Do deer eat Rape?

Little Terry

Well-Known Member
Simple enough question really.......or is it?

I have heard conflicting opinions on this and have heard the odd bit about 'rape blindness', aparrently in Roe.

So, does anyone have the lowdown on rape grazing. All species, or just one or two????

Any other arable crops that specifically attract the deer from a feeding point of view? Beans, Wheat, Barley, Peas?

I know that anyone trying to cultivate Ivy would have a job on their hands with roe about!

I'm interested to hear your thoughts.

All the best,
Mark.
 
Rape?

Gents

I have seen lots or Roe eating rape, both mature & growing rape that is & they do love to hang about in the waist high rape.

Roe also seem to love Fodder Beat-as we have 1 field planted on the estate & they are mad for the stuff!

We also have problems with big herds of fallow grazing out & mixing with the sheep, they dont seem to bother about each other being there at all.

Regards Lee
 
Lee forgot to mention that corn is like candy for the fallow.

The bucks seem to love it in late summer and it gives them about an inch and a half of fat on their saddle and around their kidneys before the rut begins....
 
Fallow

Gabe

But you must aways be advised to have a loaded rifle whilst hunting them-or one day a bigun may cross your path & you will have to throw rocks at it!

Lee
 
BIguns

Mate

Sorry about that, I am sure you are always fully loaded now, I have the same problem with the other estate, whenever I drive past the front fields without the rifle case in the car there are 50+ fallow out on that stubble field & if I take the rifle & happen to drive past there is not a bugger in sight.

One day real soon I will catch up with them I guess.

Lee
 
nice bit of footage apollo
here are a few fallow


did hav a bit of footage with some munties in, but could not see them in the rape :lol: :lol:
 
apollo
i think the scouring i see over the winter
i say winter more like from xmas on,
is due to the wheat intake from the local shoots feeders
i hav only noticed this scouring in the roe from around mid march but mainly in april when the rape is just starting to grow with a vengance
not really noticed it other than this
 
Footage

Gents

That is some fab footage of the deer feeding in Rape, I have to say though that seeing that Roebuck even made a trained killer like me go all Bambi!

I am sure I will get over it though by the weekend!

Regards Lee
 
I seem to remember from my time in ag. (many years ago) that new varieties of rape were bred (referred to as double-low varieties) which had lower toxicity to deer/other animals. I can't remember which substances the new varieties were lower in. I'll try to remember to look it up.
 
Re: Footage

lwcdart said:
Gents

That is some fab footage of the deer feeding in Rape,
one more bit just for you :lol:

another of the same deer 5 yards closer but this time i was spotted


stone
 
They certainly do .
Then they go out and commit !! some !!but because its the rut , and the Does egg on the bucks is it Rape !!. We know it makes you go blind! But let the courts decide. ;)
Have often seen Roe /Reds chest deep in the stuff , even the old rape standings , they just love the stuff. I have observed Roe in groups,currently on new rape fields , barely nothing on barley, they just cross!!. I guess if there is stubble nearby , those are the places to be now
well it worked for me anyhow.
Regards Trapper
 
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