Deer & Deer Hunting is written and edited for serious, year-round hunting enthusiasts, focusing on hunting techniques, deer biology and behavior, deer management, habitat requirements, the natural history of deer and hunting ethics
Our world has been turned upside down these past few months, but one thing is for certain. We will get through this uncertainty. It should never take a tragedy, much less a pandemic, to right our collective compass. Putting things into perspective is much easier, true, so I guess there’s that reality. Our leaders tell us to be smarter, live wiser and — in the case of a worldwide disease — distance ourselves from each other. All I can say to that is thank God we have the outdoors. Social distancing is what we deer hunters do best. And while independence will help us from spreading COVID-19, for the purposes of this column I will focus on the mental health aspects of the exercise. Here are just seven of the…
The coronavirus has a lot of folks on edge these days, but we are all trying to do our best to fight it while keeping our sanity. We took to our social media pages to see how all of the Deer & Deer Hunting faithful were doing. From the looks of it, you all are doing just fine. Keep up your spirits and have a great month! I’VE GOT A FEW PIECES IN THE WORKS! Twitter: @DustinDattilio BEAVER TRAPPING! Facebook: Allen Morris SHED HUNTING! Facebook: Robert McCleese GETTING THE CAMPING GEAR READY. Facebook: James Watson PRACTICING SOCIAL DISTANCING AT ITS FINEST! Facebook: Frankie Hunt DEVELOPING A LOAD FOR MY DAUGHTER AT THE RELOADING BENCH. Facebook: Chad Cone SHED HUNTING! Facebook: Ricky Callis SCOUTING! Facebook: Jennifer Kapp FISHING! Facebook: Guy Grayson…
Find us on Facebook FACEBOOK/DEERHUNTINGMAG YOU’RE DEER HUNTING, AND A COYOTE SHOWS UP. SHOOT OR PASS? REACTIONS: 17,887 | COMMENTS: 1,128 RANDY OSTREM: I shot a coyote a few years ago during gun season and it was only 20 yards away. One hour later a 6-pointer came down the same trail. The buck stopped and looked at the ‘yote and wasn’t bothered a bit. LAURA BUSTIN: I’ve let three pass me now. I’d have no problem taking them out if needed, but they have been my first times seeing them. I was kind of in awe in the moment. Once they caught my smell or I made a noise to spook them, they left willingly and didn’t return. To each their own and I fully understand and support why most…
Many deer hunters profess a spiritual connection to hunting. In the solitude of the woods they feel closer to their Creator than they do anywhere else. The pastor of a small Catholic Church in rural southeast Wisconsin has embraced the spiritual aspect of deer hunting as a way to connect with hunters in his parish and the surrounding community. Rev. Jacob A. Strand is pastor of St. Michael Parish in the hamlet of St. Michaels, a rural community that consists of the church, a bar and an auto repair shop, all surrounded by acres of farmland and woods. He is also pastor of Holy Trinity in the small village of Kewaskum a few miles west of St. Michaels. Fr. Strand was raised in a hunting family where he learned to…
In a recent Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA) article titled “The Myth of Whitetail Metabolism,” the author posed the following question: “How do whitetails survive the harshest time of year?” He continues, “The truth is a whitetail’s metabolism varies extremely little across the seasons.” The author presented a graph with the title “Whitetail Metabolism Across the Seasons” that shows a flat metabolic rate from January to July, based on fasting metabolism measurements at the University of New Hampshire. The problem with the graph begins with the title. (Read the title in the sentence above again.) Given his description of the conditions deer are in when basal/fasting measurements are made, the title of the graph should be as follows: “Whitetail Metabolism Across the Seasons for Deer in a Big Enclosed Box.”…
Carbohydrate-rich agricultural crops are obvious go-to foods when looking to connect with trophy bucks. This means different things in different regions, from Midwest soybeans and corn, to prairie-state alfalfa and winter wheat, to Northwest garbanzo beans or northern field peas. Yet white-tailed deer subsist on many natural foods, often without the benefit of farmed crops, or by only visiting open agricultural fields under the cover of darkness. Targeting overlooked natural foods can give you the jump on deer reluctant to expose themselves during legal shooting hours, or in areas without farmland. Identifying readily available and highly nutritious and palatable feed in your hunting area allows you to tag bucks others are not privy to. 1. WILD & FERAL MAST Feral apple or pear trees are obvious hotspots for ambushing deer,…
