East Tx vs Hill Country Deer Debate

[trophy8]

Ha! Agree with the management part, key for sure

I’m aware it’s hard to believe on the body weight. There’s a few TBHers still on it. I have plenty of back up on that. It was very weird for sure. Hunted my grandparents ranch 15 minutes away for 25 years. Doubt we ever killed a deer over 150 lbs off of it.

[kyle1974]

East Tx vs Hill Country Deer Debate

We had a ranch in Batesville and had two types of deer…normal south Texas deer and then we had these deer that would look like a racehorse….they were a foot and a half longer and 20-30 lbs heavier.

Maybe 5% of the bucks taken were these thoroughbred type deer.

Yes that seems to exist in a few places. I sure wish we could cull out the smaller deer.

I got this pic a few days ago. There’s some perspective with the young deer being further back, but the one in front is probably one of the largest body bucks I’ve ever seen down here. Too bad he’s a mullet up top.

[Snowflake Killa]

We have 2 deer types to one's that weight 160 and the one's that weight 200 plus

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[lovemylegacy]

I’m aware it’s hard to believe on the body weight. There’s a few TBHers still on it. I have plenty of back up on that. It was very weird for sure. Hunted my grandparents ranch 15 minutes away for 25 years. Doubt we ever killed a deer over 150 lbs off of it.

No sir, not hard to believe at all. STx deer are a totally different animal than the deer in SETx.

SETx deer are a mutt. Them STx deer are some pure breds

[Tshelly]

Easy answer. You can SEE out west and you can’t in the east lol. Less food so the corn really draws them out Higher forage in east texas in general.

Everywhere I’ve ever hunted had 2 subspecies of deer.

Probably the best answer I’ve seen is the lower pressure per acre in the hill country vs east. I recently got on a new east Texans place with huge neighbors and light pressure. I can see 40-50 deer just with the buggy and 100+ thermal hunting at night


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[Backwoods101]

E Tx deer season is year round


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[Slew]

General observation from areas I’ve seen lots of deer but terrain was lacking imo
Like mentioned above the area appeared rocks & cacti, just didn’t appear to hold the level of natural browse, etc

That was my thoughts when I first hunted El Dorado! My buddy said the deer eat cactus and hide in the shadows from the clouds! There were 4 stands on what they said was 2k acres and you could see all 4 and the camp from any of the stands. Saw more deer in one morning that I would in a couple years of hunting NW LA. I don't know where they came from or went when all the corn was gone but I knew right then my days of looking down a firebreak among pine trees to see 2-3 squirrels and a rabbit were over! I'd just assume fish or chase ducks anyhow over deer hunt but you couldn't pay me to hunt back in the pines. My 2 cents!

[JhuntsAlot]

I hunt E.Texas and Hill Country area, mostly ET because its a closer lease and money is tight.

I have seen quality racks in both places, but the same quality are definitely on different bodies sizes. Sure would be nice to have the same HC activity and movement during daylight in E. Texas.

I havent looked into this and hope this isnt going off topic, but why are there no Axis and Sika in E. Texas?




J

[Anvilheadtexas]

I grow some great deer and know several on here that grow bucks that blow away most herds in the state free range

East Texas biggest problems that keep it from exploding:

Land fragment is largest. In the 90’s everything was 200 acres and a father, son and cheap skate uncle. Now that same 200 is busted into 40-50 acre tracks and each 50 has…. A father son and cheap skate uncle

Then add ALL want to shoot biggest on camera reguardless if it’s mature. Leases are the same. They kill waaaayyyyy too many young deer

Take a place that has the habitat and limit it to 1 hunter per 300-400 acres reguardless of cost and it’s a different world.

Solid post. The unfortunate reality is that there is continued fragmentation. 40-50 acres turns into 10-15 acres in some places (certainly not all of East Tx). But as time goes by, there will be more and more small tracts and this will mean more pressure in those immediate areas IF owners of the small tracts treat their backyards as a hunting lease. On the flipside if they don’t these little pockets can become become healthy pockets of unmolested deer.

[Landrover]

Oscar you might want to try planting Iron and Clay Cowpeas in the spring. Easy to grow and high in protein and fairly drought tolerant. Once the deer figure it’s edible it’s game on. But needs to be at least 4 or 5 acres if you have a relatively high deer density so it can reach 3 leaf stage without being wiped out.

BAM!! Love gleaning good info from you guys....thanks for the insight!!

FYI
On the purple paint.the last few years I will take the color purple I need to a paint store. I have them mix me a color in oil base and use a big brush or small roller. Done for years. And much cheaper than the spray cans not that this is an issue in the big scheme of things. Take a ladder to put your signage up high so the low life’s can’t reach it.

Again......easy enough. I will buy one can of purple paint and take it to the paint store and let them mix it up. Probably 5 gallons worth.....lol!!!

I just read a good article on East Tx deer management
Two of the keys things mentioned were age by allowing bucks to reach 4.5-6.5 age range maturity
Supplemental feeding but also mention of mineral supplement during antler development March - August
Good spring plots mentioned were iron clay cowpeas, Alyce clover & arrowleaf clover
Also key was keeping numbers down to avoid over capacity for the area (too many deer per acre)

Yessir total agreement.........Letting them get to 4.5 or over is the issue historically in that country. Hopefully it has changed.

That was my thoughts when I first hunted El Dorado! My buddy said the deer eat cactus and hide in the shadows from the clouds! There were 4 stands on what they said was 2k acres and you could see all 4 and the camp from any of the stands. Saw more deer in one morning that I would in a couple years of hunting NW LA. I don't know where they came from or went when all the corn was gone but I knew right then my days of looking down a firebreak among pine trees to see 2-3 squirrels and a rabbit were over! I'd just assume fish or chase ducks anyhow over deer hunt but you couldn't pay me to hunt back in the pines. My 2 cents!

Lmaoooooo........sounds like we grew up the same way! Deep SE Louisiana swamps fighting deer flies and mosquito's for looooong days and not even seeing a tail flicker. Definitely gonna be a slooooow transition for me from the hill country to our new place in Starville.

[coldtrail]

East TX=more pressure

[trophy8]

I hunt E.Texas and Hill Country area, mostly ET because its a closer lease and money is tight.

I have seen quality racks in both places, but the same quality are definitely on different bodies sizes. Sure would be nice to have the same HC activity and movement during daylight in E. Texas.

I havent looked into this and hope this isnt going off topic, but why are there no Axis and Sika in E. Texas?




J

Y’all kill them all from the highway

[Mayhem]

Hill country people have leases, east Texas they have the long lease.


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[RiverRat1]

Pine forests and hay meadows are not the most nutritious things for deer.

What you see as lush, green and productive can actually be very a very sterile environment.
Lots of natural browse in the hill country

This.
Ask a TPWD biologist what browse WTD like.

Anyone who says it's because of too many hunters in East Texas has never been around Llano on opening day of rifle season

[RWB]

I blame it on Yaupon, I hate that stuff