ORIGINAL: GMMAT
In terms of whitetail deer hunting......define "pressure".
Is it always (in your opinions) due to hunters?
Germ's reply to another post makes sense to me. He said there was an absence of big bucks in his area.....due to "pressure". I buy that. I'm the only one "legally" hunting the woods I hunt. But...the herd there is "pressured". I've always contended that a whitetail doesn't care if you're checking your cam....scouting....planting a food plot.....hanging a stand......walking your dog.....jogging or hunting.
He only knows you're in his bedroom.
I agree with this ......to a point. I hunted a place a couple years ago that I had to be drawn to hunt. It is public ground that is open to hiking and horseback riding. And it gets used a lot by the public. Bordering this property is an equestrian center......so you can imagine.
Ok, when I was notified of being drawn, I took to the woods for some scouting. I can't tell you how many deer I walked right up on w/in 20 yards and they just watched me walk by. I talked to several folks on horseback that had similar stories.
Fast forward to the hunt. Now I'm sneaking around in camo and off of the trails. I spooked quite a few deer. I personally feel like the deer noticed the difference in behavior, and while they didn't understand it was because I was trying to kill them......They didn't care either. It was different, and that's all they needed to know.
I think if there's consistant activity in an area, the deer grow used to it and it doens't bother them. That's why they simply watch a farmer plow their field, but don't try walking across it, or driving across it w/ your truck. I agree that for the most part they don't care what you're doing, but they notice the difference. And in most cases, human activity in the woods IS the difference.