“I don’t know why, but every deer we shoot is coming from your property. We never see one wandering through ours. If we don’t hunt the trails coming from your fence line, we just don’t see deer.”
My neighbor, Bill, told me that years ago. He discovered something that the neighbors on the opposite side of my property take advantage of as well—those deer call my property “home” for a reason: I don’t focus solely on food plots, and they do.
Every hunter wants two things: to see more game and to hold those animals on their property instead of the neighbor’s. We give unlimited attention to food plots, feeders, and mast crops when focusing on deer, turkeys, and upland game birds. While food is critical, seasoned landowners understand that there’s another piece of the puzzle that can make or break wildlife survival in the dead of winter. All of the animals we seek look for this type of terrain: thermal cover.
Game animals can find food in many places—picked cornfields, oak ridges, your neighbor’s bean stubble, or even that well-managed food plot. If we want to consistently have those animals on our property, we must remember that food is the lure; cover is the contract that holds them there.
Whether it’s hunting pressure or extreme cold temperatures, cover is key. They will always gravitate toward the ability to stay alive without burning every calorie they just ate. Whitetails will abandon prime food plots if they can’t find nearby conifer stands or heavy thickets in which to bed. Pheasants that have food but no grass or cattail sloughs for shelter will die in a single bad storm. Turkeys seek roosts protected from the wind. If they don’t find them, their outlook is bleak.
The bottom line is this: if you want consistent action on your land year after year, thermal cover is every bit as important as planting that brassica mix or a clover field.
Michael Tatman
Conifers: The Cornerstone of Winter Shelter
Nothing beats evergreens for providing hunters with game-holding cover. When planted close together, pines, spruces, fir trees, and cedars create microclimates that save deer and birds thousands of calories each winter.
Two years ago, while hunting deer on the last day of Michigan’s cold rifle season, I managed to shoot a buck. Rather than dropping on the spot, the deer ran, but I knew it wouldn’t go far. While walking quietly through the woods, staring intently at the signs left by the fleeing buck, I was startled by a young doe that burst out from under the branches of a spruce tree. I watched as the deer bolted away and caught more movement not far away. Another deer had been disturbed from its slumber and crawled out from under its spruce tree. These trees were providing prime bedding areas, with the low-hanging clusters of branches holding in the heat and protecting them from the wind and snow.
Thick cover traps a layer of still air. Even on a 10-degree day, that pocket can stay several degrees warmer than the open air. This is no different than the effects your sleeping bag has on you. For a deer, those degrees mean fewer calories burned just to maintain body temperature.
Blocks of conifers not only cut the wind and hold in the heat, but they also offer security. The area between a couple of these blocks will be a tried-and-true productive travel corridor—just begging for a tree stand.
Although this article has focused on deer so far, turkeys will use these conifers during bad weather as their roost sites. If your property has a thick block of conifers, your winter flocks will stick around.
Another benefit of a stand of conifers is that they break up lines of sight. Coyotes do a lot of long-distance scanning, looking for movement. A break in the landscape makes it harder for coyotes to pick off rabbits and pheasants.
Not everyone has the luxury of dedicating large swaths of land for conifers, but even a small, dense patch will turn your property into a winter refuge for game when surrounding woodlots and farmlands are barren. On my property, I plant 100 trees at a time and have been doing this for several years. I plant them a little closer than recommended, knowing that not all will survive.
To get the best bang for your buck, plant conifer trees on the north and west edges of your property or smaller areas to act as windbreaks. It’s wise to mix species—spruces, red pines, and cedars—to prevent disease wipeouts. Narrow rows won’t hold the heat (that’s the reason we’re doing this in the first place), so plant them in blocks or strips at least 50 feet wide. Narrower rows are just not as effective. I don’t mow under the trees—ever. The weeds and grasses are necessary for bedding and for ground-dwelling game birds.
Most of us are used to working up our food plots, planting cover crops, and seeing near-immediate results. Turning your land into a thermal cover magnet isn’t as immediately satisfying. It will take seven to ten years before you see the full results, and every year after that just makes it better. Your work will benefit the game on your property—and you—for decades to come. The question isn’t whether you have time; it’s whether you’re willing to start.
Thickets
Many hunters spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars planting food plots but bulldoze away the thickest, brushiest corners of their land because they look messy. That’s a mistake. Brushy thickets are wildlife gold, especially in winter.
Whitetails will use areas of dense dogwood, plum, or even hinge-cut hardwoods as bedding areas and will return to them year after year. The dense brush not only provides cover but, more importantly, blocks the wind. A modest 5 to 10-mph winter wind can double the rate of heat loss compared to still air. A dense thicket cuts the wind to almost nothing at ground level, which can reduce heat loss by 30 to 50% or more. If you want bucks on your property during daylight hours, you need this.
Rabbits, pheasants, and grouse all rely on thickets for survival for the same reason. A brushy corner may be the difference between a covey making it to spring or dying off.
Sometimes the Earth reclaims what’s been taken away, but most times we have to put in a little work to help out. One option is hinge-cutting small hardwood trees—cutting the trunk at waist height, while leaving a portion attached to the trunk. This leaves a still growing tree that sprouts new shoots at the cut and to the top of the tree which is now within easy reach of browse-hungry deer. Between the new growth and the horizontal cover from the fallen top, you’ll have thickened things up quite a bit.
If it’s not dense enough, try planting a few shrubs. The best shrubs are fast growers that also add some berries to the mix. I like dogwood and crabapple trees, as they provide cover for anything that chooses to enter and a snack for my game birds.
The best hunting properties have patches of thick, gnarly spots where you’d never think of walking through. These are the patches that deer and birds seek out.
Ken Dalton
Native Grasses
Tall native grasses like switchgrass, big bluestem, and Indian grass are ideal for keeping upland game birds and all game animals warm. I prefer switchgrass—sometimes referred to as “survival grass”—because of its height, density, and ability to stay upright in heavy snow.
These native grasses provide everything that the thickets we discussed above do. A switchgrass field provides pheasants ample spots to burrow into the grass clumps. These roosting spots keep them warm. Without it, exposure kills them faster than hunger. The stems creating the thermal pockets resist heavy snow, and game birds will create a tunnel system that they can use until the storm passes. Just like thickets and conifers, with the wind cut to zero and a “roof” of vegetation over their heads, the temperature can be 5 to 10 degrees warmer than being out in the open.
If you’re serious about holding upland birds on your ground, dedicate a portion to switchgrass or big bluestem blocks near grain fields or food plots.
Deer will use switchgrass fields as well, but unlike pheasants that tunnel in, deer mainly use it for cover and the all-important windbreak. When a heavy snowfall arrives, a deer in the switchgrass is getting dumped on.
A friend of mine, Ken Dalton of Attica, Michigan, has 10 acres that his adult kids can’t stand. Without the winding trails he has cut through, it would be almost un-walkable. It looks terrible, unkempt—almost. “What my kids don’t see is the grand plan of heavy cover, food plots, more cover, and more food. The deer, pheasants, and turkeys have no reason to leave!”
Sitting in his deer hunting shack proved Dalton’s statement true. The deer seemed to magically appear from all parts of his switchgrass patches on their way to snack on his winter wheat. The turkeys flew down from a long line of pine trees and spruces. They joined a rooster pheasant that was already feeding at the opposite end. At one point, I saw motion and thought I was seeing things—it was quail! It had been 30 years since I’d seen quail in Michigan, but my eyes weren’t lying.
Although I didn’t shoot anything, it’s a hunt I haven’t forgotten. His “messy grounds” work has produced a regular wild kingdom. When I met up with Dalton to tell him about my hunt, he just smiled. “And to think they want me to brush-hog this place and make it prettier!” he said. “I’ve spent weeks, year after year, working to get it like this. I guarantee you there’s bucks in there. My neighbors don’t see all this game. That’s because these animals know where the cover is. When it gets cold, I’ve got them all right here!”
A Little Science Goes a Long Way
To appreciate the importance of thermal cover, it helps to consider the energy equation facing wildlife in the winter.
A mature whitetail deer requires 3,000–4,000 calories per day just to maintain body weight in cold conditions. Without cover, their caloric needs rise sharply as they shiver to stay warm.
Studies in the Midwest show that pheasants without adequate winter cover have mortality rates exceeding 70% in severe winters, primarily from exposure rather than starvation.
Rabbits and grouse both rely heavily on brushy cover for predator avoidance and protection from the elements. Without it, they face a double whammy of vulnerabilities—predation and loss of body heat.
Every calorie spent surviving in the winter is a calorie that isn’t available for growth, reproduction, or fat storage. By reducing energy expenditures during cold weather, thermal cover effectively extends the carrying capacity of the land.
When winter bites hardest, food is only half the story. Without conifers to block the wind, thickets in which to hide, and grasses to burrow beneath, countless animals simply wouldn’t make it to spring. Thermal cover isn’t a luxury—it’s a necessity as vital as food and water. If your land doesn’t offer it, they’ll find it elsewhere. They have no choice.
By prioritizing wildlife’s winter needs, we not only give animals a fighting chance through harsh winters, we also create healthier wildlife populations with stronger body conditions and better reproduction rates. And ultimately, the most popular reason for improving thermal cover on your land is this: your neighbors will start hoping that all the game calling your land “home” will wander over to theirs instead of providing you with all the action!
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