What Deer Eat When the Snow Falls

[red44]

In my woods they'll be eating fir and cedar if they can find it. Neighborhood shrubs if not. (I don't have big woods or crops around). Thats with fairly deep snow like we just got.

[Brian Krebs]

Because deer have no top teeth in the front- they grab twigs; and tear off the end. So watch for which plants have tops torn off. Rabbits have the top incisors and snip off twigs even. In snow; both might feed at the same level. But deer can reach up to six feet.

Follow trails and look for the sign of deer feeding; and then look for where there is more of what they were eating.

[Jim Rocole]

The dig a lot of acorns up through the snow in my neck of the woods. I also see them browse on Balsam and cedar when a crust is formed and they can't dig thru. This year I would expect them to be in the corn fields since a large portion of the corn is still unharvested because of the high moisture content

[Tom Leemans]

This is why I hope I have time to out over the Christmas weekend. Where I hunt has a nice place they like, out of the wind, lots of lush grass under the snow. It's a natural drainage area so the grass is always greener there.

[hayslope]

I've been watching many of them eating multiflora rose leaves lately.  I always thought that any creature that would brave that plant has to be a tough one indeed!

[Mint]

Just the thread I was looking for. We usually never get much snow while the season is open so I was wondering how to hunt tomorrow since I don't have any spots by the small farms in the area. A lot of people have up deer proof fences now too. There is still plenty of acorns under the snow and i have plenty of rhododendrums where i hunt so with any luck i'll see some deer. What is ironic is that I finally moved my stand to this trail where all the deer were coming down and it snows lol

[moose eye levi]

They seem to like honey suckle pretty well

[mwosborn]

We are in the middle of our second major snow storm as I type.  Sitting out the last few days I watched several browsing on red cedar and dead leaves before heading to the corn and beans in places the wind has blown away the snow.

[Barry Wensel]

I was talking to one of my friends about this earlier today. Late Sunday afternoon/ early evening we got about two inches of snow. Monday I headed to a stand I had on an edge leading towards the cornfield. On my way in I had to walk through a large CRP field along a ridge top. The weeds looked like a barnyard with fresh tracks. This is on a snow less than 20 hours old. There's standing beans to the north and cut corn to the south but they were pounding the weeds for something. I tried to learn what they were eating but there wasn't any specific plant or pattern that I could tell other than they were browsing and not pawing. I ended up changing my initial plans because of all the sign. I sat another stand I had closer to the weeds. I ended up seeing five does and one 5x4 and they appeared to be just wandering around. Then yesterday I went to the same general area only sat another stand where I could see more of the weedy area and guess what... I never saw a deer. Whitetails never cease to amaze me. And we think we're experts! ha. BW

[BEN]

Birdseed-----after they come down and knock down my backyard bird feeder!!!!

They know the dog can't get beyond her cable---and me and my bow are safely in the house, or, even worse: I come down from hunting the top of my hill and my wife says they were down raiding  the back yard!!      

[foxbo]

I'd say the best spot would be a honey suckle bottom adjacent to a crop field during heavy snow. I've never seen a honey suckle patch void of deer tracks in the snow.

[Pepper]

Been tearing up my turnips.

[RM81]

I've seen deer in my yard digging up rotten apples with snow on the ground.  Last year I didn't bother picking up the fallen apples and saw deer several times feeding on them at night.

[Shaun]

I watched deer eating honey locust pods yesterday. They could smell them under 6" of heavy snow and paw them up to munch happily. This stand is in a pig nut hickory and the ground around it was trampled when the mast fell. Now its trampled again as they search for honey locust pods from several adjacent trees.

[Roy Steele]

Honey suckle is the #1 food scource in WV when the snow hits.

[mwmwmb]

What is this Snow, of which you speak? I sure wish I could see it.      

[Molson]

Around here a downed tree top with leaves on it is a gold mine when the snow is deep.  Also pines on the edge of a field, especially Frasiers.  These are the spots hit during the daylight while remaining crops are usually visited well after dark.

[rock_hunter]

Here in farm country they are hitting the corn, alfalfa, and winter wheat fields.  In the prairie they always seem to love big bluestem.