Buck Memory???

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Is a buck's memory good or bad???

They can't remember anything hardly at all- I've never seen any indication of a buck using his memory while I was hunting.
2
4%
Bucks appear to have enough memory to remember me nearly killing them when I missed , but that's about it.
2
4%
Bucks have good memories and react to my stand approach, near misses, other hunters before they even begin to arrive...
27
59%
Bucks have excellent memories. They demonstrate this to me often.
15
33%
 
Total votes: 46
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Buck Memory???

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Sat Aug 23, 2014 2:57 am

Fellow Beasts, what do you think? Although bucks are typically not thought of as having the ability to reason, what about their memories and the influence it can have on them while we are hunting? What have your experiences been in regard to buck memory?


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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby Trailcamaddict » Sat Aug 23, 2014 3:05 am

I think bucks (and deer in general) certainly have memory and I think a pretty good one too. I know that several of the stands I have admittedly over sat are keenly watched by deer when they are in the area. This happens even on a first sit in a new year. I think they remember the disturbance in that stand from previous years.

I also hear about some bucks that will travel certain routes during each rut. Certainly there are hot does in a lot of placed during the rut and a buck could run all over the place. But they seem to have some preferred routes and this leads me to believe they remember these places and seek them out.
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby dreaming bucks » Sat Aug 23, 2014 3:09 am

Well, they remember where the food source is.
They remember where their water source is..
I know they remember where camera's are at, because my cousin watched a nice buck walk right around one and back on to the trail he was originally on....
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby oldrank » Sat Aug 23, 2014 3:19 am

I kinds relate a deers brain to a dogs brain just as alot of people can relate a dogs nose to a deers nose... an old dog will know the exact time his master should b home from work.. he knows his feeding time.. he knows friends and strangers.. how to do tricks for food.. ect ect.. my point being I have seen some super smart dogs.. some that almost took on human personalities.. transfer that intelligence into an animal that his only trick is to survive. I believe deer have pretty good memories. . They know how to look both ways when crossing a rd I watch em do it all the time.. they know your tree if its over hunted.. they learn n get smart.

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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Sat Aug 23, 2014 3:19 am

Excellent replies already...

It is interesting to see if the bucks can remember things from previous year's, beyond what has happened to them during the current deer season... near death experiences by your stand in years past, etc.
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby cbay » Sat Aug 23, 2014 3:32 am

oldrank wrote:I kinds relate a deers brain to a dogs brain just as alot of people can relate a dogs nose to a deers nose... an old dog will know the exact time his master should b home from work.. he knows his feeding time.. he knows friends and strangers.. how to do tricks for food.. ect ect.. my point being I have seen some super smart dogs.. some that almost took on human personalities.. transfer that intelligence into an animal that his only trick is to survive. I believe deer have pretty good memories. . They know how to look both ways when crossing a rd I watch em do it all the time.. they know your tree if its over hunted.. they learn n get smart.

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Great post.
What i used to consider being a little "paranoid" has become more "reality". Still a little paranoid. :?
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby VT Outfitter » Sat Aug 23, 2014 3:49 am

I believe that deer have a good short term memory, but poor long term memory. Not to say that a mature deer wont show signs of possibly remembering a stand location, it may appear to be that way. I think it has more to do with conditioning of the deer. An example would be a 3 year old buck that has been shot at from a tree stand, ran 20 yards, turn to look at what just happened, to see the hunter in the tree trying to knock another arrow moving around, and then busting out of the area blowing. Blowing will alarm other deer in the area that something went down, even the deer that didn't see the event will avoid that area after hearing the blowing. If this situation happens a few times in a season, deer may develop a habit of avoiding this area during day light hours or be very cautious when they enter the area. Deer, like most animals, are creatures of habit. A fawn follows the adult Doe to learn when and where to go. The glands in the deer feet give indication of who went down a trail and when. This is just my thoughts on the subject, and in no way do I have scientific evidence to back it up. This is my interpretation of my results from mistakes I have made in the past. Anyone have some real science evidence to share?
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby cbigbear » Sat Aug 23, 2014 4:07 am

I recently went to a seminar by a UGA deer lab professor, he was discussing the current studies of buck movement & fawn mortal taking place on Tensas NWR. According to their trapping methods all deer surly have good memories. He said once a deer is drop netted or nearly netted at a bait site the will not return under that net. They also avoid bait piles after being darted.

He showed us trail cam pics of this particularly large & old buck that they can not get a dart in. He has never walked under a net, & never visits bait piles while the darters are on stand (this is at night mind you). They have numerous trail cams pics spanning over an hour of this buck watching a field after a drop net was dropped & workers were doing their thing with the deer.
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby VT Outfitter » Sat Aug 23, 2014 4:21 am

cbigbear wrote:I recently went to a seminar by a UGA deer lab professor, he was discussing the current studies of buck movement & fawn mortal taking place on Tensas NWR. According to their trapping methods all deer surly have good memories. He said once a deer is drop netted or nearly netted at a bait site the will not return under that net. They also avoid bait piles after being darted.

He showed us trail cam pics of this particularly large & old buck that they can not get a dart in. He has never walked under a net, & never visits bait piles while the darters are on stand (this is at night mind you). They have numerous trail cams pics spanning over an hour of this buck watching a field after a drop net was dropped & workers were doing their thing with the deer.

Great info, I still cant distinguish between conditioning a habit and memory. I guess if a disturbing event happened once only, and the deer involved avoided that area for a year, then that would be based on memory. However, if the disturbing event happened numerous times in the same location involving the same deer I would think that's more like training or conditioning for a habit or response. Like Pavlov's dog experiment. I am not arguing, merely trying to understand and learn about something I know very little about.
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Sat Aug 23, 2014 4:38 am

VT Outfitter wrote:
cbigbear wrote:I recently went to a seminar by a UGA deer lab professor, he was discussing the current studies of buck movement & fawn mortal taking place on Tensas NWR. According to their trapping methods all deer surly have good memories. He said once a deer is drop netted or nearly netted at a bait site the will not return under that net. They also avoid bait piles after being darted.

He showed us trail cam pics of this particularly large & old buck that they can not get a dart in. He has never walked under a net, & never visits bait piles while the darters are on stand (this is at night mind you). They have numerous trail cams pics spanning over an hour of this buck watching a field after a drop net was dropped & workers were doing their thing with the deer.

Great info, I still cant distinguish between conditioning a habit and memory. I guess if a disturbing event happened once only, and the deer involved avoided that area for a year, then that would be based on memory. However, if the disturbing event happened numerous times in the same location involving the same deer I would think that's more like training or conditioning for a habit or response. Like Pavlov's dog experiment. I am not arguing, merely trying to understand and learn about something I know very little about.


excellent posts... when you throw in a buck coming back to one of these areas in the middle of the night and making a buck rub... was that to serve as a reminder of danger? Did he leave some other glandular scent near the rub to promote fear of the area? I don't want to get too far off track, as memory is the topic... but these are interesting points to consider.
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby johndeere506 » Sat Aug 23, 2014 7:15 am

dreaming bucks wrote:I know they remember where camera's are at, because my cousin watched a nice buck walk right around one and back on to the trail he was originally on....


I have seen this many many times in person. I wouldnt have believed how precisely the deer avoid only that 20 ft of trail if I didnt see it myself. Ive only seen 2+ yr olds do it, after about mid season. Never a doe either.
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Sat Aug 23, 2014 8:24 am

johndeere506 wrote:
dreaming bucks wrote:I know they remember where camera's are at, because my cousin watched a nice buck walk right around one and back on to the trail he was originally on....


I have seen this many many times in person. I wouldnt have believed how precisely the deer avoid only that 20 ft of trail if I didnt see it myself. Ive only seen 2+ yr olds do it, after about mid season. Never a doe either.


Excellent intel to see the bucks go around the camera. Sometimes they will abandon the trail altogether for a time.
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby Justin85 » Sat Aug 23, 2014 8:38 am

VT Outfitter wrote:I believe that deer have a good short term memory, but poor long term memory. Not to say that a mature deer wont show signs of possibly remembering a stand location, it may appear to be that way. I think it has more to do with conditioning of the deer. An example would be a 3 year old buck that has been shot at from a tree stand, ran 20 yards, turn to look at what just happened, to see the hunter in the tree trying to knock another arrow moving around, and then busting out of the area blowing. Blowing will alarm other deer in the area that something went down, even the deer that didn't see the event will avoid that area after hearing the blowing. If this situation happens a few times in a season, deer may develop a habit of avoiding this area during day light hours or be very cautious when they enter the area. Deer, like most animals, are creatures of habit. A fawn follows the adult Doe to learn when and where to go. The glands in the deer feet give indication of who went down a trail and when. This is just my thoughts on the subject, and in no way do I have scientific evidence to back it up. This is my interpretation of my results from mistakes I have made in the past. Anyone have some real science evidence to share?



I think deer are conditioned as well as have some sort of memory. I don't think it's logical reasoning as much as it is conditioning and being habitual.


That said, I don't think your example is quite that accurate, based solely off of experience.

Example: deer #1 blows at me based on noise/sight (not bad wind). More often than not, I'll see more deer that sit, which are perfectly calm and content, that I have ZERO doubt were within ear shot of ole Loud Mouth. I think they often just blow off the blowing deer so to speak as a loud mouth paranoid. Even saw the biggest buck I've swwn while hunting, last year, walking calmly, but in brush, within minutes of one going haywire right before he was in sight.

Sorry for veering off topic....carry on.


Just saying I agree with your theory but not example :D

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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby Stanley » Sat Aug 23, 2014 9:28 am

I could never put a handle on how much a buck remembers or how much is survival instinct. Just about every buck gets killed so their memory is not as good as mine. You can tell they do learn to survive. After gun season where I hunt they are really different than before.
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Re: Buck Memory???

Unread postby Edcyclopedia » Sat Aug 23, 2014 10:04 am

I unfortunately can only apply "deer" in general as I am still learning the art of 2.5-3.5 year old buck traits...

Good theories though...

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