How is Winter Storm Diaz Affecting Deer
Contributors to this thread:Whitetail Deer
From: Brotsky
15-Dec-22
Going to be hard on wildlife here in SD.
From: hunt'n addict
15-Dec-22
Yikes is that picture of current conditions?
From: Zbone
15-Dec-22
Yeah, who took the picture?
From: Michael
15-Dec-22
That looks to be more than 2’. I had heard the black hills area was expecting 2’.
Wanted to head to central SD to call coyotes this weekend. Decided against it with all the snow and wind. Gust up to 50 today. Lots of back roads will be drifted shut after this blast.
In southwestern Mn we have gotten more rain than snow so far. Maybe 4” on the ground here.
From: Bowboy
15-Dec-22
That’s hard on wildlife and will probably be lots of winter kill
From: Brotsky
15-Dec-22
Going to be hard on wildlife here in SD.
From: Brotsky
15-Dec-22
That's a shot from the Black Hills in SD. Areas in the higher elevations have received 36-48" or more of snow in this storm.
From: t-roy
15-Dec-22
That sucks! Any upside to the heavy snowfall? What’s the drought situation out there?
From: Brotsky
15-Dec-22
It certainly helps the ongoing drought Troy, but the winter kill will be bad if we don't get a January thaw. Animals will be fine for a bit as they were fat and happy coming in...but with no thaw, winter will take its toll.
Z, I just grabbed the shot off a local news site. I did see come similar trail cam pics, and other photos that lend veracity to it, but can't say for certain if this is real. I do know the snow totals out there as mentioned above though.
From: scentman
15-Dec-22
In '89 hunting spring Turkey in the hills of Shinglehouse PA, every 50 yds you could find a deer carcass and the browse on the hemlock was 8 ft high... deer don't normally eat Hemlock, it was the worst Wildlife disaster I ever witnessed. Hope the best in your area of SD.
From: SBH
15-Dec-22
Brutal.
From: Aspen Ghost
15-Dec-22
The timing couldn't have been worse. If it had happened earlier there probably would have been a thaw before cold weather set in. But this is when the cold usually sets in for the winter so the chances for that snow melting soon are pretty slim.
From: bigswivle
15-Dec-22
80 here today. High 60s, lows in 50s next few days.
From: WV Mountaineer
15-Dec-22
Rain, rain, rain, and more rain. It’s rained for three weeks here. It’s been abnormally warm. Which means more rain coming.
From: Murph
15-Dec-22
Much needed moisture here in NC Nebraska everything from 2” of rain to 2 ft of snow here in a 60mile swath east to west wind has gusted 50mph+ for 3 days and 1 more tomorrow, everything is shut down but, considering the drought we’ve had the last 2 yrs this type of weather Is more on track as the norm. With -15-20below temps scheduled for next week deer are gonna be stressed for sure but since I’ve been alive have never seen or heard of major winter kill in this region. Food is still fairly easy to get in comparison to mule deer in say the western states, it may be a long winter but this country truly needs a more normal snowfall/winter to recover…
From: Murph
15-Dec-22
Where are you located Brotsky
From: beemann
15-Dec-22
We are getting pounded in ND as well 40MPH wind gusts all day with snow falling for days. Have no idea how bad its going to be but this early isn't good.
From: Beendare
15-Dec-22
Snow/cold in southern Az this week really affected the desert deer patterns…it made them more predictable though.
BTW, bigger bucks were rutty, smaller ones no.
From: Cazador
16-Dec-22
From: Brotsky
16-Dec-22
Murph, I'm on the east side of SD, not as bad over here, had a lot of rain. The snow in the western half of the state is certainly similar to your report with the exception of certain parts of the Black Hills that saw up to 55" of snow from reports I've seen. Going to be hard on the deer and especially the antelope.
From: wyo21
16-Dec-22
Well we finally got a little reprieve from the blowing snow and wind. 40-60mph winds the past four days non-stop here in our valley wind today... FINALLY! Next week: Lows of negative tens and twenties all week! Yay!????
I too fear that wildlife are going to take a hit this winter. Really not a good time for the deer and antelope here as disease and drought has killed and taxed many the past few years.
From: 12yards
16-Dec-22
Brotzky, do you know how far east that amount of snow goes? We hunt just west of Chamberlain. Wondering how much is there.
From: Aspen Ghost
16-Dec-22
Aspen Ghost's Link
12 yards, snow depth in attached link
From: Dakota
17-Dec-22
On top of all of the snow we got 2 days next week the high temperature for the day will be below 0.
From: midwest
18-Dec-22
How did western ND fare?
From: ND String Puller
18-Dec-22
We got close to 20” here and then 40-50 mph wind. We are heading into a deep freeze now, for a bit. It will be a rough winter for deer especially whitetails.
From: t-roy
18-Dec-22
Hoping you guys get a big January thaw!
From: ND String Puller
18-Dec-22
Thanks Troy!
From: Whocares
18-Dec-22
Got 20" where I live north of Grand Rapids and cold setting in this week. But it will settle some. As long as we don't get another big dump won't be too bad. That's a big if. Of course so was expecting a Vikings win at halftime yesterday.
From: WV Mountaineer
18-Dec-22
Well, got cooler here. It’s a very wet 20degrees with a real stiff breeze. I hope it freezes up.
Wishing the best to all you guys up north. It’s going to be a rough one.
From: Zbone
18-Dec-22
Amazes me whitetails can live in those conditions of the Dakotas and Canada...
From: HUNT MAN
18-Dec-22
Montana is about to get brutal cold. Going to be a tough winter!!
From: Michael
19-Dec-22
Temps looks pretty rough this week. Next week looks a lot better for SD. Temps in the low 40’s for highs in the Black hills. Northern SD is showing highs around 30.
Went to Milbank SD yesterday. Lots of pheasants and turkeys out and about all afternoon. They got a fair amount of snow. Maybe a foot or so. The ice they got was insane though. Lots of tree branches broken off due to the ice.
