Which is the Better Deer Pond: Natural or Constructed?
Deer, even mature bucks, don’t show any real preference between natural or constructed ponds. In fact, location is a far more important consideration: proximity to food and bedding and the abundance of cover are typically the deciding factors. In the end, deer want safety and don’t want to move very far to get it.
Still, if hunting pressure is likely to become a factor, it may be worthwhile to put in some extra effort to make your deer pond blend into the surroundings as much as possible. That could include things like building your pond at ground level instead of simply placing a container on top of the ground. Ponds dug into the ground will naturally receive runoff from rain and will build up a certain amount of sediment, which mimics natural water holes. Even better, this allows nutritious minerals to dissolve in the water, which just increases the appeal. Don’t worry about maintaining a pristine site, either. When mineral-rich water is available, deer won’t be put off by a bit of dirt and mud.
Choosing a Hunting Pond Site
Scarcity
When you’re planning to install a deer pond, keep in mind that you’ll get the most bang for your buck (see what I did there?) by placing it where water is scarcest. Since most water flows along lowlands like valley bottoms, ridge tops and flat expanses of higher ground are often on the dry side. When those areas remain undisturbed and aren’t targeted for development, they can be very attractive, particularly for cautious bucks. But even if bedding and food plots are available, deer will not settle there without a nearby water source. These locations often feature consistent wind directions, too, which makes hunting the spot much easier. If you have one or more spots like this on your land, dropping a hunting pond nearby is pretty much a guaranteed investment.
Cover
An exposed pond in the middle of a meadow or even a backyard swimming pool may attract a few does during the evenings, especially if suitable habitat is scarce, but you’re not going to see mature bucks unless something is seriously wrong. Deer are naturally shy animals, and any buck that has survived long enough to reach full maturity ranks high on the caution spectrum. For this reason, cover is a must to help deer feel safe enough to visit the pond during daylight hours.
It’s not necessary to have brush or trees growing directly to the pond edges, but there should be brush, dense timber or young growth nearby so that deer can check out the area before venturing out for a drink. As an added bonus, a relatively dense tree canopy will provide shade and cut down on wind, both of which reduce evaporation.
Food Plots
Food and drink just go together for everyone, right? Water keeps bodies hydrated and aids digestion. In fact, deer will typically visit water holes each evening, in route from their bedding spots to their favorite food plots. If you’re selecting a site for a constructed hunting pond, keep this in mind. Deer don’t like to go far out of their way, so it’s worth identifying existing or potential sites for each of these needs so that you can place your pond in an ideal location. It may even be worthwhile to move your food plots to create the ideal layout for long term residents.
Movement Corridors
Bedding, water, and food are the essential triad of resources for deer survival, and available cover at each of these points is critical to fostering long-term residency on your land. But these resource locations will be separate, and at least a minimum of travel between them is necessary. When you’re selecting a site for a hunting pond, take into consideration the travel routes deer will take between water and bedding and water and food. Deer aren’t going to be attracted to sites where they feel exposed as they move from place to place. Without any safe options, they’ll either move on to a better site (perhaps on someone else’s land) or they’ll never establish consistent movement patterns - a clear recipe for a frustrating hunting experience.
Staging Areas
Staging areas are relatively broad areas with plenty of cover where mature bucks feel secure moving about. These areas are typically used for social communications like rubbing and scraping, but their primary function is to serve as the boundary between safe cover and a major food source. A critical component of a staging area is that it features zero human interaction.
Deer habitats exhibit a consistent layout, which can help you place a new hunting pond, identify areas which should absolutely exclude human trespass, and determine the optimal location for your stands.
Starting from the most secluded parts of a habitat (often the center of a parcel of land or the center of several adjoining parcels), you’ll find mature buck bedding areas. Moving outward, you’ll find bedding areas for immature bucks and possibly a few doe family groups. The family groups will generally be closest to a major food source, while still maintaining adequate cover.
The staging area begins when cover is no longer dense enough to provide a safe bedding location and ends where coverage thins out adjacent to an important food source.
A deer staging area links each of the three vital resources and acts as a critical element in establishing and maintaining reliable movement corridors in the area it supports. If the staging area is disrupted, the daily movement patterns are likely to disintegrate, even for as long as an entire year.
Since it’s critical to avoid disturbing a staging area, placement of a hunting pond or watering hole requires careful consideration. A great location for a new deer pond, for example, is close to a dry bedding area and opposite the side of the staging area where the food source lies. A site adjacent to an established cruising area is ideal. Of course, hunting access must be central to your planning. A hunting pond placed relatively near a bedding area allows deer to stop for water before moving into the denser cover of the staging area, while a stand placed nearby, outside of the staging area, allows hunters to access it without spooking deer in the bedding area.
Stands
Location of a waterhole depends on your hunting style, of course. If you’re a bowhunter, for example, make sure your waterhole offers a stand location that puts you within shooting distance. If you place your waterhole too far away, you’ll reduce your success because the deer will be drawn away from your stands as they move to the water. You can also use strategic waterhole placement to slightly alter movement patterns, creating better access to your stands without risk of spooking your prey.
