Questions about Coues behavior

[az41mag]

So after my recent hunt, I have a couple of questions about the behavior of Coues deer for those of you who have had more experience than I have. This was my first time hunting Coues deer, and it was in 24a if it makes any difference. I never found a buck in 7 days of hunting and 2 days of scouting, but I was able to find lots of does (Coues), everyday. There were two separate groups of does that I watched for several days, and their habits of feeding on the same hillside, and at the same time everyday was amazing. I could nearly set my watch by their timing both morning and evening. I do remember reading somewhere that Coues deer are some what of a homebody that will occupy relatively small areas. So that along with what I observed made me wonder if all Coues deer have similar habits to what I saw? Or was it just an isolated coincidence? Also, whether or not Coues bucks will exhibit similar behavior of feeding at the same time and place from day to day? Thank you in advance.

 

Clint

[Norteno]

Don't feel bad. I had a buddy with the same results as you in 24a for the first hunt. I went up one day to help him and it was so windy we didn't see anything. He had a shot at a spike but past. The deer weren't where they were last year, but last year it wasn't as hot. I'm curious to hear others opinions as well

[CouesWhitetail]

Yes, coues deer can be very predictable with where and when they are feeding, however, once hunting season starts, the bucks will often move to areas where there is less hunting pressure. Or they might switch to feeding at night and stay bedded during much of the day. The older a buck is the more educated he is about hunting season and they will do whatever they can to avoid hunters. Since we don't hunt coues deer does, they don't feel the same pressure and don't change their feeding and moving patterns as much as the bucks do. But if you find an area that holds several bucks during hunting season, that area is likely to have bucks in there year after year.

[bonecollector]

I went up to help my uncle on the first hunt in 24a. Opening morning at first light I found a 2pt but way out of range. I had to come back for work but he never saw another buck the rest of the hunt. I went up last Fri to do some scouting for my hunt in a couple weeks and only found does. 24a is getting pounded with tags but there are still some good bucks around just need to work a little harder to find them.

[az41mag]

Thank you Amanda for shedding some light on this subject. Just to clarify, I'm not trying to put down the unit nor am I trying to whine about not tagging a deer, (hopefully it didn't come across that way). I had a great time hunting this unit and considering it was my first time hunting Coues deer, I came away feeling like I learned a lot about these little deer and where they live. I'm just wanting to further my education for the next time I can draw a coues tag.