South Dakota acorn crop
Annual snapshot of acorn and hard-mast production for South Dakota during the 2023 hunting season — and what it meant for stand-site selection.
Annual mast report
2023
White oak
Red oak
Other mast
Regional notes
Average for state's limited mast habitat.
Hunter implication
Mixed conditions — some areas with productive oaks, others without. Scout for the pockets that produced and hunt the travel routes between bedding and mast. Plots and ag fields still hold deer where mast failed.
How to hunt this year
Mixed conditions reward scouting. Find the productive oaks and set up on travel routes between bedding and active mast — food plots, ag fields, and persimmons still hold deer where mast failed.