deer track buck or doe
 

How can you tell if a track is a buck or doe? I remember reading about it in Field and Stream I believe but I cant seem to find the maganize it was in. Also if you know what month the article on deer tracks let me know.

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

Supposidely in the snow bucks leave a drag mark behind their hoof print from some kind of claw. I dont know if this is true or not but it's what ive heard

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

Ive been told to look for the two little round holes behind the hoof print. Mature bucks are heavier and although they walk lightly, and sometimes quietly, the back two knobs, have no idea what they are called, i forget, touch the ground at certain points along the tracks

Jim

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

When a buck walks his chest is wider than his back half therefore the top track will be on the inside of the first track. A doe track will leave the top track on the outside because her chest is not as wide as her back half. The top track is when a deer is walking and they step on top of the previous track. In the winter a buck will leave drag marks in the snow from step to step in deep snow just because they are lazy ;)

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

Dew claws[8D][&:]

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

I politely submit that a person cannot tell a buck from a doe by any method except the very general guideline that a buck track is bigger than a doe. I don't mean to insult anyone, but all the stuff about dragging, and dewclaws, and wider chests, etc. is, well, hokum. Here in western MT, a track over 2" wide is almost certainly a buck, over 2 1/4" wide and I'll bet the farm on it. A 2 1/4" wide track is representative of a 3 1/2 year old buck. The exact cutoff width in your part of the country might be different by 1/4" or so, depending on your deer subspecies. I hunt with one of those school kid's protracters in my cargo pocket for measuring tracks. (Yeah, I know, it's nuts.)

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

i think this is not true that mark happens when deer are running or at least that what my dad told me

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

The two round holes are called DEW CLAWS. These are the little pieces of hoof that the deer use for extra support i would assume. Most of the the time does dont leave a dew claw mark because they are not as big. Most track that indicate the deer i walking and the dew claw marks are showing, its a good sized deer, possibly a buck. Generally, if you can fit a .270 Win or .30-06 casing in the track, its probably a buck. i would believe the width thing too. i dont think the drag mark thing with bucks is true at all. does drag their feet too. yeah, sometimes bucks will do it. but so do does.

slayer

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

the only way to truly tell if a track is a bucks , is to follow that track untill you get a shot at that same deer.;)[&:][:o]

JMHO;):D. there may be someone out there that can tell the difference , I have just never meet that person.[&:]

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

are you guys joking about this post or are you serious? if you are serious, a does print makes a "V". but a bucks print looks almost like 2 ice cubs but with the rounded part facing down and a small gap in between.

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

Read this:

http://www.whitetails.com/tracks.html

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

Generally the size of the track will indicate if male or female but of course you have overlap of big does and young bucks. Therefore it is a flawed method. Also in no way will you ever be able to truly tell how much bone he is carrying without actually seeing it. I think that is what scouting is for, unless I am wrong;). However one can use tracks or trails made to guess what type of deer might be making them. By this I mean a doe and younger bucks will take the path of less resistance and often the point a to b origin. Meanwhile mature deer will often be less in favor of such travel patterns and tend to have a wandering pattern to their daily travels. If you use the snow drag thing mentioned a doe will drag her feet but she will walk in a more straight line, while the buck will zig zag - we refer to them as ski tracks up here. Also look for the pressence of fawn or yearling tracks, this will indicate a doe present. Another way is to actually follow trials back into the bush, caution though make sure to have proper wind direction and be alert to exactly where you are headed. What you may find is travel ways, lateral lines, rubs, scrapes, etc on this little catch the leader expedition. Of course during the rut a buck may very well hop on a doe trail if she is hot, so things start getting grey on what tracks really mean...however if you hunt where the girls are the bucks will be around and you have more than enough other signs to help pinpoint what is going down.

So no real fool proof, easy method many ideas on what tracks mean but unless you see the deer making them you really never know what your following!!! To me tracks are just another visual sign to keep searching for a spot in the spot.

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

ive been told that whn a doe steps down in mud her hoofs split some, where as a bucks hoofs stick together , there will be a small space between the does hoofs and a bucks will have none

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

leffler,
i think you have it backwards. the bucks print will have a small gap between the bucks hoofs.

ill post pics when i get back today, im going to do a little trimming at one of my stands.

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

There is no sure fire method of telling a buck track from a doe track, but in general the larger the track the more likely it is a buck.

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

There is NO absolute way to tell whether a buck or a doe made a track unless you see the animal standing in them. End of story.

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

I couldn't stop laughing after i read this post, you guys are clueless
a bucktrack will be rounded at the front and even in, the length and width only indcates how old it is.
A Doe track will be pointed in front and spread apart a little more.
a fawns tracks are when it is hardest to tell

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

LOL.........:D:eek:

Rounded points are ONLY due to age and wear - A 6 yr old doe can very well have more rounded tracks than a 3-1/2 yr old 150" Buck

NO - It indicates How BIG the deers hooves are and possibly how big the deer is....LOL....
A 3-1/2 year old 250 lb buck will most likely have a larger print than a 180lb 6-1/2 yr old buck

THE ONLY WAY to tell for sure is to see whats standing in them;)

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

I have heard that a buck or a large doe will leave prints of its dew claws in the ground. Also I have heard that does and fawns meander and bucks walk in more of a straight line.

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

For those who don't think there is a way to identify a buck by the tracks, ask the Benoits of Vermont.

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

they will leave dew claw maks

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well i have been told that the buck walks in a straight line to where as a doe just walks in anything but a straight line you know how women are lol;)

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

I don't believe you can tell by looking at the track if you can say it is a buck or a doe. I also believe the bigger the deer the bigger the tracks, buck or doe. So you're going to tell me if you seen the track of cfdjay's big doe, that you would know the difference. This deer is a damn cow! And I just don't believe unless you see the deer you can call the track. I'm sure in the northern states or Canada where there's a lot of snow, and you see a single track which is following a bunch of other tracks, then yes I would say that's a buck following a doe in heat. Other than that I think it's just an old wives tale.

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

"BIG BUCKS" The Benoit Way, suggest reading the whole book but for this post, chapter 4 "Reading, Identifying, and Understanding Tracks". This family of Northern Vermont hunter are noted at being the best deer trackers around. They've taken 200lb up to 300lb VT, ME and NH bucks by tracking them down in bare and snow covered ground. Their sucess at tracking deer by reading their foot prints tells me there is a way to tell the difference. They've got two videos out and you can actually watch them do their thing!!

Where at in NH are you JimmyS? Morse Spoting Goods has a Benoit seminar each year around Feb/March and he also sell their books/videos and collectables.

[link]http://www.morsesportinggoods.com[/link]

RE: deer track buck or doe
 

MK...I live in Windham, southern part of the state and hunt from my camp in Northwood. I hunt J2, L and M. Specifically Northwood, Deerfield, Stratford and down in Windham.