BigDeer Archives - Page 87 of 343

21 02, 2021

Hunt Sheds In Deer Bedding Areas

Clay Hanback2021-02-23T10:48:30-05:00February 21st, 2021|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Shed Hunting, sportsman channel, whitetail deer|Comments Off on Hunt Sheds In Deer Bedding Areas

When you’re out shed-hunting, pick up a deer trail and follow it for a few hundred yards to a half-mile or more, until you come to a thick and obvious deer bedding area. In winter a good one is a brushy southern exposure that gets midday sunlight, or the east side of a grassy ridge where deer hunker out of a northwest wind. You're apt to find fresh deer beds, tracks and dropping in the melting snow here. Back in hunting season you would have stopped before entering the bedding cover, tested the wind and worked the outer fringes of the sanctuary so as not to spook any deer. But now, plow right in. Of all the sheds you find [...]

18 02, 2021

How Deer Survive In Brutal Winter Weather

Clay Hanback2021-02-18T13:17:21-05:00February 18th, 2021|BigDeer, Deer Hunting, whitetail deer|Comments Off on How Deer Survive In Brutal Winter Weather

With temperatures at or below zero across much of the country, and snow and single digits as far south as San Antonio, I thought it a good time to reprint this post, which first appeared in January 2019: How do whitetails survive intense cold and snow? Chris Whittier, a researcher and professor at Tufts University, explains it well in this article: …deer physically prepare for the winter by better insulating their bodies. In the fall, deer gradually trade their summer hair coat for a winter one, which consists of thicker, longer, and darker hairs called guard hairs, while also growing in a much thicker undercoat. This winter coat absorbs more sunlight and traps more body heat than the summer coat, and [...]

16 02, 2021

New York: New Record Typical Bow Buck 191 3/8”

Clay Hanback2021-02-23T11:04:40-05:00February 16th, 2021|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting, whitetail deer|Comments Off on New York: New Record Typical Bow Buck 191 3/8”

From Outdoor Life: Dieter Herbert of Huntington, New York, is a self-admitted whitetail addict. This 27-year-old New York City carpenter spends countless days and dollars scouting, planning, and hunting… In Nov. 2019 a giant buck…appeared on one his trail cameras…and he nicknamed it “Split G4.” Dieter game planned and scouted the buck for a year. On Halloween 2020, hunting from a ground blind, Dieter arrowed 227-pound Split G-4. Gross score 197 4/8, net 191 3/8. The new state record typical bow kill! Read the full story here.

12 02, 2021

Kentucky: Lady’s First Bow Buck Scores 180”

Clay Hanback2021-02-12T10:27:35-05:00February 12th, 2021|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Bowhunting, whitetail deer|Comments Off on Kentucky: Lady’s First Bow Buck Scores 180”

From Realtree 2020 Rack Reports: Florida native Kim Ellis and her husband, Scott, took a road trip to Kentucky to hunt with some friends last fall. November 11 turned out to be a banner day. “It was a quiet, crisp morning,” Kim said. At sunrise two does walked within 30 yards. A 6-pointer followed a half-hour later. After that, activity slowed. Kim blind-called every 15 minutes. Eventually, a doe walked up the hill toward her position. A giant she recognized from trail-cam photos chased hot on her heels. “Thankfully, I was able to get him stopped, and that’s when I released the arrow,” Kim said. The buck wheeled and ran. She called Scott and they waited 45 minutes before blood [...]

10 02, 2021

Why Deer Shed Their Antlers Every Year

Clay Hanback2021-02-10T09:39:40-05:00February 10th, 2021|Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Deer Science, Shed Hunting, whitetail deer|Comments Off on Why Deer Shed Their Antlers Every Year

Why do buck deer spend so much time and energy growing new antlers each spring and summer only to shed them 5 or 6 months later? Scientists have chewed on this for years, but “we still don’t know exactly why,” says noted whitetail biologist Dr. Mickey Hellickson, who points to a couple of theories. Some biologists believe bucks (whitetail and mule) shed their old racks each January or February so they’ll have the ability to replace antlers that might get damaged over the course of the year. If a buck had to live his entire life with snapped tines or a broken main beam, he couldn’t intimidate rivals or posture for does in the local hierarchy. A second theory suggests [...]