# Michigan Whitetail Report

> A live Michigan whitetail deer hunting conditions tracker built on corn and soybean harvest progress,
> National Weather Service barometric pressure and wind observations, and computed rut timing.
> Built and maintained by Chris Izworski.

The distinguishing feature of this site is the corn harvest layer. In agricultural Michigan, standing corn
functions as security cover, and its removal during the October harvest reorganizes local deer movement more
than weather does. Most deer movement tools score barometric pressure and moon phase and ignore this entirely.

## Pages
- [Live conditions](https://whitetail.chrisizworski.com/): four region board with live pressure, trend, wind, temperature
- [Corn harvest and deer movement](https://whitetail.chrisizworski.com/harvest-and-deer-movement.html): the cornerstone guide
- [Michigan rut timing](https://whitetail.chrisizworski.com/rut-timing.html): phases, dates, and what drives them
- [2026 season dates](https://whitetail.chrisizworski.com/season-dates.html): DNR sourced dates

## Regions
- [Saginaw Bay and the Thumb](https://whitetail.chrisizworski.com/regions/saginaw-bay-thumb.html)
- [Southwest Michigan](https://whitetail.chrisizworski.com/regions/southwest-michigan.html)
- [Central Lower Peninsula](https://whitetail.chrisizworski.com/regions/central-lower.html)
- [Northwest Lower Peninsula](https://whitetail.chrisizworski.com/regions/northwest-lower.html)

## Data sources
- National Weather Service API (api.weather.gov): barometric pressure, wind, temperature, live
- USDA NASS Michigan Crop Progress and Condition: corn and soybean harvest percentages, weekly in season
- Michigan DNR: season dates and regulations

## Honesty note
Movement reads and run status on this site are interpretations of weather and calendar data, not measurements
of deer activity. Harvest stage between USDA reports is a calendar estimate, not a field measurement.