Crop Data Layers

Corn is a staple in the diet of whitetails across much of the country as it provides whitetails a starch that provides high energy and heat production. Using crop rotation data will help you determine where corn crops will be to key in on major food source destinations and ultimately find more success in the field.

Soybeans provide a highly nutritious, protein-rich food source for whitetails across their range. Often thought of first as a late summer / early fall destination food source, but soybeans are an effective attractant year round.

Alfalfa is a predictable crop to hunt. It’s perennial, so it will come back on its own year after year. It’s rich in protein, but useless after a hard freeze so it’s best to hunt while it’s hot.

Winter wheat is a cool season forage with high protein content and highly digestible for whitetails. Often rotated with corn, millet, even sunflowers, look to winter wheat as a late season food source.

Wheat is an important food source for many upland birds. Pheasants, sharp-tailed grouse, prairie chickens, bobwhite quail, and Hungarian partridge all rely on wheat as a part of their diet.

In winter, nearly 100 percent of pheasants’ diet is corn. In primary pheasant habitats, it’s often a crop rotation of corn, soybeans, and wheat. Look for waste corn left in fields for roosters.

Alfalfa plays an important role for many upland birds, especially in the summer. The perennial crop produces significantly more insects than others, which is crucial to brood rearing.

In the many pheasant regions, Sorghum is often planted by landowners specifically for habitat and hunting. You may find sorghum planted next to public lands. Look for birds that roost on public land early or late in the day.

Corn is a key food source for many species of waterfowl.  Migration routes are largely similar year over year, but when you’re hunting a new area, seeing what crops are planted where in conjunction with suitable aquatic habitat can create the perfect scenario for finding birds.

Wheat is one of the first crops harvested for the season, which also makes it one of the first food sources available for waterfowl. For much of the Upper Midwest, this harvest normally occurs at the end of August through mid-September, making it perfect for early goose season and the first few weeks of duck hunting.

For duck hunting in the South, flooded timber and rice crops are prized acres. Typical agricultural practices dictate flooding rice to prevent weed growth and, in effect, create the perfect habitat for waterfowl.

Soybeans are harvested after wheat and before corn. During certain periods of the season, they can be magnets for migrating birds. The fields are often harder to hunt because the stubble is cut lower, and it’s difficult to hide.

Alfalfa fields are not only hot spots for big game because they are food sources. Sprinklers and irrigation ditches present in arid western landscapes become water sources for these animals as well.

Winter wheat is an excellent food source for big game in October and November. Winter wheat is typically planted in August-October in western states giving it a head start to germinate and sprout in the fall months which provides a unique food source.

Hay is intended to be food primarily for livestock, but big game animals will congregate in these fields too. You could get a good inventory of how many big game animals are in an area, along with the quality of game, by scouting and glassing hayfields in summer evenings.

Wheat and grain fields such as oats can provide a food source for deer throughout the summer and fall seasons. During the summer they will browse on the grain as it matures and after they harvest they will feed on any spilled grains. Later in the fall there is potential for waste grown and other seeds to sprout and provide browse on tender green shoots.