Consider Body Language

[Al C]

I hunt the National Forests ( State& Fed ) in my area. With all the logging activity going on most of the year, I think they get used to all the " Human " smells. Don't know how true this is, and I have experianced it, is they pick up on body language more so than the smell. Yea, they might get a wiff, but if your just be-bopping along in the woods I have almost walked up on various animals. When you go into predator mode, look out, as they'll pick up on it. Just my thoughts. Al

 

[Little Wattsy]

There has to be something to that.. How meny deer watch farm tractors, and logging skidders like cable TV and yet bolt at your 1st step out of a truck.. The "6th sence" is more then a urban myth... :2

 

[blackdog of vt]

I've witnessed this with cattle too. If you are trying to catch one that doesnt want to be caught, act like you are ignoring them and they loose interest. Try to put a sneak on and you end up working way harder. I've used this several times.

 

[Bill Hall]

I think it has a lot to do with eye contact. We humans can sense when someone is staring at us from across a crowded room, so I suspect wild animals are no different. Something I learned many years ago, and have tested many times, is to NOT stare directly at an animal when putting the sneak on it. Most hunters will have an unblinking focus on an animal when getting prepared to kill it, and there's that "Life or death" look in the hunters eyes that informs the animal of his exact intentions. The "sneaker" does not realize what a powerful signal his eyes are telegraphing, and the "sneakee" doesn't even translate the meassage, just feels it strongly and reacts.

Both human and non-human animals get most of their comminication from non-verbal cues, we're just not conscience of it. And as they say, the eyes are the windows to the soul, for us and also for our animal cousins. Bill

 

[sarcasmn]

I agree snowdragon. I have had deer looking straight at me while I was in a stand or on the ground. Those i keep my eyes covered with my hat and kinda look at sideways will calm down and go about their business. Those I look at directly and make eye contact with bolt right away.

Had a buddy shot a doe, climbed out of his tree stand and broke one of the cardinal rules. Left his rifle in the stand. As he approached the doe a large buck stepped out of the trees he says like 20 yards away and stared at him. He told me the buck just looked at him for a few minutes and then slowly and casually walked away. I was not there but he claims the buck was smiling.

 

[BrownBear]

You bet, at least in my experience. One of my favorite stunts that I carried over from bow hunting is to pretend I don't see a deer. It's helped me too often to count in getting closer to deer in open country. Don't look directly at them and keep walking like you don't see them, but at an angle that draws you closer while not walking directly at them. You can pass surprisingly close (and well within range) of deer that think you don't see them.

 

[hoochiepapa]

This is one of the things my dad taught me about hunting. In elk country, is you sneak, they're gonna bust you. We always try to walk normally, but scan with our eyes. Then as you try to get closer, don't let your eyes give you away.

 

[elkslayer]

I find this to be true for deer and elk. I find that most of the time the animal sees me first or at the same time. If I continue to walk at the same pace as if I haven't noticed, the deer tend to stay still and watch me. I just keep walking until I pass behind some brush or a large tree and bring the rifle to my shoulder and turn for the shot.

 

[Huntin_Dawg1215]

I agree with you on the "6th sense" thing. Seen it happen to maney times in the woods hunting.

 

[Flint50]

A little off topic, but there is definitely something to the "6th sense" My son and I were hunting showshoe hares in the Sangre de Christos.I had the feeling of being watched and asked my son if he ever had that feeling. He said "I had it just now". We looked all around but saw nothing. But I guarantee you it was some sort of predator, not a tweety bird or cute lil' squirrel. It was kinda spooky.

So it would make perfect sense that prey animals have it too

 

[Vaino]

When hunting whitetail deer in Wiscosin...if they see you, they're gone. Perhaps w/ mule deer or uneducated deer in wilderness areas, "acting" might work, but not where I've hunted.

When squirrel hunting, I've spotted squirrels on the ground and it didn't seem that they saw me, but as I approached, they maintained their distance and I never did get a shot. Evidently they "pulled" this "nonchalant" business on me.

This "evidently disinterested" body language might work on rabbits, but not many other animals.....Fred

 

[LRB]

I once got within 30/35 yards of 2 doe and a 4 point by duck walking and clucking with a turkey call. I had seen them at about a hundred yards and kept cover between us for the first 40/50 yards, then started my experiment. I would cover about 5 yards, the deer would stop feeding and stare at me, and I would cluck my call, and they would go back to feeding. I got within pistol range, stood up, and they flagged me. It was the day before season opened, so I was just seeing how this idea would work. And yes, we made eye contact every time they checked me out. Contrary to the belief of many, deer have poor eyesight as far as distinguishing objects, and they are color blind. Their eyes are tuned to see movement above all. If you think it is eye contact, it is highly doubtful. They are staring to see if you move, and if you so much as blink, they might see it depending on distance. I have looked many deer "in the eye", so to speak, and at close range, and then killed them when they looked elsewhere.

 

[Spikebuck]

I once got within 30/35 yards of 2 doe and a 4 point by duck walking and clucking with a turkey call.

On "The Bowhunter" video they show this technique as used by the Native Americans who would drape themselves in animal capes. One evening I had to get off deer stand early and when I hit the edge of the woods I saw a small buck feeding about 100 yards out. There was a strong wind right to me and it was just starting to get dusky, so I thought "What the heck, won't get him if I don't try." Just like you, I squatted way down and slowly "duck walked" a few "paces" forward at a time. I did not look directly at the buck but mostly kept my eyes to the ground. He would stop feeding and look at me..in the wide open alfalfa field! At 18 yards I could tell it was about to end as he was getting extremely nervous. So I brought my recurve up holding it completely horizontal (I actually practice weird shots like that) and put a wood shaft with a razor sharp zwickey through him.

A one-in-a-million chance, but it worked. A small 7-point, but one of my most memorable hunts.

 

[George T.]

All game has this trate based on how much they are hunted. Deer , Rabbits and bushy tails are all smart but talk to anyone that has ever hunted and you will hear some crazy tales for sure! Geo. T.

 

[FishDFly]

I hunt the National Forests ( State& Fed ) in my area. With all the logging activity going on most of the year, I think they get used to all the " Human " smells. Don't know how true this is, and I have experianced it, is they pick up on body language more so than the smell. Yea, they might get a wiff, but if your just be-bopping along in the woods I have almost walked up on various animals. When you go into predator mode, look out, as they'll pick up on it. Just my thoughts. Al

I am not sure about the body language thing at all and doubt it to be valid.

I am in the woods each day with the critters. I have my own gun range and the deer come out and feed while I shoot and change targets.

A good portion of the larger deer are killed by farmers and ranchers who smell of farm equipment and barn odors, thus you can eliminate the smell thing.

I have been fortunate to have a Father who hunted most of the world who mentored me and a local who took over my mentoring on hunting East Texas.

Most of my learnings are never mentioned here by key board hunters.

One shared by my Father and by my local mentor was, never look at the animal directly in the face, avoid all eye contact until you are ready to make a decision on what to do.

 

[crockett]

Here are some of my thoughts. Everyone has heard about being in the woods all day and then jumping a deer back near the vehicle. I have done that more times than I care to think about. Why does this happen? The deer hear the car pull up, folks moving around, you'd think they would spook and run. One guy I read about in Georgia drove his ATV right up to the tree with his tree stand in it and climbed from his ATV on to the ladder. But, pre-season he had been leaving his ATV there so the wildlife would get used to it. It seems like there is evidence of human scent not spooking deer. It seems that the deer sort of act more like a rabbit and make slight moves- out manuvering the humans- rather than running off helter skelter. It is probably the smart move on the part of the deer as just running exposes them and might just push them into another hunter, the sneaking around bit might be the better tactic on the part of the deer. It's been my experience that does tend to panic and run more than a buck. A buck seems to want to avoid running and prefers to maybe move just 10' or so if that's all it takes to avoid detection.
BUT on the other hand I've kept my rubber boots in a bag filled with leaves- and camo cloths as well, washed in scent free soap, etc and shot a deer or bear when other guys in the group saw nothing. It has convinced me that a scent free approach is beneficial.
I'm not sure what it all means. One time I was rushed, didn't have time to do it right, so I ran my vehicle out into the woods and let the scent of the car act like a cover scent and sat a few yards off along a little trail and shot an 8 pt buck about an hour later. I think this idea of mine, the human scent acting as a cover scent works only in places deer are used to the scent but once you are in deep woods a scent free approach is essential, if that makes sense.

 

[crockett]

On the body language: People in India found out that they could wear a halloween mask on the back of their head- so it appearred they were looking in that direction and this greatly reduced tiger attacks. I read about wildlife photographers in Alaska wearing sidearms while trying to take photos of grizzly bears and the bears would run off. The photographers figured the pistols must have been causing the people to act in a bolder than natural manner so they went back without the pistols and the bears didn't run. I do this a lot with squirrels etc- don't look at them and you can walk right by but look at them and they run. One guy thought that animals are constantly surrounded by danger so the presence of a distant danger they will tolerate to some extent and just keep a watchful eye.

 

[crockett]

Maybe we are the same, if I was in Africa and saw a lion walking past at 100 yards I'd take it's photo but if the same lion at 100 yards was crouched down and crawling in my direction- well..I wouldn't like his body language.

 

[Claude Mathis]

Yea, they might get a wiff, but if your just be-bopping along in the woods I have almost walked up on various animals.

Yes, be-bopping works, but doing the "moon walk" will make them think you're going in the other direction. Works every time.

 

[Kapow]

Preaching to the converted here. I believe in a virgin area the deer are less sensetive to a human form just going about your business. Also in a heavy traffic are deer are desensetised to human activity. But an area that sees a moderate or medium amount they are most wary.

I do a bit of spearfishing on the great barrier reef. You point a gun at a fish or make eye contact and they are gone in a flash. But if you turn your back on them and pretend to be picking at the reef or digging in the sand and they will come right up to you!

Oh and fish that get hunted a lot are very wary so the notion that they have a ten second memory is just ridiculous!