Now that trail cams have become a common tool used by most deer hunters, questions have naturally arisen involving their use.
• Are trail cameras tools only to be used prior to deer season?
• Do trail cameras continue to yield good evidence throughout the season?
• Should images taken during the season change your hunting tactics?
• Should cameras that are not producing deer images be moved or removed as the season progresses?
All are reasonable questions that deserve thought. My answers, in order, are no, yes, yes and, well, maybe.
Certainly, the case can be made that trail cameras can continue to be a valuable aid during the season, based on one simple fact — deer behavior constantly changes.
Short of malfunction, cameras just don’t simply decide to stop taking photos of deer. If a once-productive cam stops producing images of deer, it is likely that deer behavior or other factors have changed to the extreme point that deer are no longer showing up in front of that camera.
Trail cam users must realize that deer travel all the time but often change their routes for a number of reasons, not the least of which is hunter pressure.
Another factor is the rut. Bucks follow does, and once it is evident the chase is on and a camera isn’t producing images, then that area can be ruled out and the camera moved.
Outside of the rut, a major factor is food sources. Deer feeding habits change all the time. That lush green food plot early in the season may be frost-burned in January and lost its taste to deer. Maybe it was flooded out or killed by drought.
Hunters, like Dr. Brad Carr of Jackson, face decisions that begin with a preseason plan that could or should be altered.
“I put my cameras out in places I think deer will be, some are near hunting stands, while others may be hung along trails, water holes, and such,” Carr said. “I do this early in the season. I monitor each camera fairly regularly. Some cameras collect a lot of photos, and others not so many.
“As the season bears on, I usually end up concentrating my hunting on the cameras that continue to produce some activity. I may make a mistake by pulling other cameras out too soon. I will move them around some as things change especially food sources.”
Carr’s strategy makes as much sense as any, but leaves one question unanswered and may create a need for him to experiment. He could try leaving all his cameras in their original sites all season long just to see what they yield. It could be that areas that produce few images before the season or in the early part of the season could become productive later as deer habits change.
And, there is the question of whether or not moving cameras around introduces too much human presence (scent) in the woods.
The frustrating part of leaning on camera evidence is that a buck captured on a camera one day may never be seen again. Or, he could be there the very next day.
The only way to be sure is to keep using the cams throughout the season.
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