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MAHA brings to self guided whitetail deer hunting the right deer habitat in Kansas, Iowa and Missouri and the opportunity for the hunter to do his own deer scouting pre or during the season. To assist with the deer habitat, scouting and hunting effort are the photos below that have the intent to match the aerial to ground deer habitat photos to give a better understanding of mid-west whitetail deer habitat that is accountable for many a trophy deer. This particular lease showcased in the pictures has given several hunters a few stories.
The central feature is the creek running roughly from the NW corner to the SE corner. A tributary to the larger creek is seen roughly from the middle of the photograph running to the east. These are the types of creeks that earn Kansas the identity as a "drainage state" and are the intermittent type that prevent agriculture and provide concealment. These creeks canalize deer to crossing sites, provide transit zones and cover, in this case right next to crop or feeding fields. Many large woods deer hunters look at this terrain and do not
consider it worth scouting or hunting for that matter. The contrary is true. This farm
did hold at lest one trophy whitetail no one harvested the year we built this
web page. The point we are attempting to make is these aerial and ground deer
habitat photos is they are great tools, however they are not decision makers.
None of us should dismiss a property for not having quality deer habitat until
we have scouted it with boots on the ground. Even after scouting and spending a day or two in a stand may show
more than can be gained from one scouting effort.
From the northeast corner facing to the southwest. The north-south running creek is down below and out of line-of-sight. The far tree line center of the photo is over 1/2 mile away. This particular field is sweet cane silage, of no real during season deer cover. The other crop fields on this farm this year were beans and hay.
The same view during December as the heavy in green picture above it.
The north-south running creek on the aerial. At this particular point the creek banks are too steep and deep for either deer or hunter to cross. The picture belies the 12 foot sheer drops to the shallow, ankle deep water below. Finding where the deer cross these creeks greatly adds to patterning their movements. These deep creeks also serve to direct perpendicular deer movement to particular crossing sites allowing the attentive hunter the opportunity for several deer stand selections. This point of the north-south running creek is just north of center on the aerial.
An interior view of a 1/4 mile long drainage on the NE corner. This drain is open inside with mature trees running its length. This is opposed to drains with steep banks and heavy undergrowth that has deer running the exterior edge. Combining the canalizing effect of the larger movement restricting north-south creek with the transit zones created by the dry easily crossed drains and wooded fence rows, focuses deer scouting and makes patterning deer easier on this habitat than in larger woods with diffused deer movement. We welcome all deer hunters to scout as much as possible before deer hunting. |
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