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17 05, 2017

Best Guns & Loads for Black Bear

admin2020-06-10T09:16:29-04:00May 17th, 2017|BigDeer|3 Comments

Black Bear Week on Big Deer continues… One time out in Idaho, I made a pretty good shot on the big cinnamon bear pictured here. The 150-grain bullet from my .30-06 smacked him in the shoulder area, and he rumbled off into a ravine choked with alders, dead on his pads, or so I thought. I crept in there and found him rolling and flipping like a VW Beetle out of control. Teeth popped; the hairs frizzed on my neck. I put a finisher bullet in his lungs and it worked out, but I learned a lesson that day: A pretty good shot on a bear is not good enough; you want that first bullet to be pretty much perfect. [...]

15 05, 2017

How to Field Judge a Black Bear

admin2020-06-10T09:16:29-04:00May 15th, 2017|Big Deer TV, BigDeer|1 Comment

It’s Black Bear Week on Big Deer! Out West and up into Canada, hunters are watching baits, floating rivers or spot-and-stalking for bruins. The hunting will continue into June in some areas; here are some tips if you go. Is that fur ball in your binoculars big enough to take a shot at? For deer hunters, a black bear can be tough to size up. If you only have a few seconds to make your decision remember 2 things: --A mature shooter bear has big, thick shoulders and a roly-poly belly that sags low to the ground; the belly drags, or appears to. If you can see a lot of clean air between the bottom of the belly and the [...]

12 05, 2017

Do Deer Feed On Dead Human Bodies?

admin2020-06-10T09:16:29-04:00May 12th, 2017|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Deer Science|3 Comments

Suppose a hiker or a hunter gets lost in the woods, dies and is not found for months. Or some thug murders a guy and dumps the body in a remote area. Sure, a fox, coyote, bear or vulture or other scavenger would pick the body. But would a deer eat the decaying remains too? Sounds absurd, but... From an Abstract published in the Journal of Forensic Science: Herein, we report on the first known photographic evidence of deer gnawing human remains. As described in nonhuman scavenging literature, forking of the bone characterizes the taphonomic effect of deer gnawing in this case, which is distinct from the effect caused by other scavengers. This type of osteophagia during the winter season [...]

10 05, 2017

Camping World Takes Over Gander Mountain

admin2020-06-10T09:16:29-04:00May 10th, 2017|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Deer Guns & Loads, Deer Hunting|8 Comments

Tough times in the hunting/shooting retail world has led, sadly, to another mega takeover. Earlier this year Gander Mountain, which had been outfitting hunters for more than 50 years, filed for bankruptcy and was placed up for auction. On April 28, Camping World, the nation’s largest RV retailer, was chosen as the winning bidder ($37.8 million is a lot of money to you and me, but seems cheap for a brand like Gander). The big question: What does this mean for the 126 Gander stores built across the country? Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis said bluntly, “All stores are liquidating, and the inventory in there is going to go away.” Some stores will likely close for good, but “my goal [...]

8 05, 2017

Michigan: Buck With Third Eye Antler

admin2020-06-10T09:16:29-04:00May 8th, 2017|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Deer Hunting|Comments Off on Michigan: Buck With Third Eye Antler

@whitetailpress posted this picture on Twitter and asked: Found this crazy shed while out turkey hunting. Ever seen anything like this? Yes. While a third beam/tine growing out of a buck’s face is rare, there have been quite a few unicorn bucks documented over the years. What causes this rarity? It could be simply a freak of genetics, or scientists say a freak tine on the front facial bone of a buck can be caused by trauma, such as a tine puncture from another buck. Strangely, another tine then sprouts out from there. Most freak tines grow out from the long, flat facial bone on a buck, though there have instances of weird tines sprouting around and even out of [...]

Big Deer Blog

Best Guns & Loads for Black Bear

How to Field Judge a Black Bear

Do Deer Feed On Dead Human Bodies?

Camping World Takes Over Gander Mountain

Michigan: Buck With Third Eye Antler