Please double check my deer knowledge.
11-11-2003, 08:10 AM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Feeding Hills MA USA
Posts: 128
Please double check my deer knowledge.
Ok, here is what I *think* I have learned about deer. Please correct anything you think I am wrong about.
1) Deer move mostly at night but can be taken at first light and right before sundown. The rut and cold weather (freezing and below) can lead to daytime movement
2) Deer sign like scrapes and rubs are visited at night so don' t hunt over them
3) Deer sign in fields and on the fields edges were probably made at night
4) Deer love white oak acorns and don' t like red oak acorns so don' t set up in red oaks.
5) Deer eat at night and sleep during the day
6) Mature bucks always walk down wind so they can smell for you and does in heat.
7) Hunt the beds in the morning and food at night
8) Deer like very thick areas and swamps
9) Areas where it changes from mature woods to thickets and swamps are good to hunt
10) Does move first and bucks follow behind
11) Does will walk main trials but bucks take secondary trails and odd routes
12) Stands higher then 15 feet help keep your scent off the ground
13) Deer usually stay within a square mile area.
14) Bucks like to be higher up on hill sides
15) Bucks live in different bedding areas then does
16) Golf courses are visted at night
17) Deer are smarter then me!
Thanks
1) Deer move mostly at night but can be taken at first light and right before sundown. The rut and cold weather (freezing and below) can lead to daytime movement
2) Deer sign like scrapes and rubs are visited at night so don' t hunt over them
3) Deer sign in fields and on the fields edges were probably made at night
4) Deer love white oak acorns and don' t like red oak acorns so don' t set up in red oaks.
5) Deer eat at night and sleep during the day
6) Mature bucks always walk down wind so they can smell for you and does in heat.
7) Hunt the beds in the morning and food at night
8) Deer like very thick areas and swamps
9) Areas where it changes from mature woods to thickets and swamps are good to hunt
10) Does move first and bucks follow behind
11) Does will walk main trials but bucks take secondary trails and odd routes
12) Stands higher then 15 feet help keep your scent off the ground
13) Deer usually stay within a square mile area.
14) Bucks like to be higher up on hill sides
15) Bucks live in different bedding areas then does
16) Golf courses are visted at night
17) Deer are smarter then me!
Thanks
11-11-2003, 08:22 AM
#2
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Michigan
Posts: 4,693
RE: Please double check my deer knowledge.
You' ve got it pretty much covered. Only missed one thing that I can see: Trust me, I' m no expert, but 24 years of hunting has given me one main observation about deer: they are unpredictable at best. They obviously do certain things to survive - eat, sleep, and reproduce and we know the behaviors around these things, BUT deer can blow your mind sometimes too. I don' t think we could ever know TOO much about deer, hang in there and keep up the learning.
11-11-2003, 08:37 AM
#3
Join Date: Nov 2003
Posts: 30
RE: Please double check my deer knowledge.
One more I can add that I think is a covered up conspiracy by every deer hunting publication.... They have been known to climb up in your treestands at night and check out exactly where they should NOT travel during daylight hours.
11-11-2003, 08:52 AM
#4
Typical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: QDM Heaven
Posts: 847
RE: Please double check my deer knowledge.
Take out any " always" and " nevers" out of the statements and you are doing well. There are rules of thumb but then there are always exceptions to the rule which make this one heck of a fun game to play.
11-11-2003, 09:04 AM
#5
Fork Horn
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Cary, IL
Posts: 356
RE: Please double check my deer knowledge.
I agree with Wolfen. There are never any rules that deer abide by. While there may be trends they tend to follow, it isn' t always the case. It seems like you' ve got a lot of it pretty well covered though.
You can only learn so much about hunting through reading books, magazines, and message boards. The rest comes from spending time in the field and observing deer and their behavior for yourself. Just like with anything else, the more you practice at it the better you become.
You can only learn so much about hunting through reading books, magazines, and message boards. The rest comes from spending time in the field and observing deer and their behavior for yourself. Just like with anything else, the more you practice at it the better you become.
11-11-2003, 09:05 AM
#6
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: SC USA
Posts: 1,434
RE: Please double check my deer knowledge.
Your thinking in absolutes and there are none in hunting !! I agree with some of your post but not a lot !!
1. Deer move more than that....... and from what I have learned (at least in the South) deer will lay up in extreme cold and move at mid-day well if the temp' s get up to the 40' s and 50' s !!
2.I don' t hunt scrapes or rubs and I do think that the majority of them are visited at night........but I know people who' ve killed deer over them during the day and have seen camtracker photo' s of deer using them during daylight hours.
3. Can' t all be made at night
4. They may prefer white but down here they' ll feed on others like red , water, etc.
5. No absolute......they browse during the day too
6. If you think about it ......that' s impossible !! A deer can not always be down wind of everything
12. It helps but doesn' t eliminate any scent
14. They will seek any cover IMO that gives them the most vantage points.....maybe a hill......maybe next to a swamp or river' s edge......but you can garentee that it' s hard to sneak up on !!!!!
15. I wouldn' t think so
16. I hunt.......I don' t play golf
17. Maybe........maybe not !! Deer are creatures of habit and are extremely in tune to their surroundings. They adapt to changes in that environment . You can out smart them...........just think of all the stories of the old timer shooting a big buck behind the camphouse while everyone is out at the stands !!
1. Deer move more than that....... and from what I have learned (at least in the South) deer will lay up in extreme cold and move at mid-day well if the temp' s get up to the 40' s and 50' s !!
2.I don' t hunt scrapes or rubs and I do think that the majority of them are visited at night........but I know people who' ve killed deer over them during the day and have seen camtracker photo' s of deer using them during daylight hours.
3. Can' t all be made at night
4. They may prefer white but down here they' ll feed on others like red , water, etc.
5. No absolute......they browse during the day too
6. If you think about it ......that' s impossible !! A deer can not always be down wind of everything
12. It helps but doesn' t eliminate any scent
14. They will seek any cover IMO that gives them the most vantage points.....maybe a hill......maybe next to a swamp or river' s edge......but you can garentee that it' s hard to sneak up on !!!!!
15. I wouldn' t think so
16. I hunt.......I don' t play golf
17. Maybe........maybe not !! Deer are creatures of habit and are extremely in tune to their surroundings. They adapt to changes in that environment . You can out smart them...........just think of all the stories of the old timer shooting a big buck behind the camphouse while everyone is out at the stands !!
11-11-2003, 12:13 PM
#8
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Ridgeland MS USA
Posts: 850
RE: Please double check my deer knowledge.
1) Deer move mostly at night but can be taken at first light and right before sundown. The rut and cold weather (freezing and below) can lead to daytime movement
2) Deer sign like scrapes and rubs are visited at night so don' t hunt over them
3) Deer sign in fields and on the fields edges were probably made at night
5) Deer eat at night and sleep during the day
6) Mature bucks always walk down wind so they can smell for you and does in heat.
10) Does move first and bucks follow behind
2) Deer sign like scrapes and rubs are visited at night so don' t hunt over them
3) Deer sign in fields and on the fields edges were probably made at night
5) Deer eat at night and sleep during the day
6) Mature bucks always walk down wind so they can smell for you and does in heat.
10) Does move first and bucks follow behind
I AGREE WITH MOST OF THE BELOW
8) Deer like very thick areas and swamps
9) Areas where it changes from mature woods to thickets and swamps are good to hunt
9) Areas where it changes from mature woods to thickets and swamps are good to hunt
11-11-2003, 01:51 PM
#9
Dominant Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Blossvale, New York
Posts: 21,199
RE: Please double check my deer knowledge.
YUP, there are no absolutes. In fact, a couple things you said may be down right wrong at times. My answer, NOT ALWAYS to ALL the ABOVE, and sometimes definitely NOT.[:-]
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