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HOW BIG??

I've been hunting a buck for 4 years now, How big do you think a 6 1\2 year old bucks home range and core area is in the mountains, and do you think they need to drink water everyday? acres or square miles??? please give me your opinions

There's no good answer. It all depends on numerous variables. Quality of habitat, intrusions, deer population and density, food availability , plus many others.

In addition to other variables, some deer are homebodies and tend to stay close to a place, other deer tend to wander more.

No, deer do not have to go to water daily. They can get over 90% of their water needs from browse. Now, the drier it gets the less fresh browse there is which will cause a deer to seek out water more often.

I've got all that, Thank you. Im trying to figure out how different mountain whitetails are from whitetails they have actually studied. I've read a couple studies, one from Texas and one from Maryland, im just wondering what difference steep terrain makes on pre-rut and rut travel and there home range.

The average whitetail deer traverses a 25 mile area in a year.

Collared deer studies has proven that.

I've read the collared deer studies both where on very flat ground. One in eastern Maryland and the other in south Texas. I wanted your guys opinion on what you have seen West Virginia deer do over the years. I've read all about it but i think mountain deer are different then the studied deer.. don't you think??

There are several collared deer in Front Royal Virginia at the Smithsonian research center. I have seen the same deer there several years now. The old guy who heads the drives on a regular basis there has several year collections of antlers.

I think it is a guess. But if you have seen the deer for 4 years then I would think he is staying close. Your post says you have been hunting him not seeing him. I have been hunting deer like that in Pendleton county for 10 years. I just don't see em . LOL.

Yeah he goes nocturnal right at season no more daytime trail camera photos, the fact that he is on public land doesn't help. I'm trying to narrow him down but the area has no water and the water nearby he never visits. Hes a ghost lol

And if you are always seeing him in the same area on trail cameras then he is real close

I know in some pretty ruff terrain in McDowell a guy I work with killed real nice drop tine buck another guy was gettin on camera and if I remember right it was pretty good distance off from where he was killed I'm not saying like 10 - 15 miles or anything but was decent jump from one place to the next I think I would try placing a few more cams here and there will prob be real surprised where u will see the same deer and may find another shooter

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