Tactics
17 results
- Tactics · Scouting and camerasBucks check many scrapes once each, and most visits come at nightCameras on 107 Tennessee scrapes logged 3,063 visits. Bucks made 73% of them and a median of 4.5 scrapes each, most buck and scrape pairings were one visit, and 67% of all visits came at night.
- Tactics · CallingLoud rut rattling drew 1.7 Texas bucks a session, and the rattler saw 43%On the Welder refuge, 171 sessions drew 111 bucks. Loud sequences in rut week drew 52 bucks in 30 sessions, 60% of all responders were first seen downwind, and the person on the ground saw 48 of 111.
- Tactics · Scouting and camerasDeer notice the flash and keep coming, and card checks may cost photosGerman red and roe deer reacted more to 850 nm infrared than 940 nm black flash, yet photo rates held. In North Carolina, unmasked camera checks came with fewer whitetail photos at one of two sites.
- Tactics · After the shotLead fragments reach well past a two-inch trimMinnesota sheep tests found lead up to 18 inches from the exit and Wyoming processor scans found metal in 32 percent of ground packages. Copper bullets left no detectable lead in sampled muscle.
- Tactics · After the shotExtension sheets cap a hanging deer at 40°F and split on the daysWisconsin and four extension services hold a hanging carcass at or below 40°F. Hang times run from 2 days to 2 weeks, and the long holds assume a steady cooler in the low to mid 30s.
- Tactics · Scouting and camerasRubs clump on small smooth stems, and fresh ones drew far more doe checksMaine rubs clumped on stems no thicker than 3.3 inches. Three tame Georgia does responded to rubs under 2 days old in 17 of 29 meetings and to older rubs in 1 of 24.
- Tactics · Scouting and camerasA photo model aged 4.5 bucks too old before the rut and too young afterTested on wild known-age bucks, a photo ratio model got 0 of 7 four-and-a-half-year-olds right before breeding and 2 of 14 after. Splitting yearlings from older bucks held up far better.
- Tactics · Stand safetyNew York found 117 of 125 hunters mistaken for game wore no orangeNew York firearm investigations from 1989 to 1995 found 117 of 125 mistaken-for-game victims without hunter orange. The same files still show line-of-fire and self-inflicted injuries.
- Tactics · Shot placementEarly steel loads lost more hit ducks than lead, even inside 35 yardsIn 1980 to 1981 Louisiana marsh counts No. 4 steel lost about 31 of every 100 ducks it hit against 23 for No. 6 lead. Scoring cripples per shot hid most of that gap.
- Tactics · ScentYour Smell Travels as a Ragged Ribbon Instead of a ConeThe wind arrow marks a bearing within a fan of directions. Measurements from three woodland towers put that fan at about twice the width during light winds compared with a breeze. Within it, odor comes in pulses.1.7 to 1.9×wider wind direction spread in light air than at 5 m/s or more, three towers
- Tactics · Shot placementTest Farther Shots to Find Your Bowhunting Limit, and Log Every ArrowNine arrows landing consecutively within a 10-inch circle establish only a lower limit of 72% for your actual hit rate with 95% confidence. Follow a printable log for testing progressively longer distances, with the math behind it and the results and gaps from three archery studies.90.2%lower confidence limit on hit rate after a streak of 29 hits
- Tactics · Stand safetyTree Stand Falls: What the Evidence Says About Staying AttachedSurveys, hospital records and a state report provide the fall figures we can check, but their counts measure different things. We compare them without combining them. Guidance from three state agencies shares these steps: wear a safety harness before climbing, maintain three contact points, use a haul line and tell someone your planned location. Wisconsin also recommends a ground-level lifeline connection and a foot strap.1 in 4of Wisconsin bowhunters have had a fall or near fall
- Tactics · ScentScent Claims Under Review: What the Tests ExaminedOur digitized readings of the Georgia playback study's published figure give modeled fleeing probabilities of 58% at first exposure to human speech and 19% to 27% for carnivore calls, with uncertainty of about one percentage point. Here, seven claims about managing scent are grouped by their measured results and their limits for hunters.58%modeled chance deer ran at first human speech, Georgia study
- Tactics · Scouting and camerasDeer Eyes Lose Small Details While Their Ears Favor Higher PitchesTests measured visual acuity at 4 to 6 cycles for each degree, with peak hearing sensitivity within 4 to 8 kHz. These limits describe what deer eyes and ears can detect. Testing involved no garments, detergents or field distances.4 to 8 kHzrange of peak hearing sensitivity in deer
- Tactics · Scouting and camerasWhy Camera Photos Can Mislead a Deer SurveyThe usual survey estimates the rest of the herd from bucks recognizable as individuals. Accuracy requires females and males to trigger pictures equally often per deer. Equipment varies too: manufacturers list trigger delays of 0.1 to 1.0 seconds.142herd estimate a worked camera calculation gets from 4,891 images
- Tactics · Shot placementWounding Estimates Span 4% to 50%: Where Shot Angle FitsEach estimate uses a different tally and denominator: struck bucks in Oklahoma, struck deer in Maryland, and Minnesota survey respondents. The bow research we located that evaluated shot angle included 61 deer, leaving hunter-education advice as the guide for choosing an angle.4% to 50%range of wounding estimates across studies
- Tactics · Scouting and camerasA Zero Is Data. Keep Sightings, Sign, Camera Effort, and Weather Apart.Keep a scouting log with separate columns for weather, camera-nights, sign, and live deer sightings. Save walks that turn up nothing, and never convert counts into an invented probability of occupancy.703Tennessee plots searched in a pellet group study the guide cites