Should I be nervous

nhn2a

Ten Pointer
So my little 25 acres of hunting property is covered up with deer. I'm getting several dozen photos daily almost all during the day in my food plots with as many as seven deer in a field at a time. The only bad part is no bucks! Early in the season I assumed they just hadn't started growing their antlers yet. Well its now July and the only antlers I see is a spike yearling which I'd leave alone anyway.

Now I know some say if the does are there, the bucks will come but should I be getting nervous by the lack of bucks? Also I know bucks do change their range normally in the fall but when do most of you guys notice that happen?

I've had the opposite problem in the past where the bucks are there in the summer than vanish in the fall so maybe its a good sign but it just makes me a little nervous.
 

bowhuntingrook

Old Mossy Horns
You have to think that if there in bachelor groups it's either all or nothing, your less like to see a buck but you see more of them when you do. Acorns and soybeans will change patterns, soybeans are already. When you have just 25 acres, what your neighbors are doing is even more important.
 

SE_trad_hunter

Button Buck
I wouldnt be nervous at all. Its an uncontrollable thing either way, right? Most likely its a great sign for the rut. The guys seeing all the antlers now w/o does should be nervous.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
 

darkthirty

Old Mossy Horns
I won't see a single buck in my place from about April through September. Then, the bucks show up and they will stay around throughout fall/winter.
To answer your question, no, you shouldn't be concerned at all.
 

Greg

Old Mossy Horns
Does make the absolute best buck bait, in my experience. Just wait until late Oct...
 
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UncleFester

Old Mossy Horns
I won't see a single buck in my place from about April through September. Then, the bucks show up and they will stay around throughout fall/winter.
To answer your question, no, you shouldn't be concerned at all.

That's pretty much what I saw here on this new place.
 

aya28ga

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Bucks as a rule don't move around much in the Summer. Food is plentiful, developing antlers are sensitive and a buck will be careful not to bang them around too much, plus its too hot to want to travel far anyway.
 

Eggman

Twelve Pointer
No need to worry. The does normally take over prime food sources which is a positive for you. Hold tight and the boys will come around soon enough.
 

JJWise

Twelve Pointer
We have about 90acres in WV and during the summer there's always a few bucks on the property, but in late august (about a month before hunting season) they always disappear. Throughout hunting season it's almost entirely does seen while hunting and on trail cams. The exception is the rut. The first 3 weeks of November we get covered up in bucks looking for all those females.
 

nhn2a

Ten Pointer
Well I'm hopeful after reading some of these. I put in a lot of work this year making three nice food plots which the does are very attracted to. I guess I'll just have to wait for the hunting season and see what happens.
 

oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
I would be nervous, had your scenario two years ago and worried for nothing.

but i wasnt limited by foodplots. the acorns fell and saved me.
 

30/06

Twelve Pointer
Just be careful not to blow the does out before the bucks show up. Hard to keep pressure down on 25 acres
 

Bean

Eight Pointer
I have the same issue every year. My best piece of ground is 18ac full of does year round. Its like clock work somewhere between the 16th-21st of October the bucks start to show. It bothered me a lot when I was younger the older I got the more I've learned to trust my gut and my cameras "SOME". When the acorns are scattered and the corn piles aren't getting hit hard its easy to get worried. I get less pictures and get paranoid. Give it a chance worst thing that can happen is you don't shoot one and that's not the end of the world either. It only takes about 10 or 15 seconds to change an entire season.
 

luckybuck

Old Mossy Horns
If you can hold the does bucks will show up...works for us every year. There are some big ones around but we don't go anywhere near where we know they hang out.
 

btsharky

Twelve Pointer
I have one lease with 15 different bucks on camera right now. I fully expect them to wander off before the season. I had 9 there last year and laid eyes on 3 by the time the season came in. Luckily the bull came back mid December and gave me a shot. Point is they wander like crazy this time of year. Don't worry over it!!!
 
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