Whitetail Deer Diet in Nebraska

@Mike

Bark, leaves, grass (even though it’s brown).

Find water. Southern NE?

@Nate north Platte area

@Nate the water we’ve found is frozen

@Brayden is a this that land trust hunt with Derek?

@Nate yes

That’s very similar to the terrain we shot Merriams turkeys in this spring, so I’m familiar with it. Most of the trees along the drainages are cedar. They’ll only eat those if they are literally starving, but they create great thermal buffers for bedding, so focus along those. They’ll also be your best source of cover for movement and stalking. If it’s a working cattle ranch, don’t be tricked by what the cows are eating. Deer are more browsers than grazers. Look for pin and blackjack oaks along the drainages that are mixed in with the cedars. They’ll eat the shoots in addition to the acorns. I’d get up on a ridge that looks over the drainages with a favorable wind. If you find an area with oaks and water….. bingo. There are also yucca plants all over the hills that will be a winter food source. Add those in range of water and the oaks or other high stem count browse and 🔥 🔥🔥

I was gonna tag @Nate next but I see he’s on it! 👊👍

@Mike my man. That’s excellent. Currently up on a ridge looking over a drainage that has a giant water source for cattle (that’s frozen). Haven’t seen any oaks but we’ll be on the lookout. We have seen plenty of cedars. It is a working cattle ranch but there aren’t any cattle out here currently. Is that picture I added the yucca you’re talking about?

@Brayden you’re doing all the right things! And yes, that’s a yucca, some call them “soap weeds.”

@Brayden yessir, that’s a yucca.

@Nate believe it or not, I actually have a yucca on my farm that’s been there for as long as I can remember. The only one I’ve ever seen in Michigan, but I’m sure there’s more, haha

@Mike and, GOOD LUCK BOYS! 👊

@Brayden and GOOD LUCK BOYS! 👊

@Mike that’s awesome 😆 cows will eat the crap outta those things in the winter.

Don't know how true it is but I'm pretty sure Nebraska white-tailed deer are carnivorous from what I've been told.🤷

They eat Runzas.

@Mike round here if you find yucca in the woods there's a skeleton under it. Its usually just a single or a pair but I'll never forget stumbling into one up on a knob after crossing a river in my kayak. There were dozens. I wanted to see if there was anything etched on the stones and scratched on a rock I saw some date from the 1800s just a couple years span. I kicked around in the leaves to see if I could find a foot stone. Once I found a couple I realized it was all children and speculate a fever probably got em.

@Appalachian well that’s a downer ….. any significance to the yucca and why they’d be planted near graves?

@Mike Native to the southeastern states. Been to one area in SC that they grow.

@Cameron yeah, I gotta believe they’re pretty uncommon way up here. I almost wonder if my grandma planted it or something.

@Mike Very possible.

@Mike best I can tell it's a long lasting marker as they live forever. Tried looking a little online about it and saw a few sources refer to it as an eternity plant with some other symbolism. My grandaddy has a large tract of land that there's documented old wagon trails that were known to be part of the underground railroad. There are a ton of graves on his place and they all are marked with it. I think it's kinda neat to find them really.

@Appalachian very interesting. Maybe I’ll have to look a little harder around the one in my farm. It’s up tight to some scotch pine. Maybe there’s something else there.?.?.

@Mike I'd say there's a chance there is as it definitely didn't get there on its own. Some of the ones I've found have maybe dinner plate sized rocks as head and foot stones just laid on the ground. Some have a pile of rock over them and others a 6 foot slight depression in the ground.

@Appalachian now I’m intrigued…

@Mike 🕵‍♂️

@Appalachian 🤯 Cool comments!

@Lisa 😁

What’s the word? How’s it going?

@Nate welll we didn’t kill anything. We’ll tell the whole story on Monday on uncensored. That one will be published the following Monday.

@Brayden don’t let it be your last trip! Come back and hunt with me next time…

@Nate ya man! We are already talking about getting back out to NE to chase some Mulies next year.

@Brayden don’t forget to reach out. I’ll help in every way I can.

@Nate much appreciated dude!!