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The author with an Idaho "Stink Buck"Big bucks have the nastiest habit of holding tight. There are plenty of bucks that have got my goat using this technique. If he thinks he is undetected, a bedded buck will often let you almost step on him before he bolts. Many times I have bumped a group of mule deer and watched and waited. Then finally thinking all the deer have left, I have turned to see a monster looking back at me. It’s uncanny just how much patience ol’ mossy back has.
There is, however, one exception to this tendency, no buck no matter how savvy can or will tolerate the scent of a man. If the buck is holding tight, I can guarantee you that he hasn’t smelled you yet. Sometimes the buck will tolerate the sight and sound of man, but if he smells you he is gone. A mule deer can easily smell you down wind for up to 300 yards or more.
Not paying attention to wind direction is the most abused cardinal rule of mule deer hunting. It seems that the more open the country, the more this rule is abused.
If you have to cross up wind from the buck to make a stock ,just make sure that you are at least 300 yards away. Remember to error on side of caution, to the untrained observer 300 yards looks more like 500 yards.
We have all heard the excuses, "the wind keeps swirling all the time, if I have to pay attention to wind direction I might as will not hunt."
I couldn’t agree more. If the wind is wrong, you might as will NOT hunt. When the wind is swirling, go hunt somewhere else and come back another day. It is far more preferable to come back to an undisturbed deer than run a buck out of the country.
Mule deer bucks use olfactory to an extent greater than other deer. Not only will the buck use his acute sense of smell to locate food and to warn him of danger, he also uses it to navigate and to breed.
During the breeding season the buck becomes one of the smelliest creatures on the planet. The phrase "Stink Buck" refers to this putrid order. If you have ever had the opportunity to watch a buck enter a feeding area during the rut, you will notice that he will always enters up wind of the herd. His scent helps bring all of the does into season at once.. The does will come into season no matter what, but the smell of the buck hastens this and brings the enter herd into heat, thus ensuring that the fawns will be born within a day or two of each other come spring.
If this mass birthing didn’t happen the predators would be able to pick off the fawns, one by one, at birth. But so many babies being born all at once guarantees the survival of the species. Domestic herdsmen have used this knowledge to their own benefit for centuries. The Shepard would rub a cloth rag all over the male goat or sheep and then rub the females face with the rag to help their flocks to come into season all at once. This way the kids and lambs will be of similar size at market.
If you have ever tracked mule deer during the rut this use of the olfactory becomes even more obvious. The doe group will move in one direction and the bucks track will be following them in a zigzag pattern. The novice might think that the buck is trying to keep his herd together, but nothing could be farther from the truth. Deer are a matriarchal society. The lead doe is in charge. Males are followers, not leaders. This zigzagging serves two purposes. First, to keep the bucks scent blowing into the does and secondly, he is continually crossing all of the does paths to see if any are receptive.
It seems like our own egos get in the way and we become less aware of the deers scent and more aware of our own. In the last few years scent blocking clothing has become popular and to some extent even fashionable. This is good stuff and I even own a set. These cloths might confuse a buck for a moment or two, but will never be a substitute for using the wind favorably. As humans we shed an average of 2,000,000 skin cells each hour and it’s impossible for any suit to catch them all. Most human scent comes form behind our ears, our shoes and our breathe. Areas generally not covered by scent blocking clothing. These suits do help and can make a difference. But personally, I’ve been busted too many times in them and no faith in them what so ever. I’m sorry, but I have to breathe.
Good Luck and Good Hunting,
Jim
There is, however, one exception to this tendency, no buck no matter how savvy can or will tolerate the scent of a man. If the buck is holding tight, I can guarantee you that he hasn’t smelled you yet. Sometimes the buck will tolerate the sight and sound of man, but if he smells you he is gone. A mule deer can easily smell you down wind for up to 300 yards or more.
Not paying attention to wind direction is the most abused cardinal rule of mule deer hunting. It seems that the more open the country, the more this rule is abused.
If you have to cross up wind from the buck to make a stock ,just make sure that you are at least 300 yards away. Remember to error on side of caution, to the untrained observer 300 yards looks more like 500 yards.
We have all heard the excuses, "the wind keeps swirling all the time, if I have to pay attention to wind direction I might as will not hunt."
I couldn’t agree more. If the wind is wrong, you might as will NOT hunt. When the wind is swirling, go hunt somewhere else and come back another day. It is far more preferable to come back to an undisturbed deer than run a buck out of the country.
Mule deer bucks use olfactory to an extent greater than other deer. Not only will the buck use his acute sense of smell to locate food and to warn him of danger, he also uses it to navigate and to breed.
During the breeding season the buck becomes one of the smelliest creatures on the planet. The phrase "Stink Buck" refers to this putrid order. If you have ever had the opportunity to watch a buck enter a feeding area during the rut, you will notice that he will always enters up wind of the herd. His scent helps bring all of the does into season at once.. The does will come into season no matter what, but the smell of the buck hastens this and brings the enter herd into heat, thus ensuring that the fawns will be born within a day or two of each other come spring.
If this mass birthing didn’t happen the predators would be able to pick off the fawns, one by one, at birth. But so many babies being born all at once guarantees the survival of the species. Domestic herdsmen have used this knowledge to their own benefit for centuries. The Shepard would rub a cloth rag all over the male goat or sheep and then rub the females face with the rag to help their flocks to come into season all at once. This way the kids and lambs will be of similar size at market.
If you have ever tracked mule deer during the rut this use of the olfactory becomes even more obvious. The doe group will move in one direction and the bucks track will be following them in a zigzag pattern. The novice might think that the buck is trying to keep his herd together, but nothing could be farther from the truth. Deer are a matriarchal society. The lead doe is in charge. Males are followers, not leaders. This zigzagging serves two purposes. First, to keep the bucks scent blowing into the does and secondly, he is continually crossing all of the does paths to see if any are receptive.
It seems like our own egos get in the way and we become less aware of the deers scent and more aware of our own. In the last few years scent blocking clothing has become popular and to some extent even fashionable. This is good stuff and I even own a set. These cloths might confuse a buck for a moment or two, but will never be a substitute for using the wind favorably. As humans we shed an average of 2,000,000 skin cells each hour and it’s impossible for any suit to catch them all. Most human scent comes form behind our ears, our shoes and our breathe. Areas generally not covered by scent blocking clothing. These suits do help and can make a difference. But personally, I’ve been busted too many times in them and no faith in them what so ever. I’m sorry, but I have to breathe.
Good Luck and Good Hunting,
Jim
I love the part about sitting and waiting, even after you think they are all gone, and then turning and seeing a buck looking at you. It happens!
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