Research Shows Buck Bedding Is Less Predictable Than You Think

But don’t just take it from me. A study conducted by Mississippi State University revealed a sobering reality that should change the way we think about buck bedding. To find out more about this study, I spoke with Dr. Bronson Strickland of the MSU Deer Lab and what their team learned from the data.

The Caveat

Before rocks are thrown or insults hurled in the comments section, I have to point out that this study was conducted on private land in Mississippi with relatively flat topography. This fact plays a role in the outcomes and is not lost on me. There’s no shortage of bedding in the deep South. Unlike parts of the Midwest, where cover might represent a limited resource, the South might best be generalized as one big bedding area.

From a landscape perspective, these two locales are antithetical. But, these findings can still apply to other areas of the country where cover abounds. I realize this doesn’t necessarily translate to every habitat and hunting pressure scenario. Hunters in the South will probably benefit from this more than anyone, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t reveal something valuable about buck movement and bedding.

Bedding Areas vs. Bedding Sites

Before diving into our conversation, Dr. Strickland made a point to differentiate between bedding areas and bedding sites. Essentially, bedding areas are general. Bedding sites are specific.

Bedding sites are typically what hunters refer to when they mention finding a specific buck bed. For instance, one ridge might represent a bedding area, but a blowdown at the end of that ridge where the buck actually beds would be the bedding site.

Dr. Strickland noted that this distinction is important because “certain bucks demonstrated more fidelity to general bedding areas,” even if they didn’t return to the same bedding site during the study. So, while a buck might not revisit the exact bedding site, he might still prefer that general bedding area.

Bedding Data

As far as numbers go, Dr. Strickland observed that more than 50% of bucks in the study used a specific bedding site only once.

“There’s a lot of hunters who think there’s maybe three or four specific beds that a buck will use,” he said, “but that’s counter to what our research shows. We found that during a two-week time period, bucks used about 46-47 specific bedding sites, with one using as many as 56. For bedding areas, that number was between 14 and 17.”

While there were some bedding sites that a buck would revisit, that number was a slim 1% of bucks in the study. Again, it’s important to note that just because a buck didn’t revisit a specific bedding site doesn’t mean he wasn’t in the same bedding area. Depending on the size of the bedding area, the buck could have been relatively close or distant to a specific bedding site.

For hunters, that’s both good and bad news. Just because a big buck isn’t using the same bedding site doesn’t mean he won’t use the same trail where you expect to shoot him. Of course, depending on the size of the bedding area, he could still be in the same general location, but you just never see him.

What It Means for Hunters

All this information is great, but what do we do with it? Like any tactic or approach, hunters should consider this information relative to where they hunt. Targeting buck beds might be an excellent tactic if you hunt areas where cover is limited, but areas like the deep South, according to the research, aren’t conducive to this approach. For hunters in cover-rich locations, Dr. Strickland advises looking for optimal bedding, not just any cover.

He emphasized that the common factor these optimal bedding areas and sites shared was screening cover like “tree stems, grass, blackberries, palmetto, etc.” regardless of plant species. Rather than looking for hard edges or transitions, try concentrating on soft edges near bedding where bucks will feel comfortable traveling. Most of these transitions will likely hold natural browse as well. To find these transitions that don’t necessarily jump off the map, you’ll need to scout these areas next to cover.

“Think about where you envision the best of the best cover,” he said. “Look for trails and set up trail cameras on the periphery of those areas and consider how you can hunt those trails in terms of wind.”

You might not find a buck’s specific bed in these locations, but you can definitely find the areas where he’s likely to move.

Bump and Dump?

When hunting areas with ample bedding, you’re going to bump deer. The bump-and-dump technique might seem like a great idea, but what if a deer doesn’t need to come back to that specific spot?

Again, in areas where good cover is sparse, this can be a great tactic, but in locations where there’s great cover everywhere, you’re probably spinning your wheels. I’m not saying this would never work, but if a buck can run a few hundred yards and find optimal cover (and food), he doesn’t need to circle back to the spot where he just encountered a threat—not right away, at least.

The Takeaway

At first glance, these results might seem a little discouraging. After all, if you can’t predict where a buck will bed, it kind of seems like a roll of the dice. But, if that’s your takeaway, you’re missing the important data here, which suggests that bucks are comfortable in a variety of bedding situations, and they move a lot more than we think. Keep reading the sign and focus on the areas where bucks will feel comfortable traveling during shooting hours.