What type of acorns do whitetail deer prefer

The Hickory nut is one kind of browse, beside acorns, walnut, and wild cherry. One last word, deer do eat Hickory nuts , and the one love them most is the Whitetail. These are a whitetail buck's favorite wild foods and your deer stand should be nearby if you are hunting big bucks. It is said a deer's favorite nut is the acorn. Forbs are an herbaceous flowering plant.

Fruits and Berries. Farm Fields. Some oaks bear acorns so low in bitter tannins that they can be eaten raw. Legend says that California Indians fought over these trees , which makes some sense because one mature Valley Oak can drop 2, pounds of acorns in a really good year. A fatty acorn will make a meal, like ground almonds. What acorns do deer like the most? Category: personal finance stocks and bonds.

Just as acorns are the preferred deer food in autumn, white oak are the preferred acorns. Deer judge acorn taste, and subsequent preference by the level of tannic acid in the nut. White Oak acorns have the least tannic acid and the large rock oak the highest content. Are acorns good for anything? What does it mean when there are lots of acorns? What is whitetail deer favorite food? What is the fastest way to pick up acorns?

Pick Up Acorns Early. Will deer eat old acorns? Do squirrels eat acorns? Do acorns have worms? White oak acorns, the number one hard mast choice for deer, contain the least amount of tannic acid. Preference can vary by region. In my area, they seem to favor the pin oak or water oak, followed by red oaks, black oaks, burr oaks and live oaks. As the season progresses, deer consume the white oaks and move onto the lesser desired varieties.

In areas where there are no white oaks, deer will feed on the acorns available with the least amount of tannic acid. When scouting, look for nuts and caps on the ground. If deer are feeding on acorns there will be numerous droppings and tracks.

If you see rubs and scrapes here you are in business. Another advantage acorns offer whitetails is they fall where they feel secure. Deer, especially mature bucks, are hesitant to enter open places. That is why most mature bucks are killed on food plots at last light. Deer may feed on acorns at any time of day so when you hunt over acorns productive hunting time is significantly extended. One of the problems many hunters face when hunting deer over acorns is deciding which trees to hunt.

Deer will literally walk through acorns on the ground to feed under a certain tree. White oak acorns are lowest in tannic acid but why do deer prefer acorns from one white oak tree over white oaks nearby? How do you locate the magic tree that deer will key on? Some experts speculate that tannic acid values in acorns vary from tree to tree. Another theory is the more that deer feed under one tree, the more scent they leave on the ground.

The accumulated deer scent could attract other deer to the acorns on the ground. I don't really care why deer focus on certain acorn trees; I just want to know where those trees are so I can hunt them.

Obviously, more tracks and droppings under a certain tree indicate heavy use. To find such a tree, you must do the leg work and check individual trees. One shortcut to finding hot acorn trees is to look and listen for squirrels feeding on acorns. Another is to watch for flocks of grackles feeding on acorns. Where you find squirrels and grackles feeding on acorns, you will also find deer. These animals are noisy when feeding on acorns.

Try to identify the tree they are using. Once that is done, look for deer signs. This process helps to eliminate a lot of time wandering around from tree to tree therefore you will leave less scent in the area.

Finally, when you are on stand, notice where the deer you spot are feeding. If deer continually use a certain tree and that tree is out of range or not open for a shot, MOVE!

You can bet the next deer you see will be headed to the hot tree. As gamekeepers, we constantly look for ways to enhance our property for wildlife. After years of hunting our small farm, we have learned that certain acorn trees are more productive and attractive than others.

This is in part due to the location of the tree and the type of acorn it produces. Once a productive tree or grove of trees is identified, we choose a suitable tree nearby for our treestand.

If possible, we choose two stand sites that play different wind directions. We then clear an approach path that helps us get to the stand quietly and we avoid touching standing vegetation. This helps keep human scent to a minimum. During February, we feed these productive trees with granulated fertilizer.

To make sure the tree gets the feed we dig shovel-sized holes around the drip line of each tree at ten foot intervals. In each hole we put 8 ounces of fertilize and put dirt on top of it to keep it from leaching out. BioLogic Tree-Paks are also an option and very easy to use. Experience has shown us when the fertilized tree produces, deer target these trees like no others on the farm.

Yields appear to be higher and deer seem to prefer these acorns over others in the area. By now you probably think I am suggesting that you no longer spend all your time and money on green fields. You may even think I am telling you not to hunt green fields. That is not the case. Acorns were everywhere, but what about next season? It is widely believed that the severe drought across the southeast in was the trigger mechanism for the enormous acorn crop.

Many biologists believe that drought stress caused the desperate production of acorns as a propagation mechanism. Why yes, as turns out someone would. What's behind the need to neuter oak trees? The acorns make mowing difficult. Featured Photo: David Hill. By Amy Hatfield May 10, Tags Field Guide to Hunting Instagram. Sign Me Up! Join other outdoor enthusiasts who already get great content delivered right to their inbox.

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Your email address will need to be verified before you can log into your account. Please check your email and click the verification link. While many deer hunters and rural-property owners can recognize most common oak trees, less can name the trees that produce the most palatable acorns for deer. Even less can explain why certain acorns are tastier than others. Knowing how to recognize the differentiating characteristics of each oak species and learning to identify those species in all seasons — for instance, in winter when trees have dropped their leaves or in summer when there are no acorns on the ground — aid in two things we care deeply about:.

These oaks are prominent in the Midwest. The bur-oak acorn is brown, and nearly a third of the acorn is encased by cup or hat. This uniquely southern tree produces green acorns that turn dark brown at maturity. This makes the acorn bitter and less desirable.

This acorn is chestnut brown and its cup is wide and shallow, only covering about a fifth of the fruit. The water oak produces high yields of acorns. So while the taste is bitter, the abundance is there and the acorns will help carry deer through the winter months.

This is critical when acorns from the white oak group are long gone. Common in the Midwest and East, especially in the Appalachian states, these acorns are highly nutritious but very bitter.

It has a light-brown cup.