Antelope Home Range Size?

[Tag_Soup]

With a pronghorn tag in my pocket, I'd like to do some pre-scouting in a few areas of my unit. I am curious if those with more antelope experience find bucks tend to maintain a home range like a mule deer would or are they more nomadic? If I find a good goat in July can I expect him to be relatively in the same location in late August? Will water anchor animals? If there is ample water does that change the likelihood that they will stay put? The unit has large swaths of public with some medium sized pieces of ag land in the middle that can suck up all the good bucks in the first week of season so knowing where a decent buck is using public on opening day could be my best shot.

 

[wytx]

In my experience they will have a relatively small home range, but in the rut they will follow their harem. Where the lead doe goes , he will follow.
Lots of pressure may push them out of an area though, sometimes they do make a large loop and come back.
Once winter hits , they can migrate many miles to winter range.

 

[WCB]

From personal experience...if un-pressured a buck will normally have a very small home range during the rut once he has his does. I've seen the same buck with his does in the same quarter section (mostly the same couple hundred yard square) for days. Summer time they seem to have a routine and small home range also.

Here is the catch:

As with anything pressure will push them along ways. And lone bucks or in general bucks without does travel a looooong ways during the rut until they find a herd to harass or their own does.

Also, I have bowhunted August and early September and glassed and covered the country really well. Come back a few weeks later during the rut and out of nowhere nicer bucks and more of them appear where only does and small bucks were before. IMO their prerut summer ranges in cases are a way away from their rut areas just like some deer. So early scouting might be a disappointment or might set bad expectations. And of course they start migrating when winter moves in.