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05-31-2003, 06:49 AM
#2
Fork Horn
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location:
Posts: 417
RE: Can you tell the difference?
The following is from the Whitetail Addict' s Manual, by T.R. Michels.
Droppings
When combined with other sign, deer droppings help you identify high use areas. Droppings help determine size, sometimes sex, recent use areas, and type of forage eaten. The most noticeable indicators of droppings are the size and the freshness. Shiny or moist droppings are fresher than dull, dry ones. Shiny droppings often indicate recent use of the area, usually within the last twelve hours.
Size and Shape
The size of the droppings can indicate the size of the animal. Because of the different subspecies of deer, the general size of droppings vary by locale. For northern whitetails, droppings less than 1/2 inch are generally those of does and fawns, droppings larger than 3/4 inch are those of bucks. Bucks also leave clumps of droppings in cylindrical shapes, the larger the diameter of the clump the larger the deer. These clumps are often found in or near scrapes, rubs and buck bedrooms. To determine the length of the pellets I use my little finger. I know that the last joint of my finger is about an inch long, the fingernail is 1/2 inch. The entire length of my little finger is three inches, and I use it to determine the size of tracks. If you relate the size of the droppings, tracks and beds to your finger, hand and arm, you have a better idea of the size of the animals in the area.
Location, Use Area
Once you have determined the size and possibly the sex of the animals, you can determine when and where to find them. If you know the size and sex of the animals, you can tell which trails are used by bucks, and which trails are used by does. Prior to the rut bucks often use different areas than does, and travel different routes than the does. Numerous droppings in beds indicate frequent use. Different size droppings and different sized beds tell you that the area may be a doe/fawn area. Similar size droppings near beds indicate buck use, and possibly that the area is used as a buck bedroom.
Hunter Use
Once a buck bedroom is located it is best to stay out of it, so you don' t run the buck off. Keep the area in mind so you can hunt near it during the season once you know the buck' s direction of travel in the morning and evening. If you find lots of droppings scattered over a large, it may be a feeding area. If you can determine what the animals are eating, it can tell you what time of year they use it. Many food sources are seasonal. There is no use spending time hunting in browse or a berry patch if the animals are grazing on agricultural crops or feeding on mast in a forest.
Tracks
Tracks can help you determine the sex of the animal and its size. There are a number of factors to consider when looking at tracks. Having nailed more than a couple of shoes on horses, and trimming a number of hooves as a guide, horse trainer and riding instructor, I know that no two hooves are alike; right and left, and front and rear hooves each have different shapes. When you look at tracks check the shape, size, travel pattern and how the imprints are placed in relation to each other. Look for drag marks and chips or abnormalities in the hoof. It is not a simple matter of size or shape that helps determine size and sex, it is a combination of factors. I especially don' t fall into trying to categorize an animal only by the size of its tracks.
Purpose, Scent, Travel Direction
Asking what the purpose of the track is may sound crazy, but there is a purpose to deer leaving tracks. However, it has little to do with the visual clue of the track itself. It is the scent from the interdigital gland in deer species that has a purpose. Interdigital scent is so specialized that animals can tell the difference between individuals no matter how many there are in the area. Interdigital scent is the main means of a deer tracking another deer. Females use it to track their young, and males use it to track females. Because scent molecules breakdown at different rates animals can even tell which direction the other animal went.
Size
There are 30 different recognized subspecies of whitetail in North America. These subspecies differ in size and type of terrain they inhabit. Deer in swampy or soft soil have less wear on their hooves than deer in rocky terrain. The large subspecies of the north have larger hooves than the Florida Key Deer, the Texas Fantail or the small Coues Deer. Like some humans, some big deer have big hooves and some have small hooves, so we have to speak in generalities. Usually older, bigger deer have bigger hooves than other deer in the area. This means that males often have the biggest hooves. One study shows that the width of the back of a mature buck' s front hooves (when they are not greatly splayed) is wider than 2.25 inches. But, size is not enough to say that the tracks were left by a buck.
Hoof Dragging, Depth, Splaying, Sex
Obviously if you see drag marks from September on, in dirt or light snow, you can make a bet that the animal is a buck. Mature bucks walk stiff legged, and swing their toes out, which causes them to drag their hooves. In deep snow any animal may make drag marks. By determining the placement of the hooves, looking at the travel line, and the shape of the hooves, you can become more sure. Because the buck carries a rack and has a swollen neck during the rut, it has a lot of weight on the front hooves. This weight is not carried directly over the hooves however. The mechanics of this are similar to a fulcrum and lever, like when you use a long handled jack to lift up your vehicle. Because the added weight of the neck and rack are in front of the hooves they exert more pressure than the actual weight. This causes four different effects on the front hooves: 1. they sink deep into the ground, 2. the toes spread apart, 3. the toes point outward, 4. the hooves drag.
Travel Pattern, Shape, Configuration of Sets
There are three other factors to consider when you are looking at tracks: 1. Because bucks make scrapes, especially dominant bucks, they round off the tips of their front hooves. Hoof prints that appear rounded on the tips are usually made by a scraping buck, meaning a breeding buck. This doesn' t mean a trophy buck, a small racked buck with a high testosterone level may be the dominant. 2. Bucks generally travel in a straight, purposeful line. 3. Bucks often step directly in or short of the prints of the front hoof with the hind hoof. Because does have a wider pelvis for fawning their hind hooves often land outside and ahead of the front tracks.
Groups of Tracks, Other Sign
If you see one set of tracks in the fall, instead of two or three of different sizes, or if the one set of tracks lead to a scrape or rub it is probably a buck. Large clumped droppings nearby, or large pellets indicate a buck. A urine stream that points straight down, not a spray toward the back, is from a buck. By process of elimination, and following the tracks to read the other sign, you can make an informed guess on the size and sex of the animal, but not the size of the rack.
So, I guess the answer to both questions is yes.
If you guys have questions like these bring them over to the " T.R.' s Tips" forum, where I can find them, and answer them.
T.R.
Droppings
When combined with other sign, deer droppings help you identify high use areas. Droppings help determine size, sometimes sex, recent use areas, and type of forage eaten. The most noticeable indicators of droppings are the size and the freshness. Shiny or moist droppings are fresher than dull, dry ones. Shiny droppings often indicate recent use of the area, usually within the last twelve hours.
Size and Shape
The size of the droppings can indicate the size of the animal. Because of the different subspecies of deer, the general size of droppings vary by locale. For northern whitetails, droppings less than 1/2 inch are generally those of does and fawns, droppings larger than 3/4 inch are those of bucks. Bucks also leave clumps of droppings in cylindrical shapes, the larger the diameter of the clump the larger the deer. These clumps are often found in or near scrapes, rubs and buck bedrooms. To determine the length of the pellets I use my little finger. I know that the last joint of my finger is about an inch long, the fingernail is 1/2 inch. The entire length of my little finger is three inches, and I use it to determine the size of tracks. If you relate the size of the droppings, tracks and beds to your finger, hand and arm, you have a better idea of the size of the animals in the area.
Location, Use Area
Once you have determined the size and possibly the sex of the animals, you can determine when and where to find them. If you know the size and sex of the animals, you can tell which trails are used by bucks, and which trails are used by does. Prior to the rut bucks often use different areas than does, and travel different routes than the does. Numerous droppings in beds indicate frequent use. Different size droppings and different sized beds tell you that the area may be a doe/fawn area. Similar size droppings near beds indicate buck use, and possibly that the area is used as a buck bedroom.
Hunter Use
Once a buck bedroom is located it is best to stay out of it, so you don' t run the buck off. Keep the area in mind so you can hunt near it during the season once you know the buck' s direction of travel in the morning and evening. If you find lots of droppings scattered over a large, it may be a feeding area. If you can determine what the animals are eating, it can tell you what time of year they use it. Many food sources are seasonal. There is no use spending time hunting in browse or a berry patch if the animals are grazing on agricultural crops or feeding on mast in a forest.
Tracks
Tracks can help you determine the sex of the animal and its size. There are a number of factors to consider when looking at tracks. Having nailed more than a couple of shoes on horses, and trimming a number of hooves as a guide, horse trainer and riding instructor, I know that no two hooves are alike; right and left, and front and rear hooves each have different shapes. When you look at tracks check the shape, size, travel pattern and how the imprints are placed in relation to each other. Look for drag marks and chips or abnormalities in the hoof. It is not a simple matter of size or shape that helps determine size and sex, it is a combination of factors. I especially don' t fall into trying to categorize an animal only by the size of its tracks.
Purpose, Scent, Travel Direction
Asking what the purpose of the track is may sound crazy, but there is a purpose to deer leaving tracks. However, it has little to do with the visual clue of the track itself. It is the scent from the interdigital gland in deer species that has a purpose. Interdigital scent is so specialized that animals can tell the difference between individuals no matter how many there are in the area. Interdigital scent is the main means of a deer tracking another deer. Females use it to track their young, and males use it to track females. Because scent molecules breakdown at different rates animals can even tell which direction the other animal went.
Size
There are 30 different recognized subspecies of whitetail in North America. These subspecies differ in size and type of terrain they inhabit. Deer in swampy or soft soil have less wear on their hooves than deer in rocky terrain. The large subspecies of the north have larger hooves than the Florida Key Deer, the Texas Fantail or the small Coues Deer. Like some humans, some big deer have big hooves and some have small hooves, so we have to speak in generalities. Usually older, bigger deer have bigger hooves than other deer in the area. This means that males often have the biggest hooves. One study shows that the width of the back of a mature buck' s front hooves (when they are not greatly splayed) is wider than 2.25 inches. But, size is not enough to say that the tracks were left by a buck.
Hoof Dragging, Depth, Splaying, Sex
Obviously if you see drag marks from September on, in dirt or light snow, you can make a bet that the animal is a buck. Mature bucks walk stiff legged, and swing their toes out, which causes them to drag their hooves. In deep snow any animal may make drag marks. By determining the placement of the hooves, looking at the travel line, and the shape of the hooves, you can become more sure. Because the buck carries a rack and has a swollen neck during the rut, it has a lot of weight on the front hooves. This weight is not carried directly over the hooves however. The mechanics of this are similar to a fulcrum and lever, like when you use a long handled jack to lift up your vehicle. Because the added weight of the neck and rack are in front of the hooves they exert more pressure than the actual weight. This causes four different effects on the front hooves: 1. they sink deep into the ground, 2. the toes spread apart, 3. the toes point outward, 4. the hooves drag.
Travel Pattern, Shape, Configuration of Sets
There are three other factors to consider when you are looking at tracks: 1. Because bucks make scrapes, especially dominant bucks, they round off the tips of their front hooves. Hoof prints that appear rounded on the tips are usually made by a scraping buck, meaning a breeding buck. This doesn' t mean a trophy buck, a small racked buck with a high testosterone level may be the dominant. 2. Bucks generally travel in a straight, purposeful line. 3. Bucks often step directly in or short of the prints of the front hoof with the hind hoof. Because does have a wider pelvis for fawning their hind hooves often land outside and ahead of the front tracks.
Groups of Tracks, Other Sign
If you see one set of tracks in the fall, instead of two or three of different sizes, or if the one set of tracks lead to a scrape or rub it is probably a buck. Large clumped droppings nearby, or large pellets indicate a buck. A urine stream that points straight down, not a spray toward the back, is from a buck. By process of elimination, and following the tracks to read the other sign, you can make an informed guess on the size and sex of the animal, but not the size of the rack.
So, I guess the answer to both questions is yes.
If you guys have questions like these bring them over to the " T.R.' s Tips" forum, where I can find them, and answer them.
T.R.
05-31-2003, 08:08 AM
#3
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Ponce de Leon Florida USA
Posts: 10,079
RE: Can you tell the difference?
I think it was last year in Deer and Deer Hunting magazine there was an article that stated that a buck usually had at least 75 pellets in his stool and that they tended to be of a larger size than a doe or yearling.
05-31-2003, 08:46 PM
#5
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Lehigh County PA USA
Posts: 12,157
RE: Can you tell the difference?
Me personally? No, but there are others more experienced than I that might be able to discern one still of droppings from another. They deal with that kind of " stuff" every day....
06-01-2003, 12:28 AM
#6
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location:
Posts: 98
RE: Can you tell the difference?
I reley more on tracks, ie size, depth, ect. than droppings... if your out scouting or even hunting and see deer... go look at the tracks they leave... there is a difference with weight, size between buck and doe or yearling.
][:-]
06-02-2003, 08:10 AM
#8
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: New Hampshire
Posts: 3,406
RE: Can you tell the difference?
TR...Teriffic article. As a frequent visitor to your " Tips" forum, I think information like this can be appreciated not only to the novice (new) hunter but also to the seasoned veterans..Even if I was aware of everything you wrote in this reply (and I will admit, I was not) it was still enjoyable to read.....Nice Job!
06-03-2003, 12:29 PM
#10
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Fredericksburg Virginia USA
Posts: 13,672
RE: Can you tell the difference?
The only way to really tell is to taste em