An ace-in-the-hole trick

One thing is true about whitetail deer. They always pay close attention to any natural or unnatural sounds heard in the woods.

The smart bow hunter learns to use those natural sounds to their advantage. A couple of timely anecdotes come to mind as we ease closer to the Oct. 1 bow opener.

Several years ago there was a nice buck I'd been hunting, and he seemed unnaturally preoccupied whenever an airplane flew over. There used to be a guy that lived nearby, and he owned an airplane.

Certain common sounds seem to make deer curious.

He would fly over my land at about 6 p.m. in October when deer were on the move. He would fly over, turn around, head off in another direction, and then turn back my way. He probably never traveled over five miles from his little landing strip, and I used that airplane several times to shoot a deer.

This buck always seemed to stop and look up whenever the guy flew over, and I swear I could probably fall out of my tree stand and not disturb the buck. One night was very calm, and such nights make it difficult to arrow a whitetail buck.

The buck stepped out, and was only 10 yards from me. I could hear the plane coming, and the buck heard it as well. The plane passed just a bit south of where the buck was standing in a narrow opening, and the animal stared up into the sky at the passing plane.

Once the plane was directly overhead, and the buck's head was pointed skyward, I came to full draw. The arrow was through the deer and could be seen laying on the ground before the animal responded to being shot. The noise of that plane covered any sound that would be made drawing my bow.

Learn more about natural sounds that captures a deer’s attention.

There was another time when I was sharing a tree with a porcupine. I didn't see the animal when I climbed into position. I sat still and didn't move, and a nice 8-pointer walked into the clearing. The quill-pig began moving around above me, and made that soft little grunting sound they seem to make when content.

The buck heard it, and his head came up and looked up into my tree. I was well camouflaged in the cedar, and the buck spotted the porkie, and once the animal was identified, the deer ignored it and continued to feed while the porkie made his odd little noise.

It was another very still night, and the buck moved slightly, and I moved just two or three inches while making the soft grunting noise the porcupine had made. The deer lifted its head, cocked an ear toward my tree, and I gave him what he wanted -- two soft little grunting noises. Satisfied, the deer settled down and went back to browsing.

He turned and was positioned just right, and I gave two little soft grunts as I came to full draw, and the deer didn't bother to lift his head until the arrow struck home. By that time, it was too late for him.

I've used the cawing of crows, the rustling noises of squirrels and chipmunks running through dry leaves, the honking of geese overhead, and a variety of other natural sounds to cover my draw and my shot.

A few times I've allowed other deer to serve as a distraction to the buck I'm trying to shoot. Fawns go running back and forth in youthful exuberance, and I've arrowed bucks as they watch the young deer at play.

Let other deer move and make noise, and that seems to calm a buck’s nerves.

Every year I've watched young bucks practice head-butting and antler meshing, and although they don't work as hard at it as big bucks do, a larger buck will watch the young bucks as if he were a coach, and it's easy to take advantage of a buck under such circumstances.

Once I shot a nearby buck as he stood watching a doe that was snorting at something out of my sight. Apparently the doe could see it, but the buck could not, so he watched the doe as she stomped her feet and snorted. My arrow took him through the short ribs as he stood quartering-away, and it was an easy shot.

One year I used the noise of a rattle-trap school bus dropping kids off at home. The bus arrived about the same time each day, and a buck would listen to the hustle-bustle of the kids yelling, and then the clanking as it drove away. By the time the bus had shifted into second gear, the buck was down and dead.

Natural sounds won't always help a hunter, but be mindful of the times when a buck is occupied with some natural sound they are accustomed to hearing on a regular basis, and use that opportunity to prepare for and to take a shot.

It's an ace in the hole that can pay off.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors