in balls to the wall mode for about 5-7 days. By this time you need to be covering some serious ground wearing out boot leather and going thru a backpack full of beer every trip....again, the beer is optional to you!!! Everything gets searched with a fine toothed comb, sometimes certain areas get searched twice or even 3 times. High percentage spots, all of them are hit everyday or atleast what my schedule allows and the same goes for low percentage areas too. I tend to stay in this mode all the way thru April 1st.
High Percentage Areas --- I'll list these from best to worst
- Overgrown fields, crp fields
- Heavily traveled trails.....mainly right in a staging area and in places along the trail where it causes a buck to do more than just walk
- Bedding areas
- Fence rows
- Food Sources
Low Percentage Areas
- Cut Cornfields.....this is mainly because everything in a cut cornfield looks like a shed, making the sheds tough to spot
- Creek Crossings
I do not claim this info to be the shed hunting bible. I'm sure some would totally disagree with my info, some areas are different. Just trying to help some of ya'll out and give you a round about idea as to when bucks shed and when you need to be looking. The info will get you in the ballpark reguardless of you are location or your deer. Below the stats, I will tell you how I approach my shed hunting each spring, my best times to seach and high/low percentage areas.
Earliest shed ever found --- November 17th, 2009 and this shed was approximately 2-3 days old
Latest Shed ever found --- April 7th, 2003
Earliest I have ever seen a shed buck --- December 2nd, 2009 and the buck had already shed both sides not just 1 side.
Latest I have seen a buck still carrying atleast 1 side --- April 9th, 2004
Freshest Shed ever found --- base still had wet blood on it
Oldest Shed ever found --- couldn't tell you but it was really old
Largest Shed ever found --- 82 4/8 inch 6 point side
Smallest shed ever found --- 4 inch long spike
By January 31 --- just 2.4% of bucks have shed both sides by this date. 9.7% have shed just one side.
January 31 thru February 14th --- By February 14th, not a whole lot of change, right at 6.8% have shed both sides, 21.4% have shed just one side.
February 15th thru February 25th --- By Febrary 25th, things are starting to pick up. Right at 17.4% have shed both sides and 42.9% have shed atleast 1 side
February 26th thru March 8th --- This has consistently been the hottest time for sheds to drop, the percentages increase dramatically in this 10 day period. By March 8th 63.8% have shed both sides and 78.7% have shed one side
March 9th thru March 21st --- Another pretty good jump here as well. By the 21st 87.4% have shed both sides and 96.0% have shed one side.
It's very important to let the bucks shed their antlers before you go looking for them. Look too early and you're gonna run your sheds off to the neighbors property and you'll never find them. Yes, the tree rats will eat them up but you shouldn't be concerned by that. They just don't eat them as fast as many like to think. Most sheds can lay there for a full month and show little to no teeth marks.
Before February 15th gets here, I do nothing more than make very quick searches in food sources such as hayfields, crop fields. I do so in the middle of the day and try to stay as scent free as possible. Some hayfields that are about 8-10 inches in heigth can be searched from a short distance at this time with binos on a windy day. I say on a windy day because the grass will move as the wind blows and a shed will not and if there is any sheds in the field with any size to them, they are easier to spot than you think. I stay completely away from bedding areas and heavily traveled trails at this time.
By February 25th, I gradually increase my search area but I do not get too crazy with it. I walk the food sources, still fairly quickly but I make sure to search the entire food sourse. Again this is still a middle of the day thing when deer are off the food. If the food source has a bedding area nearby(and I mean fairly close), I will search the trails quickly that lead to the bedding area and go thru the bedding area quickly as well.....that is if I know there are no deer bedded in the bedding area at the time. Thats about all I will search but I will search as many of them as I have access to. Also, I will begin hitting everyone of my low percentage areas.
By the time March 8th rolls around, I have stepped up my game quite a bit. I am covering a lot of miles and drinking a lot of beer by this time.....the beer is optional to you!!! Searching all the food sources with a fine toothed comb, covering atleast a couple(if not more) of the best heavily traveled trails leading from the bedding areas to the food. When it comes to the bedding areas, I am hitting most but not all of them. Bedding areas in which I am certain are holding bucks, I will stay out of for about another week or so. This is when I will also leave quite a bit of boot leather in some of my high percentage areas.
By the time March 21st rolls around, I have already been in balls to the wall mode for about 5-7 days. By this time you need to be covering some serious ground wearing out boot leather and going thru a backpack full of beer every trip....again, the beer is optional to you!!! Everything gets searched with a fine toothed comb, sometimes certain areas get searched twice or even 3 times. High percentage spots, all of them are hit everyday or atleast what my schedule allows and the same goes for low percentage areas too. I tend to stay in this mode all the way thru April 1st.
High Percentage Areas --- I'll list these from best to worst
- Overgrown fields, crp fields
- Heavily traveled trails.....mainly right in a staging area and in places along the trail where it causes a buck to do more than just walk
- Bedding areas
- Fence rows
- Food Sources
Low Percentage Areas
- Cut Cornfields.....this is mainly because everything in a cut cornfield looks like a shed, making the sheds tough to spot
- Creek Crossings