Early Season Scrapes
Filed under: Ask Grant, Deer Biology
Grant, Yesterday I was working on my property and came across six fresh scrapes. The moon phase is just leaving full and I know the hormones of the deer are beginning to change. Is this the reason for the increased August scraping activity? Also, are there are tricks to have a deer show their face during light other than the smell of estrus? I have pictures of many shooter bucks coming past a stand. However many of them are either right after shooting light or right before. Thanks for your thoughts, and good hunting! Ryan
Ryan,
Deer exhibit scrape behavior, especially marking the overhanging branch, throughout the year. I suspect you were blessed enough to happen on scrapes that were more active than most this time of year.
I’m not aware of any “tricks” to encourage deer to be more active during the day. I don’t think anyone fully understands why deer select when to be active. There are gads of theories. However, when these theories are tested by rigorous scientific study, all of them that I’m aware of, they are disproved. I guess that’s what keeps the fun in hunting!
One thought to consider is that I rarely place trail cameras near my stand locations. The process of checking the cameras seems to condition mature deer to avoid that area during daylight hours. I tend to place my cameras in open areas where I expect mature deer to be at night. I then learn when and where they are entering the field and attempt to think through where I should place my stand. I wish to limit the disturbance in areas where I plan to hunt mature bucks.
Growing Deer together,
Grant
