I got this email one time from one of the top whitetail biologists in America. He said I could use his name if I wanted to post it, but I have decided to keep it mum because there is a still small but vocal minority of crossbow haters out there, and I don’t want this man to get a bunch of hate mail. (BTW, it is not Grant Woods, whom I quote often on the blog.) The scientist wrote: Mike: I have enjoyed your articles and posts on the use of crossbows in archery seasons over the years, and feel you have been as unbiased as possible. While the crossbow debate has lost some vigor in recent years, it can still bring out [...]

In December 2011 I posted the story of an incredible buck that then 14-year-old Devin Danflous shot with a 20-gauge as the giant walked by at 15 yards. To make the hunt even sweeter, Devin’s dad, Kyle, was sitting beside him in the double stand. The Licking County monster had 21 scorable points and netted 197 1/8. Just got this update from Devin: Hey Mike: I recently took my buck to the Ohio Deer and Turkey Expo and entered it into the “historical non-typical class.” It won first place! Also my dad got his big 8-point from last season scored at 146 4/8 inches, and it tied for 2nd place for “current year archery 8 point.” Thought I’d share since [...]

I just ran across some interesting research in the archives of deer science that I’ve been accumulating for the last 25 years. Researchers David Hirth and Dale McCullough studied and analyzed the snorting and tail-flagging behavior of whitetails on a Georgia reserve some years ago. For 2 years they accumulated data on more than 200 doe groups and 100 buck groups. They found that tail flagging occurred in buck groups 91% of the time and doe groups 95% of the time. Does are no more likely to flag their tails than bucks. They concluded that when deer encounter predators, they flag to keep their groups together. The researchers found that does (38% of the time) were much more likely to snort than bucks (only [...]