MikeHanback.com

Deer Vision and Red/Green Lights

Mike: I am curious about something and would like to hear your thoughts. I have read where studies show that deer don't see in the red/orange spectrum very well, but they see well in the blue/green spectrum, which is why we can wear hunter orange, but shouldn't wear blue jeans. If this is the case, why are the new green flashlights being marketed as "not spooking game"? It would seem to me that they would do just that, spook them, and that a red lens would be better. Thanks, Brad in AL

Brad: In a big study at the Univ. of Georgia, researchers used optical instruments (same ones used to test our eyes) and fitted deer with contact lenses. They found that deer can see some some shades of yellow and blue, but cannot see reds or greens, they are color blind in those spectrums. Hence, all the “non-game spooking” red and green lights on the market today.

I think it makes sense to switch from a white light (w/yellow tints) to a red or green one to find your stand in the AM dark. But still, be smart. Go in downwind and sneak as quiet as you can; tromping in wrong spooks as many or more deer than lights IMO.

Knot-on-the-Jaw Doe

Lindsay from the Quality Deer Management Association sent this:

Mike: A QDMA member in Wisconsin, Tom Grall, got these photos on a trail camera in June. When we saw them, we thought it was a clear case of arterial worms, a parasite that actually lives in the arteries of deer. When the worms move into the carotid arteries of the neck, they can interfere with the muscles that control the tongue, and the deer can't swallow properly, so food builds up in the cheek or under the tongue. It's called a food impaction, and that's clearly what Tom's doe has.

But when we checked with Wisconsin DNR, we found there had never been a documented case of arterial worms in Wisconsin. After more checking with experts, we confirmed that other factors can cause food impactions, like an abscessed tooth, a broken jawbone, or even a foreign object like a stick or rock becoming lodged in the deer's mouth. Food impactions look bad but usually aren't fatal. Tom reports that he has gotten more pictures of this doe since June and she appears to be in better health. These pictures and the story will be featured in the August issue of Quality Whitetails. Thanks! Lindsay

Florida Whitetails

Vinnie sent me this image from his Cudde and I thought, Man, good looking bucks for Florida. He said: This property is right on the Gulf and is by no means a trophy-managed area. It is surrounded by swamp, and everyone is a meat hunter. But as you can see there are some respectful deer. Those antlers have a good amount of growth left. BTW, I never saw an animal here for the first couple years, but then we put in a couple of feeders and small food plots and it is an absolute 100% success story. If you take the time to do a little work and spend a little money you can increase your odds of big deer dramatically!

I had never posted on FL whitetails before, so I asked Vinnie for more and he said:

Florida bucks average about 125 lbs. but can go 200-plus on occasion; does average 95 lbs. The biggest deer in FL come from the northwest regions up in the Panhandle. The largest typical (168 5/8) was shot back in 1977 in Gadsen Co. The largest typical last year (163) was shot in Madison Co. There are a lot of good deer killed in the 130- to 140-inch range. The bucks don’t have the foods here to make them grow into giants but they are decent by all standards.

Rut starts as early as September in central regions and runs January to February in the northern parts. Find the core areas. Best bet for big bucks is super thick cover. Bucks lie up and may get up to stretch 10 to 20 times a day, but they might move only 50 to 100 yards. Hunt feed near the bedding spots. FL bucks go nocturnal so it is best to be in the stand 1 to 2 hours before light. Morning hunts seem to be better than afternoons. When the rut is on, hunt all day. Vinnie from FL

Summer Buck Groups (18 to 80 in a gang is a lot!)

Two days ago from Dean in IN:

Mike: The deer have been very active. I saw a huge bachelor group last night; actually I guess you would say one group of 10 and another group of 8. A 4-wheeler buzzed down the road I was on; they spooked into each other and left the soybean field as one.

How many bucks are generally in a summer bachelor group? I know groups aren't static, but the average gang I see has between 3 and 7 members.

Yesterday from Dean:

I saw the same group of 18 last night on the back side of the property. They seem to be hanging as one big group right now. I also saw another group of 11 about 2 miles north of there. There seem to be some dingers in this group as well!

The number of bucks I'm seeing is unreal and has surpassed last summer so far. I think that since there are so many more bucks per capita in this area, the bachelor groups are growing. But, I'm seeing some smaller groups in the same areas too. I'm not sure what the moon is right now, but the deer (bucks in particular) are out and about and how! Thanks, Dean

I agree with Deano, from what I've witnessed a gang of 3 to 6 is pretty common. (See picture of "4 Amigos" my buddy CJ Davis got in SC last summer.) But Dean might be onto something--with more bucks per acre in many areas, the groups have naturally grown in numbers. Mature bucks tolerate the young bucks and let them hang around this time of year, so you get a big mix of bucks.

Out West buck groups (whitetail) tend to be been larger. Luke Strommen on the Milk River MT says: "I have seen bach groups with as many as 20 bucks (give or take) in an alfalfa field. Most of those bucks will be in the 1 1/2- to 3 1/2 year-old range. Mature bucks seem to hang in smaller groups and come into a field in their own corners (good spot for your tree stand). I have counted 140 head of deer in a field before dark, 80 to 90 of them bucks (September and velvet). Does that count as a bachelor group, LOL?"

Interesting stuff. So, how many velvet bucks have the rest of you been seeing?

9 More Hot Zones for Monster Bucks

Jim read the earlier post on the East Coast's suburban monsters and wondered: Where are the other top 9 big-buck factories in North America? According to research by Joel Helmer, Ph.D in Quality Whitetails magazine they are: 

9. South Texas

8. Southern Indiana (red hot and moving up on list fast) 

7. Eastern Kansas (I'm rifle hunting there for TV this December!)

6. Northern Missouri

5. Southern Ohio (remember yesterday's 200" giant?)

4. Western Kentucky

3. Eastern or Southern Iowa (see picture)

2. Illinois (I might muzzleloader hunt there this winter)

1. Anywhere Wisconsin (Jeff B., Doug, Ian, Jake and you other Packers fans already knew it)

Big-Buck Hotspot: East-Coast Suburbia

The June issue of Quality Whitetails magazine had an article on the Top 10 Zones for Record-Book Bucks: Wisconsin, southern Iowa and Indiana, Kansas…and coming in at No. 10, East Coast Suburbia:

…counties around Washington D.C, New York and Philadelphia harbor small pockets of habitat that allow bucks to mature with little hunting pressure. Each year savvy bowhunters gain access to these small tracts and harvest some dandy bucks.

Like the one in the picture from a northern VA suburb. Imagine if you had permission to bowhunt the 2 to 5 private acres between the park field and the houses/streets? You’d have a decent shot at that giant.

This weekend would be a good time to put on civilian clothes (no camo) and a smile and start knocking on doors in subdivisions and small estates where the woods out back look prime for deer. No other hunters are asking for permission now, so you’ll have a leg up. Most people will probably say no; the Bambi-lovers will tell you, hell no. Say thanks for your time and move on. It only takes one good person with the right 5 or so wooded acres to put you on some P&Y bucks.

Another big benefit to all the un-pressured bucks you'll see: Think about all the $5 gas you’ll save by hunting closer to home this fall. You won’t even have to trade your F-150 for a greenie-weenie :)

Will the Deer Fawns Drown?

Hey Mike: My girlfriend and I were going out to set up trail cameras on May 24th and saw this fawn, which must have been just hours old, milking in the middle of the easement road. The car scared off the mother, but the fawn laid still and let us get these pictures. The little deer finally stumbled off on its face into the long grass. When we got back from setting the cameras they were both gone. Very cool! Thanks, Dan, south-side of La Crosse, WI

First thought: Isn’t a fawn the cutest creature on earth?

Second thought: Several bloggers have wondered if the horrific recent flooding not only in WI but also Indiana and now Iowa will kill a significant number of newborn fawns. I asked Missouri’s Dr. Grant Woods, one of the top deer scientists in the world:

Pregnant does simply move out of the flood zone, so no worries. The primary concern is for dropped fawns too young to move to higher ground as the water rises (like this one Dan photographed).
Fawn survival in flood plains is typically very high, even during flood years. To cause any significant problem, the water levels would have to rise very rapidly and be timed when the peak of fawn births occur but before they were mobile. This is a relatively narrow window of time. Rivers rarely rise that quickly, and most does are excellent mothers! Another concern is where the flood plain is the preferred fawning cover. When does are forced to fawn in adjoining croplands where there isn’t as much cover, predation increases. But overall, I’m not worried about the fawns and the herds in the flood areas. Grant

So most of the little deer should make it, that's great 

How are your Food Plots (and you?)

Somewhere under this tree is Dave's clover...

Mike: Here is what the storm did to my food plots the other day. It will be a busy weekend getting this mess cleaned up. I will let you know how it goes. Dave in PA

With all the violent weather we’ve had across the country—-huge thunder-boomers, tornadoes and the terrible floods in WI and elsewhere that are eating land and homes—-Dave and I are wondering how our Big Deer blogger friends are making out? First, we hope everybody is ok. Second, how are your food plots holding up? A lot of people are reporting that with the ground so saturated, they got their plots in late or not at all so far. What’s up with you?

UPDATE from Mark in Missouri: Here is a neat infrared cam pic of a couple of bucks enjoying my thick and flowering mainly ladino clover clearing, which is on it's 4th growing season. We've had about 30" of rain over the last 3 months, but this clover field is in great shape and the deer, turkey and yes the bats just love it!

Seen a Fawn Yet?

Anybody seen one of these cute little fellas yet? When and where?

Trivia: I just read in the QDMA magazine that 50 years ago a researcher counted the white spots on some fawns and came up with between 272 and 342--more than I would have thought. 

BTW, blogger Luke Strommen took this great picture on his Milk River, MT ranch last June.

Killer Michigan Food Plot (great anywhere in the Midwest)

Mike: We are going to put in our food plot shortly here in southern Michigan. What do you think might be a good food source? The 32 acre-property is mostly wooded, hardwoods and cedars with some swamp (see map). There is a 3-acre piece we can plant. As you can see, farm fields are on 3 sides of this property. This year for the first time the farmer has put in corn! Before it has always been potatoes and winter wheat, so we’re excited to see what deer the corn will pull out of the swamp and across the road. I thought maybe soybeans would be a good choice for our small plot, or maybe alfalfa. Any suggestions? Thanks, Scott

Scott, I have the perfect plot for you. A few years ago, Midwest big-buck hunter, farmer and land specialist Don Kisky told me about one of his plans. Dang, it’s tailor-made for your spot.

Plant those 3 acres with soybeans now, but leave a 20-yard strip all way around the outer perimeter of the plot, and esp. tight to the woodlines. In late August to mid-September, go back and plant that 20-yard strip around the beans with Buck Forage Oats (buckforage.com). The lush, green oats will come up fast and attract deer during the October bow season, and the soybeans (20% to 25% protein) are the best food source for Midwestern deer from November to January. That, combined with the corn, will make for dynamite feed all season. A diverse mix like that is what you want anywhere.

Plant it and they will come. I predict you will see a lot more deer than usual, and at least one of you guys will smoke a really good buck (hope it’s you :)