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Off the Script
By Bob Humphrey
While the rut is simple and predictable in some states, not so much in others. QUESTION: I live in Tennessee and want to get on a lease or maybe even buy hunting land in Alabama. I heard the rut is in January in Alabama. Is the rut in January in the whole state, or does it start earlier in the northern part and get later as you go deeper into the s... READ MORE
Kudzu Love
By Bob Humphrey
The negatives usually outweigh the positives with this invasive plant. QUESTION: My lease in southern Alabama is being overrun with Kudzu vine growth. I have seen deer pull and eat at this vine. Does this plant offer any nutritional value such as proteins, or is it really just like feeding them shelled corn? ANSWER: Kudzu is an oriental invasive sp... READ MORE
Recommended Deerly Allowance
By Bob Humphrey
While you can’t really provide too much nutrition, overkill is wasteful. QUESTION: If you are providing a trace mineral block for deer to gain vitamins or minerals to enhance health and/or growth, then why wouldn’t it be good to have a higher content of the minerals in a deer feed rather than just a measurable trace? ANSWER: Deer utiliz... READ MORE
Pining for Better Habitat
By Bob Humphrey
Habitat options are plentiful with time, money and permission.
QUESTION: Some of my buddies and I recently leased a property in Alabama for deer hunting. It’s mostly pine plantations with a few fields in CRP and some bottomland hardwoods. Is there anything we can do to improve habitat for deer?
ANSWER: Much depends on the terms of your leas... READ MORE
Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow
By Bob Humphrey
Antlers aren’t the only thing deer shed.
QUESTION: I’ve been scouting a new property for turkeys this spring and deer hunting this fall and have been finding clumps of deer hair. I search the area but haven’t found any bodies. I’m wondering if deer get mange and if this could infect the herd.
ANSWER: Mange is transmitted b... READ MORE
Not Just the Weak
By Bob Humphrey
Coyotes and other predators aren’t as selective as you might think.
QUESTION: While shed hunting this winter, I came upon the remains of a large buck that looked like it had been taken down by coyotes. I thought predators only take out the sick and weak deer. This deer looked like it was healthy before they killed it.
ANSWER: Coyotes, like ... READ MORE
Tall, Tall Trees
By Bob Humphrey
They work for Alan Jackson, and for deer, too. QUESTION: I plan on planting some mast trees this spring and was thinking about sawtooth oaks. Is that a good choice, or should I consider something else? ANSWER: Sawtooth oaks are a good choice since they mature quickly and, in time, will produce prolific crops. However, don’t limit yourself to just o... READ MORE
Enough Nuts
By Bob Humphrey
Competition for acorns isn’t a big problem for deer and turkeys. QUESTION: We’ve had a pretty bad winter so far, and there was a very light acorn crop where I hunt. I’ve noticed a lot of turkey sign. Should I be worried the turkeys will eat all the acorns and the deer won’t have enough food? ANSWER: This is one of those myths that just won’t go awa... READ MORE
Not One and Done
By Bob Humphrey
You won’t make a dent in predation by taking just one coyote. QUESTION: I see a lot of social media posts about hunters killing coyotes to save the deer. Does removing coyotes really help deer survival? ANSWER: The answer is not as simple as you might think. There is no question that coyotes are a significant predator of deer, and removing a coyote... READ MORE
Gone Too Soon
By Bob Humphrey
What happened to my hit-list buck’s rack? It’s gone! QUESTION: I live in central Kentucky and am accustomed to bucks beginning to shed their antlers in mid- to late January. Unfortunately, a hit-list 10 pointer shed just before Christmas. Is there a rule-of-thumb date a buck sheds its crown? ANSWER: We get this question often, so it&rsq... READ MORE
High Cotton
By Bob Humphrey
Like most things, moderation is the key to using cottonseed as deer feed. QUESTION: Do you know of studies you can direct me to that show cottonseed does not impact the fertility of whitetail bucks? ANSWER: Not exactly, but I can provide some information on the use of cottonseed as an attractant or supplemental deer feed. It’s high in crude p... READ MORE
All I want for Christmas
By Bob Humphrey
It very well could have been a whitetail that wrote the song about two front teeth. QUESTION:This year, I shot an old buck – so old it had no front teeth. Is there some way I can tell how old it was? ANSWER: It’s probably not as old as you think. A lot of people don’t realize that white-tailed deer have no upper incisors – f... READ MORE
Natural Night Owls
By Bob Humphrey
Whitetails learn some behavior, but it takes millennia to change the nature of a species. QUESTION:Over the generations, are deer learning it is safer to move at night? –Steve H. ANSWER: Anything’s possible but that seems highly unlikely. While humans understand the concept of natural selection, we often fail to grasp the time it takes for a certai... READ MORE
Chew on This!
By Bob Humphrey
Sharp-toothed rodents are one reason shed hunting is a late-winter, early spring activity. QUESTION:I found several shed antlers this winter and noticed one was all chewed up. Why are some chewed and others not? What does that, and why? ANSWER: The most likely explanation for why some are and some aren’t is that the chewed ones are older – have bee... READ MORE
Youth Movement
By Bob Humphrey
You might be surprised at how many young bucks participate in breeding. QUESTION:I always thought the dominant buck in an area would do most of the breeding, but one of my friends said all the bucks, including the young ones, breed does. Can you tell me if this is true? If it is, will that result in poorer genes? ANSWER: The picture becomes clearer... READ MORE
Time in a Bottle
By Bob Humphrey
Some things get better over the years. Others, not so much. QUESTION: I bought a few extra bottles of deer scent (buck and doe) about three years ago and never opened a bottle of either. So my question is, should I just throw out the bottles and get some more or are the bottles still good? ANSWER: The bottles are still good but I’d throw out the co... READ MORE
Hot to Trot
By Bob Humphrey
You just can’t predict the rut, regardless of temperature. QUESTION: This year, right about the time of peak rut, we had a really warm spell and I hardly saw any deer. I’m wondering is it even worth hunting when it gets warm like that? ANSWER: There is research showing that daytime deer activity slows down when temperatures are unseasonably warm, e... READ MORE
Lying Down on the Job
By Bob Humphrey
Bucks, and all whitetails, do things that defy explanation.
QUESTION: My friend has a trail camera set up over a scrape. He has photos of a buck lying in the scrape for three hours. Is this normal in central Pennsylvania during November?
ANSWER: Yes, but only in central Pa., in November (kidding). Sometimes deer just do things that have no simple... READ MORE
Shoulder vs. Lungs
By Bob Humphrey
Is one shot better than the other for firearms hunters? QUESTION: I was taught to always aim for the heart-lung area on a deer, but I recently went on a trip down South, and some of the guys in camp talked about shooting deer in the shoulder. Which is the better shot to ensure you recover the deer. ANSWER: I’ll assume you’re asking about shots with... READ MORE
Not a Flat Tire
By Bob Humphrey
If you hear this sound in the woods, get ready! QUESTION: I was watching two yearling bucks sparring in my food plot, and I heard a noise that sounded like a deer blowing its nose or hissing. Out stepped a bigger buck, and the two yearlings stopped sparring and kind of moved away. Is this normal? ANSWER: What you likely heard is referred to as a sn... READ MORE