Whitetail Security Factors

Whitetail Security Factors by TR Michels
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During my study of white-tailed deer I discovered that deer are affected by several meteorological conditions that I call Comfort Factors. Many of these same factors also affect the health of the deer and can be considered as Security Factors. Deer rely on their sense of smell, their hearing and their sight to warn them of danger. The conditions that affect the security of deer include scents, the amount of light, visibility, and wind speed.

Scents

Scents of various kinds can be left on the ground or vegetation and in the air. Pheromones, chemical signals left behind by deer, relay information to other deer, sometimes hours later. These pheromones may tell other deer the direction of travel, and the other deer’s sex, age, social status, sexual readiness, health, and may impart fear.

Abundant tarsal and metatarsal scent left behind when deer fight or are in flight will alert and often alarm other deer, causing them to avoid the area where the pheromone is left. Abundant interdigital scent, left when a deer stamps its foot after sensing danger, will alert other deer of possible danger up to an hour later. Scents of any possible predator; fox, coyote, wolf, dog, mountain lion, lynx, bobcat, bear or human will alarm deer and cause them to become alert and avoid the area where the scent is.

Unnatural scents and those associated with human behavior will cause deer to become alert and alarmed. This wide range of scents includes foods, chemicals and medicines from humans, fumes from vehicles, and the many products humans use in daily life that are not normally present in high concentrations in areas deer use. The higher the concentration of the scents the higher the state of alarm the deer will exhibit.

Two things cause lower concentrations of scent; dissipation and dispersal. Because scent molecules evaporate (dissipate) at different rates (based on the wind speed, temperature and humidity) the longer it has been from the time the scent was left the less there is, and consequently the less alarmed the animals are. Scent left in the air and carried in the wind is spread out (dispersed) by the action of the wind. The farther scent is blown from its source the less there is, and the less alarmed the animals are.

Sights

Deer depend to a great extent on their sight to alert them of danger. Their sight allows them to move at night and during the low light conditions of dawn and dusk when they feel most secure. While most hunters know this they have a hard time translating it into whitetail terms because we don’t think in terms of light factors, we think in terms of time of day or hours.

Humans rely heavily on that piece of technology worn on the wrist called a watch, but deer don’t have watches or clocks. So, what tells a deer what time to get up in the evening and begin feeding and what time to head back to bed in the morning? Deer do have a circadian clock in their brains. The amount of chemicals in a particular portion of their brain allows them to know approximately what time it is. But, although this clock may tell them it is time to move, the urge to move is overridden by the need for security. And one of the primary factors that affect the deer’s security is light. Older deer, bucks in particular, usually wait until the light factor is right before moving. I don’t know exactly what the light factor (or lack of light) is that tells deer when it is safe to move and feed. But, it is definitely low light conditions resembling the conditions at sundown and sunrise.

Anything that causes the light factor to resemble twilight or darkness can cause deer to begin moving. This includes clouds, fog, rain, sleet, snow and leaves. Yes, leaves. Remember that deer often bed in heavy timber where the leaves on trees and shrubs provide shade which makes it darker in wooded areas than it is in open areas. When there are leaves on the trees deer feel secure in wooded areas and begin moving and feeding a couple of hours before sundown. But, they don’t usually move into low brushy areas or open fields until the light factor there resembles twilight.

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