Plants every mule deer hunter should know

[peaksandpoints]

Great thread!

 

[Clinicus22]

I never even realized half of these shrubs were different!


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[mikeafeagin22]

I don’t know how I missed this one when you posted it! This is as good as it gets. Thank you for taking the time to post a thread this detailed. Very much appreciated

 

[pulligWa]

very well put together and helpful! thank you

 

[Bull_n_heat]

very well put together and helpful! thank you

Happy to do it, and glad folks are finding some value in it. Plants are starting to poke through the snow around here. Great time to be out and getting a feel for them.

 

[TheGDog]

Also "Choke-Cherries". For Bow Season hunting.

A Lighter kind of Red, which progresses into a lightening of the Red turning to Orange/Yellow coloration on the flesh when they taste best!

In the San Gabriel Mtns in LA, End of August into September is when they become ripened up, I don't think it lasts long usually, due to the heat. So once they start turning, they won't last too darn long after that, since usually it's very hot around that time. They taste pretty fantastic actually, but have only a thin amount of the flesh to them, and a big pit, hence the name "Choke-Cherries".

While I've not personally yet watched MuleDeer also eat them, I Do Know that Black Bears definitely do! As they ripen, they just start woofing them down whole and leave scat piles of the pits.

Typically you'll see the piles on on a trail line that runs beside a water-line of some kind.

The Choke Cherry Bushes/Trees I've seen in there in San Gabriels, they grow like maybe just a few feet taller than a Man. They seem to only grow near-ish to water-lines. More like where a creek will flatten-out for a bit.

 

[TheGDog]

And I don't know it's name.. but there are these, I guess we'll call them small "trees"? (Didn't really strike me as a "bush", too splindly for that.

I've seen them out in the San Gabriels on North slopes in shady places not in thick canopy, but "some" canopy. And usually close to where a water-line comes thru.

It's thin spindly branches/leaves sorta reminding me of Weeping-willow but with longer thin narrow leaves, but that have/grow these thin, semi-translucent bean-pods, and from the worn-in path-way showing in the Earth all around those little trees, critters were definitely keeping themselves busy circling around that tree, picking those bean-pods over!

 

[Bull_n_heat]

Also "Choke-Cherries". For Bow Season hunting.

A Lighter kind of Red, which progresses into a lightening of the Red turning to Orange/Yellow coloration on the flesh when they taste best!

In the San Gabriel Mtns in LA, End of August into September is when they become ripened up, I don't think it lasts long usually, due to the heat. So once they start turning, they won't last too darn long after that, since usually it's very hot around that time. They taste pretty fantastic actually, but have only a thin amount of the flesh to them, and a big pit, hence the name "Choke-Cherries".

While I've not personally yet watched MuleDeer also eat them, I Do Know that Black Bears definitely do! As they ripen, they just start woofing them down whole and leave scat piles of the pits.

Typically you'll see the piles on on a trail line that runs beside a water-line of some kind.

The Choke Cherry Bushes/Trees I've seen in there in San Gabriels, they grow like maybe just a few feet taller than a Man. They seem to only grow near-ish to water-lines. More like where a creek will flatten-out for a bit.

Yep - chokecherries would definitely be on the list! I probably lumped them in previously with "mixed mountain shrubs" which would include service berry, mountain mahogany and chokecherries. Definitely a place to pay attention for deer if you see any of those though.

 

[Bull_n_heat]

And I don't know it's name.. but there are these, I guess we'll call them small "trees"? (Didn't really strike me as a "bush", too splindly for that.

I've seen them out in the San Gabriels on North slopes in shady places not in thick canopy, but "some" canopy. And usually close to where a water-line comes thru.

It's thin spindly branches/leaves sorta reminding me of Weeping-willow but with longer thin narrow leaves, but that have/grow these thin, semi-translucent bean-pods, and from the worn-in path-way showing in the Earth all around those little trees, critters were definitely keeping themselves busy circling around that tree, picking those bean-pods over!

I went down a rabbit hole for a few minutes yesterday trying to figure this one out, to little avail. I think I'm about a thousand miles from having first-hand experience with that one unfortunately. I guess you get what you pay for when you have a fish biologist from WY pontificating on what a shrub in the San Gabriel's is

However, that seed head (bean pod) sounds pretty darn distinct. If you can get your hands on a California plant guide, it should be one of very few. Please report back (I will do the same if I stumble upon it)

 

[TheGDog]

I went down a rabbit hole for a few minutes yesterday trying to figure this one out, to little avail. I think I'm about a thousand miles from having first-hand experience with that one unfortunately. I guess you get what you pay for when you have a fish biologist from WY pontificating on what a shrub in the San Gabriel's is

However, that seed head (bean pod) sounds pretty darn distinct. If you can get your hands on a California plant guide, it should be one of very few. Please report back (I will do the same if I stumble upon it)

Yeah man.. I actually think I will! I got the approval of my PCP doctor for my C-TIF procedure here coming up Monday 5-12-2025. So I'm going to be out of commission for 12 weeks, 3 weeks of which is liquid diet only. So I told'em I'd take 3 weeks off so I could at least get past the hell of liquid-only diet.

So, with the freetime, I'll see if I can find out the taxonomy of it, etc.


I remember thinking to myself "Hrmmph, doesn't seem like the kinda tree you'd think you'd find around here." so I was kind of wondering if it had somehow managed to get brought into the area by like a Human maybe? Guess we'll see while I'm recuperating, HA!

 

[TheGDog]

Quick search just now.... the seed-pod shape maybe kinda looked like either these
"Mimosa Tree Seed Pods".
...OR...
"Acacia Tree Seed Pods"

But I remember then being more narrow, less width. Could be maybe I was jsut seeing them at beginning of their seed-pod growth phase? And these pics are like more towards end of that season?

 

[malberto416]

Great info, thanks for sharing.

 

[Mondakfisher]

Great info. I have been trying to find more intell around this. I find there is even less studies and intell on the praire mule deer.

 

[wsemonchuk]

Great intel to have, just as valuable as knowing where the water is.

 

[Remmy788]

Thank you for sharing

 

[Zach Pritchard]

This is really great information. I appreciate the detailed insight on what to look for. Out of curiosity, what other food types can be found in dark timbered areas outside of the Russet Buffaloberry?

 

[Bull_n_heat]

This is really great information. I appreciate the detailed insight on what to look for. Out of curiosity, what other food types can be found in dark timbered areas outside of the Russet Buffaloberry?

Thats a good question... In some areas grouse wartle berries can be decent forage. Otherwise, aside from a handful of small forbs (fireweed comes to mind), I think it's pretty tough sledding. That's why they always seem to need some type of "edge" habitat. Not to say there's nothing in dark timber for them, but I certainly wouldn't expect a them to be gorging themselves in there without ever coming out (the majority of deer anyway)

The nice thing about deer is that they are very good at high grading their landscape. It has to be pretty threadbare before they can't find enough to at least sustain themselves. However, it's somatic growth (fat on the body) that makes for reproductive growth, and hence in poor habitat or really dry conditions we see that slow winnowing of the population because they just can't bring fawns along.

 

[Muskrat]

Great info!

 

[Chris in TN]

This is an incredibly useful thread.

 

[Traindriver]

This was a great Rokcast and thread! Thank you for the information!